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Makayla Deyling

Professor Pinkerton

English 1510

19 March 2018

How College Affects Students

According to the National Survey of Student Engagement’s findings, the average student

spends about 17 hours each week preparing for classes, whether it is re-writing notes, looking

over notes, homework, readings, studying, etc. According to the National Institute of Health, the

average adult sleeps less than seven hours per night, when the normal for an average adult is

eight hours or more. The average person is supposed to eat 3 full meals a day, breakfast, lunch,

and dinner. However, the average college student does not meet these criteria. College students’

get bombarded with too many hours of homework in a day, eventually leading to issues in their

sleep schedule, nutritional diet, and their overall health.

College students are one of the most sleep deprives students. “On average, most college

students get 6 - 6.9 hours of sleep per night, and the college years are notoriously sleep-deprived

due to an overload of activities. Recent research on college students and sleep indicates that

insufficient sleep impacts our health, our moods, our GPA and our safety” (Sleep Rocks!...Get

More of It!”). Due to college student’s having so much on their plate, their up late due to

homework, work, other people being loud, sports, etc. Not having enough sleep can have an

extreme impact on a student’s learning abilities, and health. “It restores our energy, fights off

illness and fatigue by strengthening our immune system, helps us think more clearly and

creatively, strengthens memory and produces a more positive mood and better performance
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throughout the day” (“Sleep Rocks!...Get More of It!”). Lack of sleep can have many negative

affects with both physical and emotional health risks. College students that are sleep deprived

tend to have more illnesses due to a poor immune system, being stress, tired, cranky, lower GPA

and a poor academic performance, and weight loss/gain. “Sleep deprivation in students has been

linked to lower GPAs because sleep affects concentration, memory and the ability to learn”

(“Sleep”). Student’s tend to study and do homework from the time they get out of class to the

time they go to bed. Some student’s will pull an all-nighter to study, thinking they will learn and

remember the material better. However, that is not the case. “During sleep, the brain organizes,

sorts, and stores what we have learned and experienced that day, making it easier to recall at a

later time. Sleep also helps you weed out irrelevant information and helps you make connections

between your memory and information you learned that day, even if you have not made those

connections while awake”. (Sleep Rocks!... Get More of It!”). Sleeping helps your brain retain

important information. If a student is up all night with hours of homework, their brain will not

process it if the student does not get a good night sleep. Not only does college negatively affect

student’s sleeping schedules but having hours of homework also effects their eating habits.

Having a healthy diet and nutrition is very important for the body to function. Basic

nutrition is what fuels the body to keep going. Unfortunately, many college students do not have

the time to eat, whether it’s back-to-back classes, or hours of important homework. “When

students enter college, their diets deteriorate and they gain or lose weight. Meals are often

skipped by college students, and management of weight and food intake is often nonexistent or

disordered. Class and work schedules change daily as well as every semester” (Al-Amari, Hanaa

Ghaleb). From experience as well as these articles state, many college skip meals because they

do not have time to leave their study rooms and get food. It takes too much time out of their
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study time. Many students may also lose weight from skipping meals. On the other hand,

students who don’t have time to leave to eat will most likely order some type of fast-food, or

snack on high-fat snacks, ultimately gaining weight. Having a set schedule of proper eating times

can benefit a person’s health. “A balanced diet can help students increase energy levels, promote

a functioning immune system, improve their ability to cope with stress, and increase

concentration and performance in school” (“Nutrition”). Students who lack the essential nutrients

will not be motivated or have energy, will tend to have poor immune systems, and a lower GPA.

It is very difficult and frustrating to try and focus in classes and fully pay attention when you are

mentally and physically drained. Students who attended a Canadian University wanted to do a

study to see the benefits of a good diet. “In this study, students at a Canadian university reported

healthy eating to be helpful in providing a healthy appearance (in terms of weight, skin,

physique, and so forth), providing positive feelings, and preventing disease” (Sameer Deshpande

, Michael D. Basil & Debra Z. Basil). Therefore, supporting evidence that having a healthy diet

will overall help your health. Overall, college students do not have enough time to eat three

meals a day. “Irregular class schedules, part-time jobs, and variable homework loads can disrupt

normal eating patterns among college students, leading to unhealthy habits that may be hard to

break” (“College Students, Diets of”). Students who attend a university have a lot to handle,

therefore they skip meals, and have an improper diet. Both, having an irregular sleeping pattern

and poor diet can decrease a college student’s mental and overall health.

Mental health is one of the most concerning aspects for college students. Students tend to

have depression, anxiety, and eating disorders. “In 2015, 33 percent of students reported a

mental health diagnosis in their lifetime, up from 25 percent in 2007. Students reporting two

or more mental health conditions was 23 percent. Mental health remains a significant public
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health issue on college campuses because of the link between poor mental health and

academic success. Students diagnosed with mental health conditions report more days of the

month those mental health factors impact their ability to function. Furthermore, the y

experience higher rates of lack of sleep and higher rates of risky behaviors such as tobacco

use, marijuana use, high-risk drinking and other health issues” (“New Survey Identifies

Health Issues Affecting College Students and Academic Success”). Having a mental illness

effects students ability to get out of bed, go to class, and focus on school. According to the

University Health Center University of Georgia, college students are often at risk for having

mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, and researchers believe that lack of sleep is

a factor. Sleep is also a factor that effects student’s overall health. “Sleep is what is lost when

students make time to study and socialize. Pulling “all-nighters” or staying up too late night after

night will take its toll, leaving you with low levels of energy and motivation” (“Student Health

and Wellness Guide”). Having lack of sleep will tear down your immune system, making

students more susceptible to getting sick. Lack of sleep is proven to give headaches. “Students

who were deprived of sleep for 24 hrs were complaining from headaches and they feel weak and

tired. Lack of sleeping results in a decrease of student’s ability to pay attention, and negatively

affects their ability to perform exams” (Al-Amari, Hanaa Ghaleb). Along with that, not eating

correctly will also plummet your overall health. “…A poor diet can result in obesity, diabetes,

heart disease… and high blood pressure…A diet that doesn’t include healthy nutrients can leave

you feeling lethargic and fatigued” (“Student Health and Wellness Guide”). Additionally, certain

vitamins and nutrients can directly affect how your body can fight off infections and diseases.

Having a healthy, balanced diet can keep you healthy.

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On the other hand, others’ may disagree. Some people may say that all these factors

depend on the person. Many college students tend to procrastinate, resulting in late nights to

cram in their studying or homework. The workload can also depend on the student’s major; since

different majors require different amounts of classes and studying. The workload can also

depend on the professor, and how much homework they want to assign in one night/one week.

Also, students have the option to choose what they want to eat, so gaining or losing weight

depends on what they choose to consume that day. A student has a lot more freedom at college

then they do at home. With that, students have the opportunity to “go out” more, and potentially

skip classes the next day. If students have too much of a workload, they have the option to drop

classes in order to focus more on their GPA. Students can choose how they live their lives, and

can alter what affects their daily lifestyle.

Teenagers and young adults in college are still maturing and growing. It is very important

for students to stay healthy. Although, most college students are not healthy. College students

spend hours of their day doing homework and preparing for classes. With that, college student’s

overall health decreases due to lack of sleep and poor nutritional diets. Mental and physical

health, a person’s nutrition, a person’s sleep schedule, overall health, and academic success are

all very closely related. When one or more of those aspects are negative, most likely, a student’s

overall health will also be negative. This is very important because college is the reason why a

student will get a job and be successful in life. Having poor mental and physical health, poor

sleeping habits, and a poor nutrition will affect how successful you will be in the future. A

student’s all-around health should come before school.

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Works Cited

Al-Amari, Hanaa Ghaleb. "The Perception of College Students about a Healthy Lifestyle and its

Effect on their Health." OMICS International. November 30, 2015. Accessed February

25, 2018. https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/the-perception-of-college-students-

about-a-healthy-lifestyle-and-its-effect-on-their-health-2155-9600-

1000437.php?aid=63506.

"College Students, Diets of." Diet.com. Accessed February 25, 2018.

https://www.diet.com/g/college-students-diets-of.

Communications, NYU Web. "Nutrition." NYU. Accessed February 25, 2018.

https://www.nyu.edu/life/safety-health-wellness/live-well-nyu/priority-

areas/nutrition.html

"New Survey Identifies Health Issues Affecting College Students and Academic Success."

University of Minnesota Twin Cities. December 15, 2015. Accessed February 25, 2018.

https://twin-cities.umn.edu/news-events/new-survey-identifies-health-issues-affecting-

college-students-and-academic-success.

Sameer Deshpande , Michael D. Basil & Debra Z. Basil (2009) Factors Influencing Healthy

Eating Habits Among College Students: An Application of the Health Belief Model,

Health Marketing Quarterly, 26:2, 145-164, DOI: 10.1080/07359680802619834.

Accessed February 25, 2018.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07359680802619834?scroll=top&needAc

cess=true
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"Sleep." The Importance of Sleep. Accessed February 25, 2018.

http://campusmindworks.org/students/self_care/sleep.asp.

“Sleep Rocks! ...Get More of It!” University Health Center | Managing Stress | SleepUniversity

Health Center | University of GeorgiaUniversity Health Center, www.uhs.uga.edu/sleep.

"Student Health and Wellness Guide." OnlineColleges.net. December 14, 2016. Accessed

February 25, 2018. http://www.onlinecolleges.net/for-students/student-health-wellness-

guide/.