Why Do We Get Hungry?
Hunger is a sensation partly arising in the stomach, since it may be relieved temporarily by the introduction into the stomach of material which is incapable of yielding any nutriment to the body. It may be due to a condition of fulness of the vessels of the stomach, relieved by any stimulus which, acting on the lining membrane, induces a flow of fluid from the glands. But it also arises from a condition of the system, since the introduction of nutriment into the blood, apart altogether from the stomach, will relieve it. This is also evident from the fact that hunger may be experienced even when the stomach is full of food, and when food is supplied in abundance, if some disease prevents the absorption of the nourishment, or quickly drains it from the blood. Hunger may be partially allayed by sleep or by the use of narcotics, tobacco and alcohol, all of which tend to diminish the disintegration of tissues.