Many students turn to caffeine to keep them awake through the wee hours of the night to cram before exams.

"[Drinking coffee] helps me concentrate and I like it," said John Resh (senior-chemical engineering), who was drinking coffee at the HUB-Robeson Center Wednesday afternoon.

Caffeine is a drug that acts as a stimulant, said Melissa Martilotta, who runs the University Health Services (UHS) Nutrition Clinic.

"[Caffeine] is the most widely used drug in the world," Martilotta said.

Martilotta said the advised daily caffeine intake is about 400 to 450 milligrams for most adults, which works out to about three to four cups of brewed coffee per day. Even this much caffeine, however, is not necessarily healthy.

"It has been reported to increase blood pressure, urine production and gastric acid secretion and in some people who are sensitive to caffeine, it can produce rapid or irregular heartbeats, nervousness, insomnia, sweating, chest pains, upset stomach, diarrhea fatigue and tremors."

Caffeine can also be dangerous in large amounts, said UHS physician David Garrison.

He said reactions to caffeine depend on the individual.

People can also develop a tolerance to the drug and may need increasing amounts of caffeine to get the same reaction.

If one reduces consumption, Garrison said, withdrawal symptoms might occur, including tiredness, headaches or irritability.

Martilotta added that caffeine may also interact with some medications. In her September article on herbal products in The Daily Collegian, Martilotta warned people not to take caffeine with some stimulants.

"When caffeine is teamed with ephedrine, it can speed up the heart, and heart attacks and strokes have been reported. Other possible side effects include ... headache, tremor, nervousness, and insomnia.

"Since caffeine affects the same part of the brain as nicotine and other stimulants, high doses of caffeine can cause withdrawal symptoms such as fatigue, irritability, restlessness, and anxiety.

"So, in general, caffeine appears to be counterproductive for students trying to keep awake to study for exams," she said.

If a student's goal is to stay awake and alert for as long as possible, caffeine may do the trick, but high doses of the drug may also yield those side effects previously mentioned, she added.

Some students said caffeine is just part of life at college.

"I think it's all really mental," Ellen Tang (junior-finance) said. "I don't need it to stay up; it's just a habit I've gotten into."