Even before they crawl, babies can feel their own heartbeat

Babies are curious little learners with a knack for noticing things in their world. In a new study, researchers have discovered that even the rhythms inside babies’ bodies are on their radar from an early age.

The research suggests that infants as young as 3 months old can tune in to their own heartbeat.

“The babies must have recognized that the figures moved simultaneously with their heartbeat or breathing, and then they paid more attention,” study lead author Markus Tünte from the University of Vienna.

Babies notice heartbeats and body signals 

Parents often focus on changes in crying or facial expressions when they want to figure out what a baby needs. Under the surface, there are inner clues that may help shape a baby’s sense of who they are and how they feel.

Body signals can include a steady heartbeat and the rise and fall of the chest during breathing. These signals give the infant brain helpful information. Experts believe they can support self-awareness and emotional development.

“Several recent theoretical accounts have posited that interoception, the perception of internal bodily signals, plays a vital role in early human development,” wrote the researchers. “Yet, empirical evidence of cardiac interoceptive sensitivity in infants to date has been mixed.

Babies respond to heartbeat rhythm

The researchers tested whether babies noticed when a fun animated figure moves in sync with their heartbeat. If the figure was out of sync, many babies seemed to lose some interest.

Scientists say this heartbeat sensitivity appears surprisingly stable during the first two years of life. Observing that kind of steadiness suggests that internal rhythms guide babies’ earliest social and emotional experiences.

Breathing awareness in infancy

The team also looked at how infants track their own breathing. Results indicated that babies pick up on the rise and fall of their chest, although this appears to become clearer in the second year.

Interestingly, the ability to sense the heartbeat and breathing did not overlap much. That separation might be similar to what researchers find in adults, who sometimes excel in sensing one body rhythm but not the other.

Animations and eye tracking

Studying babies isn’t easy – especially when they can’t talk.

To understand how infants respond to body rhythms, the team used eye-tracking tools while showing animated shapes that moved either in sync or out of sync with the babies’ heartbeat or breathing.

If the figure moved in time with the infant’s internal signals, the babies tended to watch longer. This response helped scientists conclude that the infants were noticing a connection between the animation and their own body rhythm.

Heartbeat awareness and baby development

The results open the door to exploring how early body awareness might support emotional understanding. Since interoception is tied to mental health in older kids and adults, recognizing these patterns early might one day help prevent problems before they start.

Researchers are especially interested in whether differences in body awareness during infancy could explain why some children are more emotionally sensitive or socially attuned than others. That line of research could lead to new strategies for early support.

Supporting early body perception

Babies likely show these abilities during everyday routines, even though parents may not notice. As caregivers respond to fussiness that might be linked to hunger or discomfort, infants gain more experience connecting signals from inside and outside.

Some experts think that early awareness of internal rhythms might be linked to how babies develop emotional and social abilities later on. Supporting such early body perception could play a part in promoting healthy self-awareness.

Future research directions

New studies on babies might ask whether parents can encourage awareness of breathing or heartbeat. Experts also wonder how these early body signal patterns might relate to mental wellness in older children.

The researchers suggest that by exploring early sensitivity to internal rhythms, it may be possible one day to help kids who struggle with anxiety. For now, the team plans to expand on these findings through long-term observations.

The study is published in the journal eLife.

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