Glenn Wagstaff
Shivani Shirolkar
There is a divine nectar-like drink that awaits you every morning, inviting you into its comforting flavor and warmth to recover from the all-nighter you pulled studying for an exam or finishing an assignment – coffee. Who doesn’t love a hot cup of coffee to start off their day?
Coffee keeps you from catnapping during your 8 a.m. class and helps you stay attentive enough to take notes. It’s almost impossible to function without it in the morning, and Port City Java is most likely the first place you hit right after you step out of your dorm.
Those first few bittersweet sips are enough to convince you that you’re a superhuman who can stay up late and still survive another day at college without having to surrender to sleep. You’re not the only one who feels all of this – 54 percent of Americans above the age of 18 drink coffee every day.
Coffee indeed has the power of improving wakefulness and stimulating the brain. However, along with reducing the sleep requirements of a healthy adult, it also reduces the quality of the sleep you manage to get. Caffeine also suppresses appetite, which can prevent you from intaking the nutrition you need, making you feel sleepy, and then of course, reaching for another cup. This cycle leaves you even more tired than you were before, defeating its original purpose.
Such events are common in college students, since coffee is readily available at your fingertips throughout campus. You can’t help but catch the strong unmistakable whiff of the drink right as you walk into D.H. Hill Library. Talley Student Union is merely a 10-15-minute walk or a 5-minute bike ride from most residence halls, greatly increasing the number of customers Port City Java has every morning. There is nothing stopping you from having more than one cup of coffee per day, either. Clearly, due this sleep deprivation, this hinders academic performance as well.
I, too, am guilty of living off coffee. I am a regular drinker and I not only drink coffee to stay awake, but also because I generally like the rich taste. My love for coffee has not diminished despite it being the reason my sleep schedule is a total wreck at times. I rely on the drink when I lose against procrastination and need to cram enormous amounts of information into my brain in the span of a single night. It provides quick energy, although it doesn’t last very long.
I have tried to sleep earlier, but that is extremely difficult since my body is just not used to sleeping any earlier than midnight. This is why I believe that frequent intake of caffeine is not the best of ideas.
Caffeine addiction is very real and affects students more than they think. Withdrawal symptoms like headaches and nausea are experienced if they don’t drink as much coffee as they are used to drinking. There are healthier options to rise early and not get addicted to coffee in the first place — eating fruits and vegetables helps stock up on energy, and sleeping at a decent hour can help your body get the rest it needs.
Physically exerting your body in the form of exercise can make you tired enough to fall asleep early if you are conditioned to stay up late. Coffee is not a threat when consumed in moderation. However, using it as the only means to keep up with life is not something your future self will thank you for.