Finals can cause students to stress out, but for people who perpetually feel pressured beyond coping capacity, the anxiety can actually cause their bodies to age.
A recent study by Elizabeth Blackburn at University of California in San Fransisco has linked chronic stress to rapid cellular aging in women.
The research could be relevant to college students who think they do not have the resources to cope with school and work, said Blackburn, a professor of biochemistry and biophysics.
"Short-term acute stress is not bad for you - it's when it is day in and day out and you don't have the resources to deal with it," Blackburn said.
According to the 2004 National College Health Assessment, 78 percent of students reported feeling stressed. Of those, 29 percent reported that stress interfered with their schoolwork.
Blackburn worked with Elissa Epel, a psychiatry assistant professor at UCSF. The study included 58 mothers between 20 and 50 years old, 39 of whom were caregivers for a chronically ill child.
The study centers on part of the cell called the telomere, which shrinks when the cell replicates. After 10 to 50 divisions however, the telomere is too short to enable the cell to duplicate.
Blackburn found the telomeres shortened more rapidly in women dealing with chronic stress, causing some their cells to have aged 10 years more than their actual age.
The 2004 Health Assessment reported more women encountered academic difficulty because of stress than men.
But, stress does not have to be a negative consequence, said Ann Flescher, clinical services coordinator at the MSU Counseling Center.
It can act as motivation to succeed and when students overcome what they consider insurmountable barriers, their self-esteem receives a boost, she said.
Olin Health Center Health Education Services Coordinator Dennis Martell said one study cannot be fully conclusive, but it does support previous conceptions of stress and health.
"Any time you put a lot of stress on anything and don't do regular maintenance it can interfere with the integrity and the cells," he said.
Finals increase stress, and Martell said students should take preventive measures to be healthy.
"You do have a choice in how you perceive an event - you can say this is a minor blip on the road of life, or this can be a huge pothole," Martell said.
Other strategies include eating healthy, sleeping and exercising.
According to the 2004 Spring Health Study performed by Olin Health Center, students listen to music, exercise, talk with family and friends, watch television and pray or meditate to relieve stress.
Flescher said simply taking time to relax can go a long way to prevent stress side-effects.
"People need to make time for themselves, for being and not just always doing," she said.
