Physical hunger has its roots in simply being hungry because the stomach is empty or there have been severe glucose imbalances caused by spikes and steep falls in blood sugar levels.

Emotional hunger is a factor of anxiety, depression, stress, etc.,. During a meal, this type of hunger can extend eating beyond the chemical signals that tell the body you are full. When you haven’t eaten, emotional hunger causes cravings for comfort foods high in sugar or fat. The brain uses these foods to self-medicate with a natural food high or more simply to ease the problem. It’s the brains desire to self-reward that causes the urges or cravings.

If you are physically hungry and emotionally hungry at the same time, as most dieters are, ignoring the hunger signals will lead to overeating at some point. For example, if you have a few alcohol drinks after a sustained period of ignoring hunger signals, you will overeat by a substantial amount more than a person who eats when they are hungry.