SENSing Inner BodiLy State: Understanding the Role of Interoception in obEsity

Recruiting

• Conditions: Obesity; Body Representation

• Registration Number: NCT06855251
• Lead Sponsor: Istituto Auxologico Italiano

Brief Summary

Successfully perceiving the flow of interoceptive cues and integrating them with exteroceptive information are fundamental aspects of countering the body's inherent instability and guaranteeing homeostatic regulation. This process deeply affects cognitive/emotional functioning and general health. Recently, it has been suggested that an important signature underpinning obesity might be an interoceptive dysfunction in perceiving internal body signals and/or integrating them with information from the external environment. There is evidence that interoceptive deficits correlate with Body Mass Index (BMI), but it is still largely unclear how different measures and facets of interoception are related to high BMI and eating behaviour. Within this framework, it is mandatory to understand the role of interoception in obesity at perceptual, cognitive, and emotional levels. One open issue regards the relationships between interoceptive signals and the reactivity to external food cues.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2024-04-01
• Status Verified: 2025-02
• Study First Submitted: 2025-02-25
• Study First Submitted QC: 2025-02-25
• Last Update Submitted: 2025-02-25
• Study First Posted: 2025-03-03
• Last Update Posted: 2025-03-03
• Primary Completion: 2026-02-28
• Study Completion: 2026-02-28

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: RECRUITING
• Sex: Female
• Target Recruitment: 32

Inclusion Criteria

• Right-handed individuals diagnosed with obesity
• In rehabilitative treatment at the Istituto Auxologico

Exclusion Criteria

• Concurrent neurological, neurodevelopmental (e.g., autism), motor, somatosensory and/or psychiatric disorders

Study & Design

• Study Type: OBSERVATIONAL
• Study Design: Not specified

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Visual detection velocity	At the moment of the experiment	Reaction Time in milliseconds only for the valid responses in the visual task
Interoceptive judgement	At the moment of the experiment	Individual's judgement from 0 (no synchronicity) to 100 (maximum synchronicity) between between the auditory stimulus and own heartbeat in the heartbeat detection task

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Visual detection accuracy	At the moment of the experiment	Percentage of the correct answers in the "No-Go" trials in the visual task.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

IRCCS Istituto Auxologico Italiano - Ospedale San Giuseppe; 🇮🇹 Piancavallo, VCO, Italy