Is this food making you hungry?
It’s no surprise
Hunger can be triggered not just by our need for food, but by the sight and smell of it
Even just thinking about food can stimulate food-seeking behavior
When we’re hungry
our body responds in a number of ways
When you’re hungry you often feel your stomach rumbling
After a couple of hours without food
the organ begins contracting to push whatever food remains into the intestines
This rumbling is called ‘boborygmus
When food is lacking
cells in the stomach and intestine will also produce ghrelin
a hormone that produces feelings of hunger
At the same time levels of leptin
an appetite-suppressing hormone produced by fat cells, will go down
Ghrelin communicates with the hypothalamus in the brain
which regulates our basic body functions
The vagus nerve sends signals to the brain about how full or empty our stomach is
as well as relaying the amount of nutrients in our intestines
Neurotransmitters, such as Neuropeptide Y are released
sending messages to various parts of the brain in order to stimulate our appetite
Key nutrients in your blood, such as glucose, amino acids and fatty acids
will be at their lowest when you are hungry
This can have a big effect on the brain
An empty stomach increases your impulsiveness and makes it harder for you to make long-term decisions
You might also get ‘hangry’
where a lack of food leads to you feeling irritable
Carbs break down into glucose, which is required to make your brain function properly
When blood glucose levels are low
our bodies perceive we are in a life-threatening situation
The brain starts sending messages to our organs and glands to increase blood sugar levels
One of these, the adrenal gland, releases the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline
triggering our ‘fight or flight’ response
All these body responses are triggered by an actual need for food
So why do we desire food like this even when we’re not hungry
It’s because when we see food
greater amounts of Ghrelin will be released even if we recently ate
Our ancestors might have gone days without food while hunting and gathering
Having his hormone stimulate our appetite whenever we spotted a food source kept our species alive
That of course doesn’t apply today
and the hormone has been linked to obesity problems
where someone feels hungry even if they don’t actually need to eat
When we do crave foods, it’s usually the fatty, sugary kind
This is because this type of food releases opioids into our bloodstream
which generate feelings of pleasure and mild euphoria
The pleasure and reward we receive from satisfying our food cravings
are simply milder versions of what drug addicts experience when they get high