by Chua Wei Ling
Have you ever wondered why you may get angry when you are hungry? Or perhaps know of someone who gets angry when they are hungry? You are not alone because this phenomenon, known as “hangry”, an amalgam of hungry and angry, is one whereby some people get increasing short-tempered when they are getting hungrier!
So what really happens?
As you get an intake of food, what you eat is digested into and the nutrients are passed into the bloodstream from which they will be distributed to the organs and tissues and used for energy. When blood glucose levels drops, you may find it harder to concentrate, and may also cause behaviour to digress from socially acceptable norms. In other words, you may be able to not be grumpy at those who are of important such as your superiors and colleagues etc, but at the same time, subconsciously, you may inevitably snap at those you are most relax with.
“Flight or fight”?
Another explanation for hangry is simply due to the flood of adrenaline that one gets when the organs in the body synthesise and release hormones to increase in the amount of glucose in the bloodstream. Similar to how one might shout out when being frightened, the same response is evoked as such.
Dealing with hanger
The best way to deal with hanger is simply to have something before you get way too hungry. Junk food may be a quick fix, but while they rise the blood-glucose level fast, it crashes just as fast too, leaving you hangrier than ever perhaps. The best foods to have ultimately would be natural ones as they are nutrients rich and satisfy your hunger longer too.
If you are still interested to read more about hangry, you can read more here.
