Have you ever asked yourself why you get hungry after drinking alcohol? Probably just about everyone found themselves eating non-stop after a few beers or glasses of wine.  According to researchers, they have discovered the mystery behind alcohol-induced hunger.

Why do you feel hungry after drinking alcohol?

Apparently, drinking tricks your brain into thinking you are starving, Nature reported. This is why fast food like chips and burgers seem so attractive and we start overeating like there is no tomorrow.

1. Booze stimulates brain cells

According to research by the scholars of London’s Francis Crick Institute, liquor stimulates brain cells that are responsible to sending signals about extreme hunger and begging for food. In the experiment, when mice were starving, the same brain circuits (hypothalamic Agrp neurons) were activated as when they got some alcohol.

As a result, this causes your brain to think that you are hungry and tells you to eat lots of greasy and fatty meals.

2. Alcohol controls eating behaviours

Another reason why does liquor make you hungry is because it controls your eating behaviours. According to the research, people eat a lot of food after excessive drinking of alcohol. While the fundamental mechanisms of this renowned fact are still unknown, some scholars proposed that high intake of high alcohol causes individuals to lose self-discipline. This, therefore, causes you to forget your limits about food. The end of it all is your mind thinking you are hungry every time. Reimer, an addiction researcher, states that individuals develop some behavioural patterns and this can become dangerous, unhealthy intake of food and also alcohol.

3. Liquor stimulates craving signals

People get hungry after drinking because liquor is highly energetic. Although this has puzzled researchers, there are some other studies confirming it. Your body usually records the moment when high-energetic food arrives and thus cancels any hunger feelings you might have. But this is not the same when it comes to alcohol. Spirits carry lots of empty calories, and as a result, it makes you consume a lot of food. Overeating can result in obesity, high risk of cancer, diabetes, stroke and other diseases.

4. Alcohol increases appetite

Researchers found out that liquor increases your craving for food. For decades, people have used alcoholic drinks, aperitifs, to boost their desire for a sumptuous meal. Research has confirmed that people eat more food after drinking lots of alcohol. In a study conducted by a UK market research firm, people consumed around 6,300 more calories in the next 24 hours, just after drinking wine tankards.

Drinking makes you hungry because it gives you an energy boost through empty calories and stimulates your brain in a certain way

If a friend asks you, why does liquor make you hungry? Now you know the answer to that. But that is not all about alcohol and the feeling of starvation. You need to remember to avoid excessive eating after several drinks. Research suggests that before you go for your outing either with friends or alone, ensure you eat lots of food before leaving your home. This will help to avoid excessive drinking of liquor and you will feel less hungry after that. Another thing is to avoid excessive consumption of alcohol on any occasion, known as binge drinking. Study after study report on devastating effects of overconsumption of spirits.

For instance, doctors in Russia estimate that around 500,000 people die there every year because of reasons linked to alcohol abuse. Although Russia has been dropping in ranks for intake of spirits. Other countries of the former USSR such as Belarus and Lithuania were found in recent years to surge ahead. Some other research suggests that South Koreans may be the heaviest drinkers.

Research has confirmed that people eat more food after drinking alcohol.

Low dosage of alcohol is good for you

Mediterranean diet has been known to be the most beneficial for people, allowing them to live longer and be healthier. It is the diet that people living in Italy, Spain and Greece are following, and it includes a couple of glasses of wine a day.

A recent research confirmed that consuming around 2.5 standard drinks a day helps your health. The alcohol stimulates removal of toxins from brain, which cause dementia and Alzheimer’s, thus reducing inflammation. Scientists from the University of Rochester found the link in 2012, which prompted them to conduct a more in-depth investigation. In the research, they found that low dosage of alcohol consumption didn’t negatively affect cognitive abilities and motor skills in rodents, while improved the removal of waste from the brain. At the same time researchers confirmed that high doses were harmful for the body.

So, you can still enjoy a drink, while helping your body to cleanse, if you manage your intake carefully.

Alcohol also improves your language skills

In another research, scholars discovered that having one drink improved respondents’ fluency in a foreign language. People’s pronunciation improved after they had a little bit of alcohol.

The problem, for many people, is to be able to stop after having just one beer or wine. And certainly, women from Russia and Ukraine don’t look kindly on men who drink. In fact, wanting a husband who doesn’t drink is one of 2 main requests of Ukrainian women coming to marriage agencies. The second one is to find someone who is not abusive.

Read also:

• Do Russian men really drink a lot?
• What Russian and Ukrainian Women Mean by Bad Habits
• Unhealthy habits steal 6 years of your life: How lack of exercise, bad food, cigarettes, and excess alcohol affect you
• 9 complaints of Russian wives