The smell of coffee wafts through the Undergraduate Library and cans of RedBull line the interior of backpacks during midterm season. The hands on the clock come full circle as students pack up their bags for their morning classes. Staying up all night cramming for exams may prove to be temporarily beneficial, but will end up being less than helpful in the long run.

“Students are paying to go to college to get a job in the future and hopefully also to learn material that will help with their careers,” said David Lawrance, medical director of McKinley Health Center.

Though cramming a semester’s worth of material might provide a student with a passing grade, long-term memory will suffer. Lawrance explained that while short-term retention can be achieved through this technique, remembering information later that day — and more importantly, in the future — can be difficult. Sleep is necessary for long-term memory retention.

Andrew Groll, senior in Engineering, knows what it’s like to pull an ‘all-nighter,’ as it has become a weekly routine for him.

“There aren’t enough hours in a day so it’s a necessity at times,” Groll said.

Groll keeps busy with two research positions, writing for a publication and volunteering, not to mention classes and homework. He does what he feels is necessary in order to get everything done.

“I’ve been up for 72 hours straight before and after a period like that I tend to crash for 10 or 12 hours,” he said.

This extreme lack of sleep causes lack of focus which can sometimes lead to unnecessary mistakes.

“Sometimes I add an extra zero somewhere it shouldn’t be and not have the opportunity to check my work, and I’ll find out I lost two or three points (which is) really frustrating,” Groll said.

Sleep deprivation will not only affect the memory and concentration, but can also physically affect someone.

“In limited quantities, (cramming) might seem helpful, but it will take a toll on physical well-being if not emotional and mental well-being as well,” said Jennifer Carson, health educator at McKinley Health Center.

Losing sleep can cause immunosuppressive symptoms, meaning the immune system is weakened and sickness is much more likely. Carson explained that the effects of sleep deprivation may not appear immediately, but will build up and cause the body to crash. Groll has experience with this.

“There have been times where I’ll come back from school and it’ll all hit me at once and I’ll get extremely sick,” he said.

Carson said that when stress causes us to forget about taking care of our bodies, our entire well-being can be affected.

“It’s easy to neglect our personal needs when we’re feeling stressed and some of those needs are sleep, eating well enough and physical activity,” Carson said.

One thing students often forget to monitor is their caffeine intake. Lawrance stated that students sometimes visit McKinley because of the effects of sleep deprivation on their bodies. Copious amounts of caffeine can cause fogginess, disorientation and even hallucinations.

Lawrance said that coffee may be healthy in small amounts, but is concerned with students’ reliance on substances to keep them awake.

“Caffeine is taxing on the cardiovascular system because it’s a stimulant,” Lawrance said.

Years of excessive caffeine use can lead to serious repercussions like strokes and heart attacks.

It takes effort to get back to a normal sleep-cycle and the longer a student stays awake, the greater adjustment their body has to make. Carson said it’s vital that students establish regular sleep schedules and in order to do that, they can take advantage of the resources Mckinley and other University outlets have to offer.

“Being able to get back on track when we need to is important,” Carson said.