Final exams are just a few weeks away, and with them come all-nighters and cram sessions —  let the coffee binge begin! Although the allure of a hot cup of coffee is undeniable, some undesirable side effects can occur with the overconsumption of caffeine.

As a caffeine addict and student with a lack of time, excessive homework and sleepless nights,  coffee provides relief from all of these woes, on top of offering comfort. So, is there a way to balance enjoying that cup of coffee with your body’s well-being in mind?

Admittedly, completely cutting coffee out of a daily routine can be a tough task to complete. From personal experience, I’ve found the total disappearance of coffee in my day often leads to headaches, irritability and the occasional set of waterworks. Given one or two days, I’m still tired and annoyed with piles of homework, so instead of tormenting myself by going over the pros and cons of an old cup of Joe, I give in.

Sound familiar? We are cautioned by health experts to limit caffeine intake, but because of my past experiences of quitting coffee, lifestyle choices —  late nights and early mornings —  and overall resistance to doing so, I have yet to succeed. Instead of eliminating coffee completely, I have vowed to become a responsible coffee consumer.

As students, we abuse coffee during all-night study sessions, then the next day as we attempt to fight off the sleep we did not get. Do not try to replace caffeine with sleep.

The Huffington Post reported that people are very bad at perceiving how caffeine affects their bodies, particularly when it comes to lack of sleep. Experts recommend that you do not consume caffeine past 1 p.m., as data on sleep deprivation reveals that your body can be affected by caffeine for up to six hours after ingestion. However when polled, students believed they were only affected for three hours. Consider your sleep schedule before you reach for a second or third cup.

I figure that to responsibly consume coffee, one must first focus on preparing the body for a pleasant caffeination experience. To me, this looks like a glass of water and a snack or meal to prime my stomach. I have experienced an upset stomach from having coffee without first eating, and there is actually a reasonable explanation for this.

David Wolfe is a health and wellness professional who explains that the absence of food in your stomach before coffee consumption can disrupt hydrochloric acid levels in the stomach that are responsible for digestion. Consuming coffee on an empty stomach essentially creates an overly acidic environment in the stomach — hence the irritation.

According to the FDA, caffeine has the tendency to dehydrate your body — which can cause thirst, loss of appetite, dry mouth, headache, dizziness, increased anxiety, irritability, low blood pressure and lack of sleep. To combat dehydration, the Saskatoon Health Region recommends drinking at minimum 1.5 to 2.5 liters of water per day. We can also consciously load up on more water to help to ward off dehydration and to ease the side effects of the caffeine you crave.

On top of staying hydrated and maintaining a balanced diet, exercise can aid in the mitigation of caffeine’s side effects as well. The National Sleep Foundation reports that people who partook in moderate-intensity aerobic exercises like walks during the day, fell asleep faster and stayed asleep for longer periods of time than those who did not. Perhaps walking a distance to get your coffee is worth it after all.

As sleepy students, it can be difficult to not overdo it with caffeine, but a few informed moves can help get you to sleep while still being able to enjoy your daily dose of coffee. Catching some quality zzz’s seems to be a dependent factor of student’s caffeine habits. Cutting out caffeine is not ideal for some, so by responsibly consuming caffeine, we can have our coffee and sleep well too.

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Bronwyn Chhay

Graphic: Shamille Sarcuga