For a college student, pulling an all-nighter is a rite of passage, but when students give up sleep time for studying or partying, the effects may last longer than they think.
More and more studies are showing that college students are sleep-deprived, which affects their performance in academics, athletics and other daily activities. To make up for their lack of sleep, they often turn to caffeine to get them through the day, which may compound the symptoms of sleep deprivation, such as headache, fatigue and irritability.
Judson College’s Marsha Ford has worked with dorm students. She said freshmen especially have a tendency to put sleep second to other activities, such as studying and socializing.
“Freshmen tend to sleep less because they watch a lot of television and stay up talking with new friends or old friends from high school,” said Ford, sports information director and residence hall director at Judson.
Ford said most students quickly adapt to college life and find a routine that works for them. Still, many studies have shown that students are sleeping less than they should.
Pamela Thacher, associate professor of psychology at St. Lawrence University in Canton, N.Y., studied the sleeping patterns and transcripts of 111 students to see how sleep affected their grade-point averages. Two-thirds of the students in the study reported that they had pulled at least one all-nighter during a semester. Those students who skipped sleep regularly generally had lower GPAs.
“Pulling all-nighters compromises your sleep over all,” Thacher said. “You can’t do your best work when you’re sleep-deprived.”
Thacher attributes college students’ sleep deprivation to several factors, including poor time management and the overuse and availability of caffeinated beverages, which sleepy students are increasingly turning to for the energy boost they need to make it through the day.
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 80 percent of adults in the U.S. consume caffeine every day.
The average adult consumes 200 milligrams per day, the amount in 2 cups of coffee or four soft drinks.
For college students, energy drinks and coffee are staples, and the caffeine can really add up. For example, an 8-ounce cup of brewed coffee might contain 80 to 135 milligrams of caffeine. Sprite has no caffeine, but most other soft drinks have 35 to 50 milligrams of caffeine per serving. An 8-ounce serving of iced tea contains 47 milligrams of caffeine, but an 8.3-ounce can of Red Bull energy drink contains 80 milligrams. A 2-ounce espresso can have as much as 100 milligrams of caffeine per serving.
Statistics are not easy to come by regarding caffeine use by college students, but many college Web sites contain articles warning students about the many ways excessive caffeine and sugar can affect their minds and bodies.
Shauna Yelton, director of student health at Samford University, has not seen big problems with caffeine overuse on her campus. However, she does hear complaints from students about sleep problems, including difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep. Many of these complaints, she said, are tied to stress.
“Learning to balance academic requirements, studying, work and social time is more often a learned skill than an innate ability,” Yelton said. “Students are probably more likely to place higher value on academics and social life than self-care, at least for the moment. They often assume they’ll catch up or make up their sleep at another time.”
So how much sleep is enough for a college student?
Experts at the Mayo Clinic say the amount of sleep an individual needs depends on many factors, including age.
While younger children need 10 to 12 hours of sleep to be well-rested, older children and teens need about nine hours each night. For adults, seven to eight hours nightly seems best. But Yelton said students can make up for less sleep at night by napping at other times.
“College students do not necessarily get all eight hours at one time,” she said. “They often rely on a nap during the day to make up for going to bed ‘too late.’”
Students also can improve their quality and quantity of sleep by taking steps to fall asleep faster.
“We discuss the importance of setting a bedtime routine and avoiding stimulants and exercise close to bedtime,” Yelton said. “Unfortunately, it takes some students longer than others to find what works for them.”
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