INTEROCEPTION

Feb 6, 2026

Webster defines interoception as “the sensation arising from stimuli produced within an organism, especially in the gut and other internal organs; perception or awareness of the inner state of the body.” I’m just learning about it myself.

Scientists sometimes describe interoception as a kind of “hidden sixth sense,” and a new $14.2 million research project is investigating where this sense resides in the body and how it works. The effort is funded by the National Institutes of Health and with collaborators at Scripps Research and the Allen Institute. The goal is to better understand how we sense things like hunger, pain, heartbeat, and other internal signals we usually take for granted.