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Study: There's a scientific reason why you get "hangry"

Being "hangry" happens not just when you're hungry, but when those feelings turn up as strong emotions about the people or situation you are currently in.

We've all felt it - hangry. The combination of when we are extremely hungry which leads us to feel...well, extremely angry at the same time. Companies like Snickers have capitalized on it in ads, it's become an internet meme, and it's even in the dictionary. But now, for the first time, a team from the University of North Carolina has proven that this feeling is actually biologically sound!

In the study published by the American Psychological Association, hanger is more than just a drop in blood sugar (which typically causes hunger). Hanger is likely "a complicated emotional response due to biology, personality and environmental cues." The study asserts that feeling hangry happens not just when you are super hungry, but when those feelings turn up as strong emotions about the people or situation you are currently in. For example, if you've been walking all day AND you're hungry - those feelings of exhaustion could lead you to be more emotional about your situation in combination with your hunger.

Lead author Jennifer MacCormack, MA, a doctoral student in the department of psychology and neuroscience at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill said that, "there seems to be something special about unpleasant situations that makes people draw on their hunger feelings more than, say, in pleasant or neutral situations." For the study, psychologists presented 400 people with images that evoked positive, neutral or negative feelings.Overall, the study found that people who were hungry more often saw the pictures in a negative light. A solution? Be aware of your trigger warnings and practice self-care, go get that chocolate bar if you need it. Do you think being "hangry" could be cured? Give us your DBLTake!

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