There was then a pause.

Participants were then asked to drink water until they felt full and the amount of water ingested was recorded (Water Load Test).

To investigate the interaction between IS and PA during physical performance tasks and in everyday situations. Followed Herbert et all study based on adults’ regulation of PA in relation to IS.

Theory:

Feedback of internal bodily signals is related to the self-regulation of physical activity (PA). Without being perceptive to internal bodily signals, we could theoretically be less aware of our physical limits.

Participants:

49 Primary aged children (9-11) in southwest Germany within a health promotion programme

And Subsample of 21 children

Hypothesis:

Hypothesized that a healthy and fit physical state is associated with higher IS in children. This would be reflected by a better performance when participating in a physical task as well as in a higher level of daily PA in children.

Method:

Mixed method design, correlational, cross-sectional, londitudinal element.

Children’s heartbeat perception was tested individually to assess IS.

All participants filled out questionnaires regarding their health status.

BMI for all children was calculated.

Physical performance assessed by calculating the number of circuits of a volleyball field each child could complete in 6 minutes.

Daily physical activity monitored (actiheart monitor) over 5 consecutive days.

Results:

Children with higher interoceptive sensitivity performed better in the physical performance task.

IS was positively correlated with the extent of light PA levels in the morning and afternoon.

Good heartbeat perceivers were children with a normal to high BMI and with a greater fitness state.

Discussion:

Small sample size.

Implications for future interventions.

Strengths – objective measures.

Limited IS to heartbeat perception.

Underlying mechanisms of how it all worked hasn’t really been tested. Whilst there is correlation, it doesn’t necessarily show a cause. Many other factors involved. No indication of how to improve IS.

Older studies suggested that a higher state of fitness might be advantageous for better IS (Borg and Linderholm, 1967; Montgomery et al., 1984)

Future studies could consider autistic children.

Hypotheses:

Higher interoceptive sensitivity (IS) would be associated with better levels of physical activity (PA) in children, as they would be able to regulate their state and bodily momements.

Methods:

49 children (20 girls, 29 boys) aged 9-11 years participated. IS measured using heartbeat perception task (asked to count their heartbeat and then compared)

Physical fitness: 6-minute run test, assessed by distance covered.

Daily physical activity: Used a smaller sample (n=21), recorded data from a wearable device on heart rate and accelerometery (movement).

Results:

Positive correlation between physical fitness and BMI.

Strong negative interrelation between low IS, covered distance and BMI. Strong negative interrelation between low IS, covered distance in run test, and BMI. Higher IS positively related to more light physical activity in morning and afternoon.

Is will be related to physical activity.

Constantly determining our own internal bodily processes.

Incorporates Damasio's somatic marker theory, about bodily sensations role in emotion regulation

Results:

Positive correlation between physical fitness and BMI. 

Strong negative interrelation between low IS, covered distance and BMI.

Higher IS positively related to more light physical activity in morning and afternoon.

Daily physical activity:

Boys + girls differ for light PA in evening. More sedentary activity for girls. 

MVPA in morning higher for boys

No significant difference betwe'en 3 age groups 

 The study confirms that IS is measurable and variable among primary school children.
2. Gender and age did not significantly influence IS, indicating individual differences in perception of bodily signals.
3. Contrary to previous studies in adults, higher IS was associated with greater physical fitness in children.
4. Children with higher IS tended to perform better in the 6-minute run task, regardless of BMI.

Limitation:

Heartbeat perception task may be that asking a child to count their own heartbeats may not be reliable.

There wasn't enough age difference between kids in the group.

Strong negative interrelation between low IS, covered distance and BMI. Strong negative interrelation between low IS, covered distance in run test, and BMI. Higher IS positively related to more light physical activity in morning and afternoon.

Gender and age did not significantly influence IS, indicating individual differences in perception of bodily signals.

Strengths:

Robust study, relied on objective measures.

Controlled for

Limitations:

Some subjective measures to understand the child’s experience would be useful or self-report measures.

Potentially measuring other forms of interoception (like through a respiratory resistance task) would make it stronger.

Direction unclear (correlational). They said a longitudinal study would help in future research to check the long-term relationships. They also mentioned wanting to check BMI measures.

• The ability of different individuals to be able to read their internal systems.

• Interoception is a domain general skill not a domain specific skill

Hypothesis

• Cardiac awareness should be accompanied by less water ingestion in the WLT until feeling first signs of fullness, signaling more sensitive perception of gastric function and that different amounts of water loads were associated with different 3 cpm activity of the stomach as measured by the EGG.

Background

• A more accurate internal awareness in one area will correlate to a more accurate internal awareness in another (here: cardiac and gastro). But previous studies have used invasive methods which have lacked ecological validity and comprised results as testing process made participants more acutely aware of their internal systems.

Methodology

• Correlational, cross-sectional, laboratory study.

• Measured Variables: cardiac awareness, measured using a heartbeat tracking task and sensitivity to gastric signals, assessed through the WLT and EGG, as well as subjective ratings of fullness, arousal, and emotional experiences

• This study involved 68 right-handed female students from the University of Tuebingen,

• It was focusing on the relationship between cardiac awareness and gastric sensitivity.

• Participants underwent a rigorous screening process, excluding those with health issues or regular involvement in athletic activities.

• The final group consisted of 49 healthy females, who participated in fasting, heartbeat perception tasks, and a water load test to assess their interoceptive awareness and its correlation with gastric functions. The study's methodology aimed to ensure accurate assessments of the participants' cardiac awareness and its potential link to their sensitivity towards gastric signals.

Results

• The study found that participants with higher cardiac awareness consumed less water during the Water Load Test (WLT) - This showed a significant negative correlation between cardiac awareness and both water intake and %3 cpm activity, suggesting sensitivity to gastric signals.

• There were no significant group differences observed in subjective feelings or anxiety levels. This indicates a link between cardiac perception and gastric sensitivity, unaffected by anxiety or subjective sensations of fullness and nausea.

Evaluation

• Aimed to fix the problems of invasiveness in previous studies by being the first study to use non-invasive methods.

• Lacks generalisability as overly controlled - no males, only right-handed, no health issues, no sporting.

• Lacks ecological validity as participants are being asked to focus on internal features

• Self-reporting lacks an objective scale of comparability

• Relationship between drinking and heart rate may be affected to other issues

- Higher IS was associated with better performance in physical tasks and higher levels of light PA in children, indicating a positive association between IS and PA.

- The findings also suggested that good heartbeat perceivers showed higher IS and physical fitness, regardless of their BMI, emphasizing the importance of IS for self-regulation of health-related behavior in children

The study included 49 children in a health promotion program in Germany. IS was measured using a heartbeat perception task, and PA was assessed through a physical performance task and a multi-sensor device over five consecutive days.

Results: positive correlation between physical fitness and BMI.

Positive association between higher IS and greater distance run.

Limitations: Smartwatches measuring VO2 max etc... accuracy

Only 6 students actually completed 60 mins of exercise.

Design is correlational

Interception only measured by heartrate

positive: Overall sample size was large, it was part of a larger study with other primary schools in SW Germany.

Due to difference in performance between girls and boys, the distance run was placed into a ranking system