The science behind why we really get ‘hangry’ before eating and how to prevent it

Irritable and snappy just before lunch? It’s not just in your head — needing a snack can severely affect your mood, says Ellen Manning

Most of us have experienced the feeling. You haven’t eaten, you’re irritable, grumpy and can’t concentrate. You’re “hangry”.

Perhaps it was once a made-up word, but “hanger” is now recognised as a real phenomenon. It was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2018, and is defined as being “bad-tempered or irritable as a result of hunger”.

There’s science behind it, too. Last year, researchers at the University of Guelph in Canada discovered that feeling angry when you’re hungry is due to a sudden drop in glucose levels, which can have a lasting effect on your mood. They studied the impact of such a sharp drop on the emotional behaviour of rats.

One group of rats was injected with a glucose metabolism blocker and put in a specific chamber. Another group was injected with water and put in a different chamber. When the rats were later given the choice of which chamber to go back into, most avoided the one where they had suffered the drop in glucose, or suffered hypoglycaemia. This suggests they recognise that this caused them stress and anxiety, say the researchers.

Hunger and anger can look the same in the brain

Hunger and anger can look similar in the brain (Photo: THOMAS SAMSON/AFP/Getty Images)

“Some of the chemical signals that are released when we’re hungry are the same as when we are angry,” explains Sophie Medlin, consultant dietitian and director of CityDietitians. “This means that the same pathways in our brains are triggered when we’re hungry as when we’re angry, making the two feelings difficult to distinguish between. When our blood sugars drop, these signals are released and we become motivated to find food.”

However, Kristen Lindquist, associate professor of psychology and neuroscience at the University of North Carolina, who carried out research into hanger with PhD candidate Jennifer MacCormack, says it’s a bit more complicated than this. “People commonly ‘confuse’ body states with emotions, such as a rapidly beating heart for anxiety, feelings of hunger for anger,” she says.

Lindquist says her research with MacCormack looked at the way context can influence how people interpret those hunger pangs, and what happens to make them manifest themselves as “hanger”.

Why hanger happens

“Hanger occurs when we’re feeling the sensations associated with being hungry – unpleasantness, high energy, a clenched stomach – but we are in a context associated with anger. For example, someone criticises us or violates a norm,” she says. “In those cases, we interpret our bodily feelings as hunger instead of anger. Critically, this doesn’t happen just any time you’re hungry. The context needs to be right. Our findings show that if you’re in a positive or neutral environment you won’t feel hanger. You need to have the opportunity to infer that your body state is about anger.”

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So, if you are suffering from hanger, what actually happens to you? According to Geeta Sidhu-Robb, nutritionist and founder of health foods brand Nosh Detox, hanger can sap our productivity and affect our decision-making and perception of risk as well as our mood.

“Our bodies release hormones when we are hungry. These in turn lead to the cravings that we find all too familiar,” she says. “However, when we are not able to sate our body’s needs, we become fatigued, less enthused and irritable.

Snappy and irritable

It also affects the way we interact, she adds. “Hunger makes us snappy and irritable – and actually more desperate. In a working environment it is becoming ever more important to sustain healthy professional relationships with colleagues and clients. If you aren’t feeling yourself, this isn’t going to be the case as you take it out on those nearest to you.”

There is an unlucky portion of society that is more likely to suffer with hanger. “Our anger response is partly dictated by genetics and environmental experiences as well as by hormones,” Medlin explains. “Men typically release greater levels of the chemicals that trigger anger and have more of the receptors for them, but women may experience different levels of hanger as their hormones fluctuate through their menstrual cycle.”

So how do you combat hanger? Sidhu-Robb says there are “fixes” that can help alleviate symptoms. These include eating fruit to keep cravings at bay as well as drinking water. A final fix is setting a regular eating schedule. “Random snacking can confuse our brains into producing hunger hormones irregularly. The body loves rituals and regularity. The more you offer that the happier you and your body will be.”

Don’t go too long between meals

Salty snacks can make hanger worse in the long run (Photo: Dan Kitwood/Getty)

Medlin agrees, suggesting that people plan meals and snacks that stabilise blood sugars and try to not go too long in between meals. She suggests high-fibre, high-protein foods, as well as lots of vegetables and in general, keeping blood sugars stable.

There is arguably a longer-term benefit to keeping things a bit more stable when it comes to your food. The researchers who carried out tests on rats believed that missing meals regularly could affect your overall mood. PhD student Thomas Horman, who led that study, said poor mood and poor eating could become a vicious cycle.

The general effect of food on our mood and mental health is something to which Dr Sally Bell thinks we should all pay a bit more attention. She has been a doctor for 20 years, and helps people by looking at elements of their life such as food, sleep and movement and encouraging them to make changes that could help. She runs workshops at Hampton Manor in the Midlands, where guests hear about the role food plays in mood while eating a specially designed dinner designed to illustrate some of the points.

“When I’m dealing with mood issues the first place I will go to is the gut,” says Dr Bell. There’s really robust research now that the health of our gut bacteria, our microbiome, is very much linked to mental health issues. And we know that the health of that bacteria and the integrity of that gut lining is influenced by what we eat.”

Stopping hunger turning into hanger

Fruit is good if you’re feeling hangry, because it’s high in fibre, has natural sugars and a host of other benefits (Photo: CHRISTOF STACHE/AFP/Getty)

For Lindquist, awareness is also key – helping you to deal with the way you interpret your feelings of hunger and avoid them turning into hanger.

“If you’re aware of your emotions, you can short-circuit hanger, perhaps because you can regulate your feelings or recognise that you just need to eat something. People can become more aware of their body sensations, the context that they are in, and how they are interpreting their feelings.

“If they’re feeling frustrated while trying to complete a task at work right before lunch, they may just have low blood sugar. Don’t have a tense conversation with your spouse while making dinner – wait until after you’ve eaten something.

“We know this is the case for little kids, but seem to have forgotten that hunger can make us irritable as adults, too.”

Foods to avoid if you’re feeling hangry

  • Salty snacks such as crisps, crackers and pretzels as they contain a lot of sodium
  • Excessive sugar and artificial sweetener
  • Caffeine and diuretic drinks that may leave you dehydrated

The best things to eat if you’re feeling hangry

  • Fruit: it’s high in fibre, has natural sugars and a host of other benefits
  • Vegetables and other high-fibre foods or so-called ‘high-volume’ foods that leave you feeling fuller for longer
  • A balanced plate of food. Geeta Sidhu-Robb recommends a mix of 45 per cent carbs, 45 per cent fibre and 10 per cent protein. For example, mackerel, salad leaves and some potatoes; or tofu and vegetables with olive oil
  • And be sure to drink plenty of water