I am loving this study I just found in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine! Not only is it brand-spanking new (Feb 2014), but it addresses the common experience of being “hangry” (though not in such terms). While I haven’t been hangry in a long time, oh how I remember it well! In my carb-laden pre-fasting days, my ever fluctuating blood sugar (glucose) levels based on food consumption determined a large portion of my mood. At the expense of sounding extremist, I’d propose that most people actually act this way. Think about it: people often get annoyed/unpleasant/etc, when they’re hungry. It’s like “Ohh yey I’m so happy I have lots of energy Let’s be friends!” after breakfast, and then when lunch is nearing it changes to something more along the lines of, “Don’t talk to me until I eat.”
I no longer get these “hangry” feelings. In fact, the longer I fast in between meals, typically the better I feel.
A 2014 study looked at NON-diabetic adults to see how glucose metabolism affects anger. Specifically in the study, “suppressed anger [anger-in], expressed anger [anger-out], and controlled anger [anger-control].” Who knew there were so many types of angry? It found that “low anger-control was associated with higher glucose,” and “anger expression is associated with clinical indicators of glycemic control.” Basically, inability to consistently regulate blood sugar levels (something which low carb, Paleo, and Intermittent Fasting ALL address) leads to feelings of anger.
So control your blood glucose levels through diet, and say goodbye to hangry!
SOURCE: Tsenkova, V. K., Carr, D., Coe, C. L., & Ryff, C. D. (2014). Anger, adiposity, and glucose control in nondiabetic adults: Findings from MIDUS II. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 37(1), 37-46. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10865-012-9460-y
