The bizarre reason why you feel hungry at 3am

Have you ever woken up in the middle of night, craving for some good food? It is pretty bizarre that 3 am has always been associated with creepy facts of being the dead hour or the ghost hour, but do you crave for food around that time?

Well, we aren’t trying to freak you out with the creepy facts, but 3 am is also the time when most people crave junk food. Yes, it is true and the facts around it will surprise you!

The urge of gobbling down something spicy and crispy or sweet and chocolaty can be a repercussion of your lifestyle as well as your eating habits. There are several myths around nighttime eating, some associate it with weight gain others call it the sole reason for poor health, but is it that bad!

It is strange that we link our midnight hunger pangs with so many things, but as per a study conducted by Erin Hanlon, a behavioral Neuroscientist at the University of Chicago, it was observed that lack of sleep or sleeping disorders are to be blamed for the urge of midnight eating. Moreover, not only midnight eating rather craving junk food or sweets are a result of poor sleep patterns. So, the key to keep a check on this issue is by monitoring your sleep.

Apart from myths around midnight eating, science has its own tale to blame our hormones for our midnight cravings. Two hormones that are associated with our hunger are leptin and ghrelin. Leptin suppresses the appetite and helps with weight loss whereas ghrelin is all about weight gain! An increase in the level of this hormone triggers hunger and leads to weight gain.

Lack of sleep leads to an increase in the level of both these hormones, which leads to an increase in the urge to eat. However, being sleep deprived isn't the only reason to blame your dead hour cravings!

Human brain is way smarter than anything in this world and to understand what triggers hunger pangs at that hour can be a bit tricky. However, science has an answer to this! A component called endocannabinoid, which regulates everything in the body. Right from our appetite to our sleep to pain and inflammation almost everything!

According to studies, the Endocannabinoids bind to the same receptors as THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, which leads to an urge to eat and increase those odd hunger pangs.

In fact, as per studies the endocannabinoid system is what increases the urge to eat despite being satiated. It increases the hunger pangs for fatty, sugary and starchy foods. What's more, being sleep deprived worsen this condition.

Going for sleep inducing foods can help in reducing your midnight cravings. There’s a plethora of foods that help in promoting a good night sleep such as warm milk, chamomile tea, almonds, bananas and dark chocolates, etc.

In a nutshell, it can be concluded that 3am craving can be a result of several things. Right from your eating and sleeping patterns to your hormones. Hence, the best way to deal with this untimely hunger pang is by changing your eating habits and adding foods to your diet that can improve metabolism and induce sleep. Apart from that, your emotional and physical well being affects your sleep. So, if you too are suffering from the dead hour hunger cravings, then it is time to change your lifestyle and allow your body to heal naturally.