Sleep deprivation in students could pose risk to their health
Lauren Smith
Students have a lot on their minds, and often carry a lot of stress. Are they unaware that they are negatively affecting their health every day?
The life of a college student is filled with school, things to do, people to see, work, and just not enough time for sleep.
The recommended six to eight hours a night is hardly what many students get. Not many students know that lack of sleep does not only decrease their performance, but also increases their chances for serious health conditions like heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and obesity.
In the classrooms, instructors see the affects of sleep deprivation all the time with their class dozing off during lectures or physically displaying signs of exhaustion.
Elise Alva, a marketing professor at Mesa Community College, relates to students on not getting enough sleep.
“I did the same thing in school, be up late and not get enough sleep as needed. I would study and do other things for classes,” Alva said.
“As long as they don’t let their grades be affected, then I don’t say anything. I have seen plenty of students falling asleep in class, but yet they get an A. I’ve seen where it goes the opposite way, and the grades start to slip,” Alva said.
As for MCC student Marissa Buzniak, 21, she attempts to get the recommended eight hours a night during the week.
“My schedule differs every night, but I don’t think it affects me in school or at work,” Buzniak said. Also, when asked if she was aware of the negative impacts that come along with the lack of sleep Buzniak said that she was not.
Another MCC student who also is a mother, Katie Lund, 28, tries to get as much sleep as possible.
“I have to be up at 7 a.m. every weekday to get my son up and ready for school,” Lund said.
“I think sleep really affects me with school when I am tired. I do not want to focus in class, or I do not want to do school work when I get home, I just want to get more sleep,” Lund said.
