Hunger is one of the most essential and primitive drives of human behavior. Some eat in response to feelings. Indulging to cravings helps people to relax, alleviate anxiety or weariness, relieve anger, or adapt to depression, trouble or nervousness.
A new research reveals that hunger can extend beyond craving for things other than food. As reported in Scientific American, people who are hungry even seem to shop more to cope with stress. These people confuse hunger with the feeling of incompleteness unless they acquire these nonfood things. Any feeling that is difficult to regulate may trigger the urge to crave for food or even nonfood things.
The results of the research may be associated with anyone who has tried to alter their diet, which is increasingly usual in a country where two thirds of adults are overweight or obese.
A survey was conducted by researchers to at least eight participants. They were instructed to examine the product and answer the questionnaire. They were asked about mood, hunger, relaxation, and binder clip preferences. Binder clips (the 3/4 inch variety, to be exact) were given to the participants and were asked with some odd questions like "Do you think this binder clip is easy to use?" and "How much do you like this binder clip?" After their actual experience of using the binder clips, the participants were asked how many they wanted to take home. The evaluation showed that hungrier people asked for more binder clips. By one means or another, it appeared that hungry people needed not just food, but nonfood objects too.
In order to find out more about this strange connection thoroughly, the experts went to the lab and replicate this experiments themselves. Another group of participants took part on the experiment and were instructed not to eat for at least four hours before to a blind taste test. Whole cake was given to the "satiated" group, were asked with the same binder clip question used in the previous study and resulted in requesting for fewer binder clips. On the other hand, the "hungry" group'' answered the binder clips questionnaire, took as many clips they liked and then ate their cake to answer cake-related questions. Hunger led participants to acquire more binder clips without affecting their liking of binder clips.
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