Relations among parent-reported physical activity and interoception in children

Background: Interoception is the sense of one's internal body and emotional state; it plays a critical role in guiding self-regulatory behaviors. Physical activity (PA) can support intemceptive processes, but limited research has examined the association in children. This study explored the relations among parent-reported PA and several interoceptive domains in children aged 3 - 10 years old. Methods: Baseline data were analyzed from a cluster-randomized controlled study examining a yoga intervention (N = 122). Parents completed a questionnaire that included the Caregiver Questionnaire for Interoceptive Awareness, Second Edition (CQIA-2) and two measures of PA, the PROMIS Parent-Proxy Short Form (PROMIS-PA) and the adapted Burdette Proxy Report (aBPR-PA). Psychometrics of the CQIA-2 subscales were assessed and then used in subsequent analyses to examine the association between PA and interoceptive sensibility. Results: Seventy percent of the surveys were completed by mothers (30% by fathers), and their children (56% female, M-age = 5.81 +/- 1.7 years) were predominately white. Across all children, PA had a significant positive relationship with intemceptive domains related to emotion and physical energy (p < 0.01). Children who met the PROMIS-PA good cutoff had a clearer sense of emotion and physical energy (F(2,115) = 4.30, p = 0.016, R-2 = 0.070), compared to children who did not. Children's age predicted interoceptive sensibility of illness and toileting needs (F(1,116) = 14.16, p < 0.001, R-2 = 0.109). Conclusion: Children with higher PA levels were perceived to have better interoceptive sensibility of emotion and physical energy. Children's age was predictive of interoceptive domains representing the awareness of illness and toileting needs. Future work should consider incorporating direct measures of PA and child-reported interoceptive sensibility. A better understanding of their relationship will likely help guide the design of more effective interventions for health behavior development.

Automated summary

This study examined the relationship between physical activity and interoceptive sensibility in children and found that children with higher levels of physical activity had better interoceptive sensibility of emotion and physical energy. Age was also predictive of interoceptive domains representing the awareness of illness and toileting needs.