Graphic by Anjali Rao-Herel ‘22
By Nancy Jiang ’23
Staff Writer
The National Sleep Foundation recommends that young adults should sleep for 7-9 hours per evening. For a college student who takes an 8 a.m. class, that means going to sleep before midnight to get eight hours of sleep, not including the time necessary to get ready in the morning or have breakfast.
This official standard does not align well with the 6-6.9 hours of sleep that college students get on average.
According to Mayo Clinic, studies show that those who don’t sleep enough may have lower baseline levels of cytokines, which are proteins that help immune systems fight against infections. People often don’t realize the effects of sleep deprivation until an obvious, severe change occurs — such as cardiovascular diseases or diabetes.
A habit of constantly staying up late can hugely impact one’s performance at school and work. In a 2016 article, David Earnest, a professor with the Texas A&M College of Medicine, revealed that pulling all-nighters decreases study efficiency. According to Earnest, with each hour of sleep deprivation, the brain becomes more dysfunctional, affecting our ability to understand and memorize information.
With the end of Module 1 approaching, many Mount Holyoke students may be tempted to stay up late to cramming for final projects and exams. The bad news is that by trying to learn rapidly, we only use our short-term memory, which lasts no more than a few hours. The frustration of not retaining most of the information despite study efforts can cause further anxiety and stress or even lead to other mental health concerns. A vicious cycle is borne out of the effects of sleep deprivation, leading to unfruitful study sessions which, in turn, lead to more late nights and less restful sleep.
Here are two pieces of advice for voluntary and involuntary all-nighters: First, instead of leaving all your work until nighttime, try to do tasks in the morning, when the brain is much more productive. Second, develop a consistent routine that allows for an adequate amount of sleep.