Want your children’s college grades to improve? You might take a look convincing them to change their bad health habits. Research from the University of Minnesota Boynton Health Service found that college students whose health habits were below par tended to make lower grades in school.
A survey of almost 10,000 students found that those who didn’t exercise, smoked, watched too much TV or used the computer excessively, didn’t get enough sleep, drank, or were stressed made lower grades. Low grades were also common among students who suffered from stress, asthma, injuries or mental illness.
“Our study shows there is a direct link between college students’ health and their academic achievement. This is the first time that anything like this has been published where Grade Point Average is linked to all these behaviors,” said Dr. Ed Ehlinger, the director and chief health officer of the University of Minnesota Boynton Health Service.
The study showed:
• Over two thirds of college students reported being stressed. Of those, about one third felt their stress was affecting their grades. Stressed students had a GPA of 3.12 compared to the 3.23 who didn’t believe stress impacted their grades.
• 30.4 percent of students said they watched television and used the computer too much. Thirteen percent of those who said their excess computer and TV time affected their grades had lower GPAs—3.04 compared to 3.27 for those who said computers and televisions didn’t impact their grades. “Turning off the computer or TV and going to sleep is one of the best things our students can do to improve their grades,” Ehlinger said.
• Twenty percent of students said problems sleeping affected their grades. Students who got adequate sleep had a GPA of 3.27 compared to 3.08 for those who didn’t get enough sleep. “The more days students get adequate sleep—the better GPAs they attain,” Ehlinger said. “There is a direct link between the two.”
• Students who smoked had a GPA of 3.12 compared with 3.28 for those who didn’t.
“Even students who smoked once or twice in a month had lower GPAs than those who didn’t smoke,” Ehlinger said. “Using tobacco to calm down or ‘to be social’ is lowering students’ grades.”
“We hope this information helps students make wise decisions,” Ehlinger said. “If you’re investing a lot of time and money in your education, do you really want to waste your investment on behaviors that interfere with your academic success?”
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