Important: This page is general information, not medical advice. It does not recommend or prescribe any treatment. Always consult your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.
About College Health
College life involves excitement, along with new challenges, risks, and responsibilities. You are meeting new people, learning new things, and making your own decisions. It can sometimes be stressful. You have to deal with pressures related to food, drink, appearance, drugs, and sexual activity.
There are steps you can take to stay healthy and safe while you're in college:
- Eat a balanced diet
- Get enough sleep
- Get regular physical activity
- Maintain your health with checkups and vaccinations
- If you decide to have sex, practice safe sex
- Make smart choices about alcohol and drugs
- Get help if you are stressed or depressed
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
It sits within Children and Teenagers and Wellness and Lifestyle.
When to speak to someone. Reading about a topic cannot tell you whether it applies to you. Speak to a doctor or pharmacist if symptoms are severe, sudden, getting worse, or simply not going away — and seek emergency care immediately for chest pain, breathing difficulty, sudden weakness or confusion, or a serious allergic reaction.
Research on College Health
162 studies areregistered for this condition on ClinicalTrials.gov, the U.S. National Library of Medicine's public registry. A selection is below — the links go straight to the registry entry, not to a summary of ours.
What a registered study does and does not mean. Registration means a study exists and has been declared publicly. It says nothing about whether the treatment being tested works, is safe, or is available to you. Many studies find no benefit — that is what research is for. Never seek out an experimental treatment on the strength of a registry entry alone.
Research currently under way
- E-Bike Commuting and Health in Overweight College StudentsUniversity of Wisconsin, River Falls
- Using an AI Mobile Application to Promote Healthy EatingUniversity of California, Davis
- MH-POWER for College Students on the SpectrumUniversity of Texas Rio Grande Valley
- The Increasing Mindfulness Engagement ProjectFlorida State University
- Impact of EDEN College Courses on the Quality of Life of Voice-HearersHôpital le Vinatier
- SPARK Healthy SleepIndiana University
Research already completed
- Laughter Yoga and Sleep Hygiene Training for College Students With Premenstrual SyndromeGazi University
- Pilot Evaluation of Digital Peer-Support Intervention for College StudentsYale University
Study data from ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 2026-07-30. Registry entries are supplied by study sponsors and investigators; ClinicalTrials.gov does not verify their scientific validity. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH.
Where to read more
Rather than paraphrase, we point you to the primary sources. Every link below is to a government health agency, a national institute or a recognised medical body — grouped by what you are trying to find out.
Start Here
- Common Health Problems at CollegeAmerican Academy of Pediatrics
Prevention and Risk Factors
- (Vaccines for) Adults Ages 19 through 26Department of Health and Human Services
Related Issues
- College Health: Health Services and Common Health ProblemsBoston Children's Hospital
- College Students with ADHDAmerican Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Statistics and Research
- Harmful and Underage College DrinkingNational Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: College Student HealthNational Institutes of Health
Medical subject headings
Clinicians and researchers index this subject under Universities, Students. These are the terms to use when searching medical literature.
This page is built from the MedlinePlus health topic record for College Health, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health. Information is from MedlinePlus.gov. PocketsInfo is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, the NLM or the NIH. Retrieved 30 July 2026.