"They have some sugar to them," he says of the latter, "but they're not as intense as the Pepperidge Farm cookies."

* Minimize your caffeine intake. If you must have caffeine, try weak tea instead of coffee. Excess caffeine, along with grease and sugar, can impede oxygen flow through the capillaries and induce fatigue.

"Too much caffeine does pump your system up, but then you crash afterward," comments Smigelski, who is a registered dietician. "Ultimately you're going to have to repair a little when you're done, and your system may take a few days to recover."

* Schedule your snacks. Some students may tend to eat non-stop while writing a paper or cramming. Try limiting yourself to snacking at pre-set intervals, say, one snack every 40 minutes.

* Don't skip lunch. In addition to giving your body a stretch, breaking for lunch will take your mind off your work and improve your concentration in the long run. To this end, UHS recommends students eat with friends and other students.

"People are under the sense that 'If I just keep pushing, I'll get work done," Smigelski says. "It's kind of a mistaken notion."

Out and About

In addition to eating more carefully, UHS recommends exercising--or at least stretching--regularly during times of stress. Students should:

* Take a break from computer work every 30 minutes. Let your hands loosely hang by your sides, then stretch slowly and carefully for about two minutes to loosen neck and shoulder muscles.

* Take at least one brisk walk during the day, for 20 to 30 minutes. If you have a regular exercise regimen, try to keep it up through stressful periods.

* Other tips from UHS: try taking a warm shower (or bath) before going to sleep; try lying on the floor with your eyes closed, breathe deeply through your nose until your abdomen and chest fill with air and then let it out; go somewhere private and yell or stomp around to let off steam.

Students might also want to contact a counselor for more personal advice. The Bureau of Study Counsel offers academic and personal counseling, and counselors at the Office of Health Education on the second floor of UHS are available to dispense pamphlets and confidential advice.

The Great Harvard Backrub

Recently, a more exotic method of dealing with stress has gained prominence on campus: massage.

Thursday evening, the Radcliffe Union of Students (RUS) sponsored a stress-management workshop at its regular meeting. The pre- sentation featured a segment on massage techniques.

In Leverett House each Tuesday night, a group of students meets to rub and squeeze away their worries.