Ultimate Guide To Staying Healthy During Exam Season
How to prioritise your health and wellbeing during stressful exam periods
by Hannah Christie
Exam season is by far one of the most stressful periods in a student’s life. Stress-eating, stress-crying… just stressing, it can be an extremely intense and strenuous time for students. During December I had mock exams, I didn’t take enough care of myself and almost instantly after they had finished, I fell ill and spent half of my Christmas holidays in bed with a fever. Needless to say it was horrible, and I wouldn’t wish it on any other student, so I compiled a list of tips to staying healthy during exam season.
1. Water is Your Best Friend: Drink! Drink! Drink!
It is important to stay hydrated during exam season. Research indicates that dehydration as low as 1-2% of body weight can impair attention, executive function, and motor coordination. Neuroimaging studies have shown that dehydration leads to brain tissue shrinkage and expansion of ventricular spaces, correlating with decreased cognitive performance.
2. Go to bed! Your work will be there tomorrow.
Yes, I am aware that students can be chronic procrastinators, waiting until the last minute to ‘lock in’ however research also indicates that cramming instead of going to bed can also negatively impact academic performance. Research from the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine (2017) “showed that students with less than 6 hours of sleep per night had significantly lower grades than those who slept 7-9 hours. One way to improve your sleep hygiene is to avoid screens before bed as the blue light disrupts melatonin production.”
3. It Really is That Phone! Keep That Screen Time At a Minimum
Excessive screen time, especially before bed can be extremely harmful for your brain, long hours of screen exposure can lead to digital eye strain, causing headaches, blurred vision, and fatigue, making it harder to study effectively. A meta-analysis of 30 studies found that students who spent more than two hours daily on television or gaming experienced declines in academic achievement. There are screen time apps you can download to limit your time online, a personal favourite of mine is Opal.
4. Eat Well: Health is Wealth
Eating well and maintaining a balanced diet is crucial to staying healthy during the academic season. When you are stressed, your body tends to crave sugary foods. Whilst it’s important to reward yourself, ensure that you are consuming a lot of brain food. Some of which include: Salmon, nuts (if you are not allergic), seeds, avocados, dark chocolate and dark leafy greens. A review by the UK government found that improved nutrition through school meal programs positively affected students' cognitive function, behavior, and academic outcomes.
5. Time is of the Essence: Make that Schedule!
When studying for exams it’s essential to create a timetable or a plan for your work. Remember if you fail to prepare you prepare to fail. A Cambridge University study in 2020 said that 87% of high-achieving students use a structured timetable, balancing study with breaks. Planning your time efficiently could look like ordering a to-do list/daily planner online, investing in a digital planner of hand making one with a sheet of plain paper and some coloured pens - do what works for you.