A new study suggests that people seek instant gratification when they have an empty stomach – which means they are more likely to settle for less

Name: Empty stomach stupidity syndrome.

Age: As old as the first missed breakfast.

Appearance: Although it can show up at any time, it is common just before lunch.

Yeah, but what does it look like? It looks like delay discounting while in a fasted state.

What does that even mean? Simply put, it is the tendency to settle for smaller rewards delivered more immediately when famished.

If you’re saying being hungry makes you want to eat, I think I knew that. That is only the half of it. A new study, published in the Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, suggests that hunger may also affect decisions unrelated to food.

What kinds of decisions? The study, conducted at the University of Dundee, showed that participants who had fasted for 10 hours would opt to receive fewer free music downloads than those who had eaten recently, provided they got them sooner.

But you can’t eat music downloads. That’s the point. Normally, when you offer people a choice between a reward now or double that reward in the future, they are typically willing to wait 35 days for the bigger reward. For hungry people, the wait falls to three days.

Maybe it’s because I am malnourished, but I don’t understand why this is interesting. If you are hungry, the idea of wanting less food more immediately makes sense, but for other, non-food, decisions where a delayed reward is advantageous, the response could be maladaptive.

Can you give me a real-life example? “Say you were going to speak with a pensions or mortgage adviser,” said Dr Benjamin Vincent, who led the study. “Doing so while hungry might make you care a bit more about immediate gratification at the expense of a potentially more rosy future.”

All because you skipped a meal? The study is reminiscent of one from 2011, which found that judges presiding over parole hearings issued more lenient rulings first thing in the morning and then again just after lunch. The hungriest judges tended to be the least forgiving.

I can understand that, because I once gave up sugar and it made me want to punch everyone. How long did the feeling last?

Six years so far. Should we order a pizza? I had breakfast half an hour ago.

In that case, I am going to buy a boat online. Let’s get you a biscuit.

Do say: “Never shop – or remortgage – on an empty stomach.”

Don’t say: “My kingdom for a Mars bar.”