‘Hangry’ is a real thing

I’m hangry. Yes, this is a real word. A real feeling. And a great way to describe your extreme hunger.

Have you ever been so hungry that you feel irritated, and those feelings instantly disappear once you scarf down some food to elevate those feelings of starvation? Well, that feeling of hunger and anger is known as ‘hangry,’ which is term that links hunger with our emotions. 

Researchers conducted a new study where 64 participants reported their level of hunger, anger, irritability, and pleasure at 5 different times of the day. They found that whenever participants reported hunger, they also reported greater feelings of anger and irritability. Thus, these negative emotions were tied to feelings of hunger because our blood sugar starts to drop and our brain is affected by this change. We become confused and get irritable. 

Sometimes, we are ‘hangry’ without even realizing it until we get cranky or our stomach is rumbling in a quiet room. Remember those times when we naturally reach over to grab a snack at our desk or start munching on something, well, that’s actually your ‘hanger’ speaking. 

The purpose of this study was to label this feeling because it helps us better understand what’s going on with our body and to better able to do something about it. If you known that you’re someone whose mood drops when you’re hungry, it’s probably best to keep more snacks in arm’s reach and make it a habit to reach for them when you begin experiencing classic signs of ‘hangry’ emotions.

I actually don’t feel ‘hangry’ that often, but if I’m working late in the AMs and had an early dinner, I do feel a bit ‘hangry’ and it does affect my progress. So, when this does happen, I reach over to grab a handful of gummies or dried mango to distract my brain from being focused on ‘hangry-ness,’ so I can get back to writing. Not until today, I never thought this was a proper word.

Have you ever felt ‘hangry’?