You may feel the question quite award but it really happens with me. When I shop (offline) with a hungry stomach I often end up up buying more processed / packed foods and soft drinks. On the contrary if I shop after a good meal chances are that I hardly buy any of those junk foods and focus more on nutritious items. It has a scientific backup too. When you are hungry your body releases some hormones that adversely affects your rational thinking ability. It is found that people who do gambling with empty stomach often take risky decisions without enough thinking. Have your ever sensed that?
Oh yes, and I try very hard not to shop when I am hungry. It's not so much the type of food that changes, as that I buy far more when I am hungry, and I am more prone to purchase things we actually already have 'just in case'. I find I save money and plan my purchases better if I shop when I'm not hungry.
Marketing experts will tell you that purchases are greatly affected by moods. That’s why a month before Christmas, malls are already playing Christmas songs to condition the minds of the mall-goers to buy. When you are hungry, you tend to rush and expose yourself to potential wrong decisions of purchasing. Whenever we would go to the supermarket or the mall, I make it a point to eat first so I would feel comfortable enough to make the right decisions on what I would be buying.
Yes, I have been in a convenience store, and I haven't eaten lunch yet that time, so I bought food that I won't normally buy when I'm full. So it really is worth it to take your time to eat before going out so that you won't be impulsively spending your money on food.
Definitely not. My mood (whatever it's at the moment) and my decision to buy something never mixed (and I believe that this will never happen). I only buy when I really want / need (and never am influenced by any external factors). I wish I can the same about my girlfriend...
Definitely, appetite does affect my buying, I buy more when hungry. Thanks for the scientific reasoning behind it. I try not to go food shopping when hungry for I do tend to buy more than I originally needed. I try to go with a shopping list too, for I try, really hard to stick to it. I must admit though when I come across something I need at a good price I'll buy. Oh those in-store specials get me all the time, lol!
When it comes too food and hunger, yes I tend to let my appetite get the better of me. I usually try to buy as much as I can afford, usually under twenty dollars. The things I buy are usually candy, ramen noodles, tv dinners and drinks.
Yes most definitely. Hunger affects your shopping decisions. When you are hungry, you can mix the emotions you feel at this stage with your need for things. You will also be pressured into making a purchase that you don't really need in order to have a meal soon.
I agree that hunger does affect our decision making system. You get to spend a lot in the mall if you feel hungry. As you can see that shopping is lot easier if you are on full stomach. You don't buy things because you need them. Instead you buy things only when you want to support your decisions. I think that's how many among us are buying things better way. I go to mall with full stomach.
Oh, yes this influence me a lot, because if I am hungry I am thinking only about food and what I would eat at that moment, so I end up buying more food than I wanted initially and if I am hungry a lot I buy small packs of sweets that I eat until I get out of the store (I keep the packaging to pay when I get out of the store).
The question sounds funny, but it is the truth you just pointed out. Whenever I am hungry and go shopping, I always end up buying more processed food as a result of being hungry. Anyway, that was in the past since I have got to be wiser and write down the things I need to shop for while still at home so that when I go shopping, I do not do impulse buying. If we all can plan our spending in such way that we list things we need and an estimate of how much it will cost, then we are half way to managing our finances well.
Good question though. Truth is that I like to eat, but moderately though. Whenever am hungry, I take care of it first before doing any other thing.
I've never really shopped while hungry because if I do, I'd have to eat first and that could be costly at commercial centers, unless I've actually planned to eat out at a fast food restaurant. Even if I do have to shop on a hungry stomach, I'd still stick to my shopping list because I have a household to run and a child to consider when buying food items. @luckycharm does have a point because hunger can cloud our judgment. When I get too hungry, I'm more likely to reach out to a bar of chocolate for instant energy and finish it off with Coke. Hence, I make sure that I eat at certain times of the day and never wait for hunger pangs.
I noticed that it does. On a lot of occasions. I noticed that when I'm hungry and then go grocey shopping, I tend to buy much more compared to what I buy when I'm not hungry. I would buy different kinds of bread and chips that I plan to eat right away. When it's not food that I am shopping, I noticed that I am much more impatient and impulsive when I'm hungry. So I always try to eat something before I go shopping.
Funny enough, it does for me. If I go shopping hungry it feels as if my sense of smell and eyesight is sharpened. The aroma of bread baking and cinnamon as I pass the bakery, the smell of pine apples and bananas as I pass the fruit and vegetable section and the smell of coffee it all makes me long for food and eventually buy at least one of those things.
If you rely on hunger alone to make your shopping decisions, then you are certainly going to making unwanted purchase of something that wouldn't really be of importance to you. Hunger gives erratic disposition, it's definitely going to give you impulses to buy and buy without thinking if you really needed that. So therefore, I don't allow hunger dictate my shopping activities for me.
I had also read that it is not good to go grocery shopping when you are hungry, and for me , it is definitely true. All kinds of things look delicious and like something we really need when i am shopping and have not eaten first. If I have a large meal, then sometimes, I forget things that we needed; so I try to eat before I shop; but not to go to the grocery store on a really full tummy either. Making a list also helps me because then I already know what we need, and as long as I stick to the list, I usually only buy food that I actually need. Sometimes, I will find a good sale on something, and then I might stock up while the item is on sale; but that is different than wanting to buy something just because I am hungry when I am shopping.
Yes. I think hunger can affect shopping decisions. In the scenario where someone has planned to go shopping for a particular item, and by bad luck he becomes hungry, there are high chances that he will land on purchasing already cooked foods to eat. Since the money would have reduced, he may now not purchase what he had planned for.
