2. THE TERM
A placebo is a substance or
treatment which is designed to
have no therapeutic value.
3. A BRIEF HISTORY
OF THE PLACEBO
EFFECT
Etymology: from Latin (‘I shall
please’) in the 14th century.
In that period, it referred to hired
mourners at funerals.
A singer of placebo became
associated with someone who
falsely claimed a connection to
the deceased to get a share of
the funeral meal(or occasionally
money from the real family),
and hence a flatterer, and so a
deceptive act to please.
4. THE POWDER OF SYMPATHY
In the 1700’s it was used to heal wounds. The powder was
applied to the weapon that caused the wound in order to
achieve the healing.
It seems that often the method was very effective and the
injured recovered. This may have been because of the
unsanitary conditions of medical treatment at the time,
making it safer NOT to have the doctor treat you.
5. • Until the first half of the 20th century the use of placebos seems to have
been widespread in medicine. In the practice of medicine it had been long
understood that, as Ambroise Paré (1510–1590) had expressed it, the
physician’s duty was to "cure occasionally, relieve often, console always".
• In 1807 Thomas Jefferson, recording what he called the pious fraud.
• But it is proved wrong. Although the placebo effect and theories on its
underlying mechanisms are mostly understood in terms of human
psychology, studies have also indicated that non-human animals such as
dogs can also have symptoms reduced by placebo treatments.
6. HOW DOES THE PLACEBO EFFECT WORK?
Research on the placebo effect has focused on the relationship of mind
and body. One of the most common theories is that the placebo effect is
due to a person's expectations.
7. TREATING YOURSELF WITH YOUR MIND IS POSSIBLE,
BUT THERE IS MORE TO THE PLACEBO EFFECT THAN
POSITIVE THINKING.
It's about creating a stronger connection between the brain and body and how they
work together," says Professor Ted Kaptchuk of Harvard-affiliated Beth Israel
Deaconess Medical Center.
It involves a complex neurobiological reaction that includes everything from
increases in feel-good neurotransmitters, like endorphins and dopamine, to greater
activity in certain brain regions linked to moods, emotional reactions, and self-
awareness. All of it can have therapeutic benefit. But placebos are not all about
releasing brainpower.
8. STORY TIME !
The word obecalp, "placebo" spelled
backwards, was used by an Australian
doctor in 1998 when he recognized the need
for a freely available placebo. The word is
sometimes used to make the use or
prescription of fake medicine less obvious to
the patient. The word "Obecalp" was actually
in common use but not published much
earlier than 1998 . For example, a
prescription for "Obecalp #3" was written in
1978 in Marysville California by a California
Emergency Physician for a patient with a
history of repeated visits by ambulance to
the Emergency Department for pain and
anxiety related symptoms. These visits
stopped for one year after she received a
prescription for thirty Obecalp #3 tablets
(glucose tablets) that was refilled monthly for
12 months. The use of the backward spelling
of "placebo" for this prescription was chosen
to allow multiple physicians caring for her to
quickly understand that it was a placebo.
9.
10. “I was, in my heart, miserable because everything I was studying had to
do with concealment or deception,” Kaptchuk says.
There’s also research that finds that open-label placebos do seem to
reduce neural markers of pain and stress.
This work has led Kaptchuk to write a new definition of the placebo
effect. “It’s the positive health benefits people receive in the context of
a clinical interaction that’s due to the rituals, symbols, and behaviors
that surround the pill,” he says. “
The Idea Of Open Label Placebo
11. •Depression Pain Sleep disorders
Irritable bowel
syndrome
Menopause
Studies show that placebos can have an effect on conditions such as:
• Placebos work on symptoms modulated by the brain, like the perception of
pain. "Placebos may make you feel better, but they will not cure you," says
Kaptchuk.
12. It’s very important to note: Placebos aren’t magic pills.
“It sometimes works on some people, some of the time,”
Kaptchuk says. “It’s not like a cure-all.”
So does that mean their usefulness is quite limited?
Kaptchuk argues there are subjective symptoms for all objective
illnesses.
Placebos seem to work best only on subjective symptoms
