Up all night

Sitting at her desk freshman year with a vanilla cappuccino in hand, Kasey Nussmeier stared at her empty computer screen. Wishing she had started her English paper earlier, she prepared to stay up all night to finish it. \nNights like these were frequent for Nussmeier, now a junior. After five or six all-nighters, she realized how tired and cloudy her thinking was the next day.\nAccording to the National Sleep Foundation, college students average 6.8 hours of rest per night, but many college students alter this average when they stay up all night to study.\nSophomore Bridgette Mehl recalls the days after staying up all night freshman year to study for G100, Business in the Information Age, usually with the help of some much needed caffeine. \n"I was really tired the next day, it was hard to concentrate, and I had trouble remembering what I had gone over the night before," she said.\nMehl never pulled all-nighters in high school, but they were a common part of her freshman year. \nFor some students, such as freshman Andre Vaughn, all-nighters are not new phenomena. \n"I pulled a few all-nighters in high school because I would wait until the last minute to write important papers," he said. "I plan on not having to do that again."\nWhether students are pros or beginners at staying awake all night, Anne Reese, director of Health and Wellness Education at the IU Health Center, said all-nighters can seriously affect studying.\n"When students stay up all night studying, it just doesn't take learning to a higher level," she said. "They don't think clearly, and it counters the plan they originally had."\nReese said the effects never turn out the way the student thought they would.\n"What you're doing to study is not ideal study style," she said. "It is crammed information, and most likely that information might not be retained for later use."\nMany students don't realize the effects staying awake all night can have on their bodies.\n"It's not exactly a health risk, but when students get in the habit of staying up late every night, they are chronically tired, and they drag through the semester," Reese said. "Also, the next day when students are driving drowsy, it's similar to being intoxicated, and can be a serious issue. There have been many accidents due to drowsy drivers."\nWhile it's potentially harmful and just plain tiring to stay up all night, Reese assures students that there are no long-term health dangers unless drugs like stimulants come into play.\n"Health risks become an issue when students start using products to stay up late," she said.\nThe drugs to which Reese is referring are stimulants -- amphetamines like speed that keep a person alert and awake. Some examples of these drugs are Ritalin and Adderall, which are used to treat Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.\nAccording to the IU Heath Center Web site, "Ritalin is a central nervous system stimulant similar to amphetamines, typically used to treat narcolepsy and ADHD. It is addictive and has a high potential for abuse."\nAlthough it is a prescription drug and is said to be under close regulation by federal and state laws, many students at IU and other universities are finding ways to get Ritalin.\nSteve Tatterson, now a sophomore, said he used Ritalin to stay awake his freshman year. \nTatterson used the drug to help him sit down and pay attention during finals week. He said he experienced no negative side effects other than having trouble falling asleep after he had taken it. \n"It was really easy to concentrate on my work, and it made me a little hyper," he said.\nWhile Tatterson didn't experience many side effects, Ritalin is known to make people nervous and can cause appetite and sleep disturbance, according to the IU Health Center Web site. \n"Reactions could be from feeling jittery and nervous to having cardiovascular problems," Reese said.\n"The drug is prescribed to people who have trouble concentrating, and it acts differently on students who have normal concentration levels. It is a serious drug; therefore it is a controlled substance."\nEven though Ritalin might have side effects ranging from minor to serious, some students are not afraid to take it to get the job done. \n"I don't worry about the side effects because it is a drug that is prescribed," Tatterson said. \nSome heed the warnings and won't go near the drug. \nReese strongly advises students to develop habits to kick all-nighters before they become a problem.\n"There's nothing that says in college you have to pull all-nighters," she said. "For students that haven't started this behavior, I would advise to stay away from it. It's not beneficial."\n-- Contact staff writer Rachel Ward at raward@indiana.edu.