From ears to waist: the influence of non-naturalistic sounds on body perception in relation to eating disorders symptomatology

Background People with clinical and subclinical eating disorders (EDs) show abnormalities in integrating multisensory bodily auditory information, which may contribute to the development and maintenance of body image disturbance. However, it remains unclear whether these impairments are specific to bodily auditory signals or extend to other auditory cues, and whether they differentially affect body parts depending on emotional salience. Methods Eighty-seven participants were recruited and allocated to either a subclinical ED group or a control group based on the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q). We assessed the strength of two auditory-driven body illusions: a finger position illusion (Experiment 1) and a waist size illusion (Experiment 2). Illusion strength was measured using implicit indices (estimates of finger position and waist size) and explicit indices (self-report questionnaires). As a secondary aim, we examined individual differences in interoceptive awareness and sensory-processing sensitivity. Results Both groups experienced the finger illusion, with no between-group differences on implicit or explicit measures. In contrast, the subclinical ED group did not show a waist-shrinking effect in response to sound, whereas the control group did. Discussion These findings suggest that auditory-driven updating of body representation may be selectively altered for emotionally salient body parts in individuals with elevated ED symptomatology. The pattern also supports the possibility that attitudinal factors may exert a stronger influence on body image distortions than purely perceptual factors. Future studies should further validate the waist illusion as a tool to target body image disturbances and explore its potential as a complementary component in cognitive-behavioural interventions. Trial Registration https//link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40337023007494