I’m sure you’ve been there before.

You haven’t eaten in a few hours, you don’t know when you’re next going to have something, and everything starts to grind your gears.

The infuriating crunching of someone eating a packet of crisps, the extra few seconds it takes for the internet browser to load, and your partner leaving the washing up – again.

Before you know it, you’ve exploded into a ball of fury, taking down everything in your path.

We have a word for this:

Hangry.

Coined from ‘hungry’ and ‘angry,’ the term ‘hangry’ indicates a state in which one is hungry but is also angry because of hunger.

It’s a vicious cycle.

So, what can you do about it?

First, eat regularly.

Not only does this minimise hunger – and subsequent anger – but it helps maintain stable blood sugar and energy levels, supports mood regulation, and also reduces the risk of overeating later. Consistent meals provide both physical and emotional stability, making it easier to think clearly, feel balanced, and avoid that dreaded ‘hanger’.

Stop ‘saving calories’ or ‘skipping meals’; the damage far outweighs the benefits of trying to ‘eat less’ to lose weight.

Secondly, labelling your affective state as being ‘hangry’ could allow you to make sense of that experience. Instead of finding yourself down a rabbit hole of pissing off everyone you encounter because you haven’t eaten in a few hours, you start to ascertain what’s truly going on.

With that awareness, you can then act rationally.

You know, by eating something!

This can also help to debunk the common advice of saving calories before a night out.

It makes sense, right?

Save a few hundred additional calories for the big meal out later because you know you’ll be eating and drinking a little more. Unfortunately, it seldom works like that. Not only are you then often ravenous when it comes to that meal later on (and invariably wind up overeating), but you then feel deprived and feel the need to ‘make the most’ of that planned meal out. Cue starters, mains, desserts, drinks, and more…

Physiologically, your body isn’t ready to go from ‘empty’ to ‘full’ so abruptly, often leading to bloating and discomfort. That heavy, overfull feeling can then trigger panic thoughts — ‘I’ve eaten too much! I’m out of control! I need to restrict tomorrow!’ — which only fuels the cycle and sets you up to repeat the same pattern the next day.

Eating regularly and consistently throughout the day is one of the most underrated habits you can adopt when it comes to managing your overall consumption.

While it may seem detrimental, feeling satiated and satisfied with your meals earlier in the day, it can actually prevent you from overeating later on, rather than trying to be clever and ‘save’ calories. After all, you’ll probably only be saving 200-300 calories earlier in the day, only to consume three or four times that amount later when hunger takes over.

Just a different perspective for you to consider.

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