Placebos emerged as a standard pharmaceutical research practice as a way of testing out the efficacy of novel treatments with various illnesses. This made it possible to determine if positive effects could be directly related to the intervention. However, a phenomenon began occurring in which those who were given no direct treatment, but believed they had, began experiencing similar symptoms. Could the body be capable of regulating its own experience with symptoms like pain and discomfort? This led to more recent research into the “placebo effect” in which the positive effects of a drug occur even when a benign alternative that doesn’t contain the active treatment is administered. This has resulted in a variety effects including pain relief, withdrawal, or immediate/delayed effects. While it may seem like smoke and mirrors, the effect has been studied extensively and leading theories relate to changes in the brain occurring in response to the placebo that affect neurotransmitter activity. While measurement of results relies on subjective patient reporting on factors such as pain relief, substantial research has indicated that such treatments have a notable impact. If a placebo could have a similar or even better effect on treating symptoms (but not the underlying medical ailment), it may have a significant economic and experimental impact on the entire medical community.

Links for Today:

https://health.ucdavis.edu/ctsc/area/clinicaltrials/documents/What-is-a-Placebo.pdf

https://www.healthline.com/health/nocebo-effect#how-it-works (nocebo effect)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3035442.stm

https://www.yekize.org/20-things-you-didnt-know-about-the-placebo-effect/

Beedle (2007). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3778695/

https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2017/6/1/15711814/open-label-placebo-kaptchuk (Placebos work even when you know they are placebos)

https://gizmodo.com/why-do-placebos-work-1837983414

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