Placebos also work without deception

Placebos can be effective

12/24/2010

So far, scientists have always assumed that a placebo has a healing effect, because patients believe in the putative drug of the drug. But even if people know that the pills contain no active ingredients, placebos can develop healing powers and, for example, relieve symptoms and discomfort.

US scientists at Harvard Medical School have found in a series of experiments that dummy medications (so-called placebo) contribute to the healing process, even if the subjects were informed that the pills are actually made without drugs and consist only of sugar , In doing so, the researchers throw aside all previous theses that have been drafted on this topic. Because the placebo effect was always synonymous with the power of positive thinking. Placebo effects cause psychological factors of somatic changes. The science has always assumed that these effects are triggered by the generation of expectations or by a conditioned stimulus. The triggered neuronal activations in the brain could then influence the metabolism and thereby cause positive physical reactions. Always presupposed that the patient does not know that the remedy has no effect, at least the common opinion of science.

Placebos work, even if the subjects are informed about it
However, Harvard researchers documented completely opposite observations in the researcher journal "Plos One". Even if people are aware that they take an ineffective drug, a relief of suffering can be achieved at least subjectively, the scientists write in the magazine. „Not only did we make it absolutely clear that these tablets did not contain any effective ingredients, we even printed placebo on the packaging“, Study author Ted Kaptchuk explained. Even an animation to believe in the success of the dummy drug, the researchers failed. „We told the patients that they did not necessarily believe in the placebo effect. You should just take the tablets.“

Placebo is commonly used in clinical trials to assess the therapeutic efficacy of different procedures as accurately as possible, ideally in double-blind studies. The drug-free sugar pills should provide evidence that the drugs to be tested do not miss their target. For this purpose, patient groups are usually divided into two groups of equal size. One group receives the dummy drug and the other group gets the test drug. If the test agent works better than the placebo, the result serves as proof that the new agent is actually effective.

Time and again, however, researchers made the observation that the placebos did not miss their supposed effect and also positively influenced the recovery. The success rate of sham preparations is often so high that many physicians often prescribe their patients a placebo. Recent studies even point out that sometimes over 50 percent of patients with such sham means achieve impact targets. However, it is ethically questionable if doctors prescribe a drug that is actually without medical benefit. Therefore, the research team led by Ted Kaptchuk investigated the question of how people react to such apparent drugs when they know that drugs are without drugs.

A total of 80 women and men suffering from irritable bowel syndrome participated in the study. For the experiment, the participants were divided into two equal groups. One group received no funds and the other group received different placebos. The dummy medications were clearly marked with "sugar pills". The second group was instructed to take the medicine twice daily without a medicinal agent.

The study took a total of three weeks. During this time, the doctors closely monitored the participants. At the end of the trial, nearly twice as many placebo subjects as in the control group reported a significant relief in feeling their bowel discomfort. The rate of "cure" was about as great as that of those who were taking actual medication for bowel problems. 59 percent said they noticed an improvement in their symptoms. In the comparison group there were only 35 percent. „I did not think it worked so well“, said Anthony Lembo, one of the initiators of the study. „I felt strange asking patients to take a placebo. But to my surprise, it worked for a lot of them.“

Results can not be finalized
However, the scientists now warn prematurely to draw conclusions from the study results. The number of participants would be too small for now to speak of facts. The result is just another indication that an ineffective drug can actually support a healing process, even if patients are informed about taking placebo. „Nevertheless, it seems to be more than just positive thinking“, says Ted Kaptchuk. „There seems to be a clear effect of a simple medical ritual.“ The observations of the researchers is also shared among naturopathic naturopaths. Just a detailed conversation about a patient's complaints can make a decisive contribution to the recovery of the patient. (Sb)

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