“Speak Up!” is a weekly collection of student opinions on relevant topics around campus. The Tiger interviews randomly selected students to hear their thoughts on the question at hand.

This week, reporters went to the center of campus, the bridge in front of Clemson University’s Cooper Library, to hear student opinions.

This time, The Tiger asked: “How do you feel caffeine affects college students?”

Here’s what students had to say about it:

“I drink caffeine every day, and it helps me to focus, especially when I have long days. Overall, it kind of boosts your energy even halfway through the day.”
– Brenna Vaughan, sophomore early childhood education major

“It makes us codependent on caffeine and other sources that provide us energy. So, now we lack the natural daily habits that keep us going.”
– Luther Bells, freshman wildlife and fisheries biology major

“Personally, I think that caffeine is essential to college students. I mean, we are waking up early, going to bed late; caffeine just helps us get through the day.”
– Brycen Schmidt, sophomore nursing major

“I think that it can be healthy to a certain extent if you’re utilizing it well, but it can be harmful for you if you are abusing it and not getting sleep. Sleep is very important for mental health and physical health.”
– Scarlett Wolcott, senior genetics major

“I think that they are too heavily dependent on them, and then they start building up a tolerance and just have to start drinking more. So, I feel like it ends up doing more harm than good. They start spending their money on things they do not need to be spending their money on.”
– Mary Claire Sherman, senior genetics major