The Rocket

Issue date: 11/20/09 Section: Opinion

Media Credit: Johnny Austin

Everyone knows that kid.

You know the one tweaker, who is shaking before a big test because he or she stayed up all night cramming. The one that downed an entire pot of coffee and pulled an all-nighter.

It's almost finals week and for most students at Slippery Rock University that means added stress. The first thought that may come to mind during those late nights studying is to down a pot of coffee or a few bottles of Mountain Dew.

The caffeine addiction, at SRU, and in the United States in general is showing up everywhere. Now, even alcohol manufactures have started to add caffeine to drinks, making "energy beers".

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration was looking into how healthy these energy beers were in a study and determined it may be dangerous to consume these.

In the past year, Anheuser-Busch and Miller agreed to discontinue their popular caffeinated alcoholic beverages, Tilt, Bud Extra and Sparks, and agreed not to produce any caffeinated alcoholic beverages in the future.

According to a study by the University of Washington, Americans consume about 45 million pounds of caffeine every year, which averages out to about 4.6 cups of coffee per day. That may appear to be a lot of coffee to drink, but think about when you walk around campus and see how many students are carrying either a bottle, or can of pop or a coffee mug.

Chances are that once you head to class and take a look around at your classmates, many will have caffeinated drinks. For some reason, many college students think caffeine will keep them going forever.

But this couldn't be further from the truth, according to the same study from Washington. Caffeine can reduce motor coordination, cause insomnia, headaches, nervousness and dizziness.

The symptom students may want to take note of that list is nervousness. With finals around the corner, do you want to prepare to study for a test using a stimulant that will make you more nervous?

Is a cup of coffee that may cause you to be more anxious worth it?

The best route for students to take is to prepare ahead of time and avoid cramming.

But the problem is that many students want to wait until the last minute to start making preparations for finals.

By the end of the semester, everyone just wants to be done.

But the key for students is to realize that the last few weeks of the semester is a time to refocus and be motivated to finish strong.

Planning ahead and studying in advance are vital. Don't rely on Mountain Dew and coffee to save you, as it will cause more damage down the road.

Be calm, get enough sleep and don't be that person that is quaking before the big test.

No one envies the tweakers.

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