Body core compression enhances interoception leading to altered risk choices

Interoception, the perception of internal states, is suggested to be important in decision-making, by guiding responses to external cues, based on internal states. Body compression can amplify visceral signals, and thereby potentially change interoception and adapt decision-making accordingly. Although crucial for intervening in interoceptive and decision-making dysfunctions, causal evidence of interoceptive change and its relation to decision making is lacking. In a within-subject experimental study, we investigated the effects of shapewear compression on interoception and decision-making. Healthy men and women (n = 47) were recruited. We demonstrated that shapewear compression around the torso reduced risky decisions. At the same time, we observed increased gastric interoceptive sensitivity and cardiac interoceptive awareness, leaving cardiac interoceptive accuracy unchanged. The increased gastric interoceptive sensitivity by compression, in turn predicted dampened risk-behavior. Post-hoc, we observed that this was mainly driven by women, as women showed increased interoception and reduced risk-taking, whereas interoception decreased among men. These findings demonstrate how a body manipulation alters interoception, and this causally leads to behavioral change.