It's a common scenario: You've had a few drinks and now you can't stop yourself from polishing off that plate of nachos, or chowing down on that juicy kebab.
Sure, your self-control is limited and your inhibitions are loosened when you're tipsy, making it that much easier to give in to temptation.
![Cravings? Research shows alcohol activates the hypothalamus, the part of the brain usually stimulated by starvation.](/web/20170112090803im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/p/e/d/q/m/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtpwcl.png/1484182829537.jpg)
But it's more than that.
Even if you started the night with a full meal, now that you've downed a couple of beers, you find you're hungry.
Starving, even.
New research offers a possible explanation.
Published online in Nature Communications on January 10, the research shows that alcohol activates the hypothalamus, the part of the brain usually stimulated by starvation.
It's hypothalamic Agrp neurons, once hyperactive, cause intense hunger.
This may seem counter-intuitive. After all, alcohol is calorie-dense, and foods high in energy usually suppress the feeling of hunger.
Yet researchers found the opposite to be true.
The research was performed on mice (researchers noted that both mice and humans contain Agrp cells).
For the study, mice were given alcohol for three days and salt water for the three days before and after.
The researchers found that the mice consumed 15 per cent to 20 per cent more food on the days they were given alcohol than on the other days.
When the mice were then given a drug that blocked the Agrp neurons, they didn't eat as much.
This led the researchers to propose that Agrp neurons are the "critical step in alcohol-induced overeating".
Dr Georgia Rigas isn't surprised by these findings.
As chairwoman of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) Obesity Network, she says alcohol is known to affect areas of the brain that promote food intake.
However, she says this study adds another piece to "a very complex jigsaw puzzle".
While she welcomes advances in the field of obesity, she says the ways in which this research will translate to treating patients remains unknown.
Though future implications aren't yet clear, this research begs the question: If our brains are to blame for our desire to gorge when we hit the bottle, are we destined to stack on the kilos whenever we drink?
Not necessarily, says clinical psychologist Kirstin Bouse.
Along with the physiological drive to eat when we're drinking, she says there are also psychological elements at play.
"It's like Pavlov's dog [classical conditioning] where if you pair eating with drinking often enough, you associate each with the other."
But you don't have to swear off the hard stuff if you want to keep your waistline from bulging.
Instead, Bouse says you need to recognise that when you're drinking you're more vulnerable to making poor choices.
Then, it's all about planning.
Tell yourself you're entering a situation where you're likely to want to overindulge. Make decisions about how you want to respond – before having your first sip.
For example, plan not to stand near the food table at a party, or to put food on your plate rather than just grazing.
Next, learn your "permission" talk.
We all engage in such talk, says Bouse. They're the things we tell ourselves when we plan to throw in the towel and give in to our cravings.
("I deserve this," you might say. Or, "What's the harm in letting loose every now and then?")
Once you've identified your "permission talk", come up with "counter phrases" that remind yourself of your original goals – the ones you made before you started drinking.
Because even though our brains may try to lure us into eating when we've had a few drinks, we can overcome those urges through self-control, says Bouse.
"The more you're aware of your values and goals … and the more you remind yourself of them through self-talk, the more successful you'll be."