{"id":27471,"date":"2026-11-07T03:47:50","date_gmt":"2026-11-07T03:47:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/?p=27471"},"modified":"2026-11-07T03:47:50","modified_gmt":"2026-11-07T03:47:50","slug":"why-late-night-snack-cravings-hit-and-how-to-manage-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/2026\/11\/07\/why-late-night-snack-cravings-hit-and-how-to-manage-them\/","title":{"rendered":"About a third of people snack every night after dinner, researchers say"},"content":{"rendered":"<section aria-labelledby=\"hpd-nfnmyipv-inrtzyj-hlesdml-zofjqh\" class=\"auk-zvimcvi-inrtzyj\" lang=\"en\">\n<h2 id=\"hpd-nfnmyipv-inrtzyj-hlesdml-zofjqh\">In brief<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>About a third of people snack every night after their evening meal, according to research cited by the BBC.<\/li>\n<li>Ghrelin, the hunger hormone, is generally higher later in the day, and the brain\u2019s reward system favours calorie-dense foods.<\/li>\n<li>Whether late snacking harms sleep is unclear, because poor sleep can itself drive cravings.<\/li>\n<li>Experts advise finding the trigger first, then adjusting meals or routines and planning snacks.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n<p>Half an hour after a full dinner, many people find themselves in the kitchen again, and researchers say biology is part of the reason. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/cq2e9v3030gyo?at_medium=RSS&amp;at_campaign=rss\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">The BBC<\/a> reported on 6 November 2026 on research into why evening cravings are so common and what can be done about them.<\/p>\n<div class=\"auk-kmrcibp\">\n<div class=\"auk-fsnsbv\"><strong class=\"auk-fsnsbv__fvtkh\">1\u00a0in 3<\/strong><span class=\"auk-fsnsbv__ppkniutc\">people snack every night after their evening meal<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"auk-fsnsbv\"><strong class=\"auk-fsnsbv__fvtkh\">4\u00a0in 5<\/strong><span class=\"auk-fsnsbv__ppkniutc\">of those aged 18-24 say they cannot resist<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>An appetite that peaks after dark<\/h2>\n<p>Studies indicate that hunger climbs naturally as night approaches, whatever quantity of food someone consumed earlier, although the body receives nothing while asleep. Prof James Betts, a University of Bath researcher into the way our bodies process food and energy, highlights ghrelin, nicknamed the \u201chunger hormone\u201d, whose levels are usually elevated later on. As he puts it: \u201cWhile it tends to be suppressed by meals, that really only happens after the first meal of the day, not after lunch or dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hunger is not the whole story. Craving for energy-packed foods also grows as the hours pass, fuelled by the reward circuitry of the brain and not by any real energy requirement. Dr Kristine Beaulieu, a dietitian affiliated with the University of Leeds and the University of Moncton, notes: \u201cOur liking and wanting for high-fat foods are greater later in the day compared to low-fat foods,\u201d an urge capable of overriding the body\u2019s fullness signals. Products loaded with sugar, fat or salt may go on stimulating those reward pathways even once a hearty meal is finished.<\/p>\n<h2>Other triggers, and a link to weight<\/h2>\n<p>A dinner built around protein, fibre and bulk usually leaves people feeling full for a longer time. According to Betts, an evening meal lacking nutrition or staying power may bring on a later \u201ccrash\u201d and a bout of snacking. Some people snack because they dread waking in the small hours with an empty stomach, and routine plays its role as well. Prof Suzanne Higgs, who specialises in appetite at the University of Birmingham, says: \u201cIf snacking often happens in the same setting, the surrounding cues can start to trigger cravings,\u201d for instance switching on the television. She adds that eating while the mind is elsewhere may make people take in extra food, since they notice less what they have eaten.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"hpd-nfnmyipv-imzntj-gogcn\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A white bowl containing sliced bananas, strawberries, and granola on a red mat over a wooden table.\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/white-bowl-containing-sliced-bananas-strawberries.jpg\" \/><figcaption>A bowl filled with sliced bananas, fresh strawberries, and granola served on a wooden table. <span class=\"auk-gogcn-ertkm\" data-provider=\"pexels\">Photo: Daniel Reche \/ <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/close-up-photo-of-bowl-of-breakfast-cereal-1556681\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Pexels<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Beaulieu argues that weight is at stake here: she cites evidence showing that the closer to bedtime people eat, specifically in the two hours before going to bed, the higher their chances of putting on weight and developing obesity.<\/p>\n<h2>What is known about sleep<\/h2>\n<p>Whether eating late damages sleep remains unclear, with mixed findings. A big meal late in the evening disturbs digestion and interferes with the way the body usually gets ready for rest, yet studies of snacking give a murkier picture. Certain research ties poorer sleep to products rich in refined carbohydrates and added sugars, for example white bread, white rice, biscuits and cakes. Scientists suspect that larger blood sugar fluctuations and changed hormonal signals could play a role.<\/p>\n<p>Still, separating cause from effect is tricky. Those who sleep poorly may be more inclined to seek out sugary food. Prof Jonathan Johnston, an expert on sleep and the body clock at the University of Surrey, states: \u201cSleep deprivation is known to not only increase appetite, but also a desire for energy-dense foods.\u201d Betts concludes that solid conclusions are very hard to reach, and that the findings may simply show individuals reacting in different ways to various foods eaten before bed.<\/p>\n<h2>A practical order of action<\/h2>\n<ol class=\"auk-eugnl\">\n<li>Work out what is driving the snacking.<\/li>\n<li>When hunger is real, the answer is to make your previous meals more substantial.<\/li>\n<li>If the habit is mainly routine, change the routine and plan snacks in advance.<\/li>\n<li>Place nutritious choices like fruit, yoghurt and nuts close at hand.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Beaulieu explains that evening snacks need not be forbidden altogether. \u201cIt\u2019s OK to eat those craved foods once in a while in moderation,\u201d she says, adding that the aim is for the healthy option to be the automatic choice. When tempting foods are not usually stocked at home and a healthier alternative is, people tend more often to choose the latter.<\/p>\n<p class=\"media-credit auk-gogcn-ertkm\" data-provider=\"pexels\"><small>Photo: Helena Jankovi\u010dov\u00e1 Kov\u00e1\u010dov\u00e1 \/ <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/photo-of-a-person-s-hand-getting-a-biscuit-from-a-container-6254882\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Pexels<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Appetite peaks in the evening, and the brain\u2019s reward system pushes people toward rich foods even after dinner, say researchers cited by the BBC.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":27473,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[1318,1319,1264,1315,1316,1317],"class_list":["post-27471","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-appetite","tag-ghrelin","tag-health","tag-nutrition","tag-sleep","tag-snacking"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27471","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27471"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27471\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27479,"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27471\/revisions\/27479"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27473"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27471"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27471"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/visegradpost.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27471"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}