Can food make you angry?

A growing body of research indicates that what we eat may affect how angry we feel. Yet, for many, the food-mood link still has an aura of quackery. One recent University of California study showed that "greater trans fatty acids were significantly associated with greater aggression," says lead author and professor Beatrice Golomb. "Trans fats interfere with omega three metabolism" - and apparently, the brain's neurons need these essential fatty acids to keep us bright and snappy. Lack of omega three has already been linked with depression and antisocial behaviour, and according to some experts, it seems many of us post-industrialists have woefully omega-three-deficient diets.

It's not exactly "eat a sausage roll; punch someone", but down to "patterns of eating". Another study indicated that when levels of the brain chemical serotonin dip, from stress or not eating, it affects the brain regions regulating anger, potentially resulting in "a whirlwind of uncontrollable emotions".

So why is the food-mood link not more widely accepted? Sketchy evidence, say some scientists. Correlation does not prove causation, for one thing: there's a good argument that someone feeling cheesed off may be more likely to pig out on trans-fat-loaded junk food in the first place. Then there's the contradictory flow of nutritional research, which, thanks to, ahem, "simplistic media coverage" pull us in confusing directions. Take one study that claimed to show that people who plumped for an apple instead of chocolate were more likely to be drawn to violent films. Apparently, exerting self-control led to feeling, well, a bit wound up.

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