VisceroHaptics: Investigating the Effects of Gut-based Audio-Haptic Feedback on Gastric Feelings and Gastric Interoceptive Behavior
This work addresses the problem of noninvasively influencing gastric interoception for healthcare and human-computer interaction applications, representing a novel proof-of-concept rather than an incremental advance.
The study investigated whether gut-sound-driven audio-haptic feedback applied to the stomach can modulate gastric interoception in humans, finding that it induced feelings like hunger and fullness, increased hunger levels, and significantly increased water ingestion volumes in 55 participants.
Gastric interoception influences eating behavior and emotions, making its modulation valuable for healthcare and human-computer-interaction applications. However, whether gastric interoception can be modulated noninvasively in humans remains unclear. While previous research indicates that abdominal-sound-driven haptic feedback resembles gut sensations, its impact on feelings and gastric interoceptive behavior is unknown. We conducted three experiments totalling 55 participants to investigate how gut-sound-driven audio-haptic feedback applied to the stomach (1) affects user's feelings (2) influences perception of hunger and satiety levels and (3) influences gastric interoceptive behavior, quantified with Water Load Test-II. Results revealed that audio-haptic feedback patterns (a) induced the feelings of hunger, fullness, thirst, stomach upset, (b) increased hunger level, and (c) significantly increased volumes of ingested water. This work provides the first evidence showing that audio-haptic stimulation can alter gastric interoceptive behavior, motivating the use of noninvasive methods to influence users' feelings and behaviors in future applications.