The Powerful Placebo! Mind over matter...right? WRONG. There's no magical placebo effect despite what quack Homeopaths or credulous reporters tell you

The common understanding of the "Placebo effect" is that a fake pill or treatment can heal you if you believe it's a real medicine. WRONG.
Placebo can only affect if someone feels there's been an improvement while in all objective measures there is no effect.

Top | Newest First | Oldest First

Alfarrobas · 31-35, M

It exists. But has a limit on how effective it can be.
If your placebo is to make you believe you are bullet proof, that will fail as soon as it finds a bullet hitting you.
If it's something mild, like motivation and such, it can give that little extra. Like "I'm giving you a pill that will make you play like you've never played before". If you suck at playing, you will keep sucking, maybe just more confident. If you are good at playing and have just low confidance, maybe that placebo, or that lie, can give you the push you need.

View 16 more replies »

Pikachu

@Alfarrobas

lol sorry, it's true i didn't remember that you said that.

So again, we agree that the placebo effects actually doesn't show a physiologic response under any objective measure.
I wonder why you're still so upset then lol

Alfarrobas · 31-35, M

@Pikachu because you are dense. You didn't read what I said, or care about it. You assumed I was defending hemopathy and that showed in the final. You assumed a thing, missread all things foward and keept to your guns saying the same thing more concerned about fever and objective outcome.
And you still are. You still try using terms and ideas that can be affected by mental things. Mental states can afect you and have a physiologic response, like anxiety or worse, that can make you feel sick, trow up, etc.
And so on. I even suspect you use many words and expressions because it's a "slogan" thing that is a thing that you really think and know.
Objective response. And objective response. What the fuck is an objective response? Asking for milk and getting an "NO!" as reply? That's pretty objective response, even direct and loud. More objective than that is impossible.
🤦‍♂️

Pikachu

@Alfarrobas

lol i just said that i read what you said but forgot. Sorry that is so offensive to you.

Mental states can afect you and have a physiologic response, like anxiety or worse, that can make you feel sick, trow up, etc.

Speaking of not paying attention to what one is reading, did you read the part where i already acknowledged that there is a connection between the mind and body?
Seems like you weren't paying attention.

What the fuck is an objective response?

I've already given you several examples of what i'm talking about. Weren't you paying attention?😉

Graylight · 51-55, F

There most definitely is, and it's the subject of a huge body of research. It's extraordinary enough to be used as a comparison for Peter study subjects.

Its effectiveness, duration and other particulars are variable, but it can indeed be measured.

Pikachu

@Graylight

Can it be measured in any objective outcome or only when the outcome measure is subjective and self reported?

Graylight · 51-55, F

@Pikachu Not the threshold for scientific significance.

Pikachu

@Graylight

No indeed.
That's because what people generally call the placebo effect appears to be explained not by an actual, physiological, mind over matter type phenomenon but rather is accounted for by a collection of biases, reporting errors and known behaviour of disease.

Really · 80-89, M

This thread would actually be interesting if real events or instances could be referenced, rather than the imaginings people are using to bolster opinions for which they have no evidence.

Pikachu

@Really

I'm not sure that would really be all that useful. People sharing personal anecdotes about how placebo did x for them or theirs wouldn't really change the nature of the situation.

Although i do like when people bring up a study that shows a sham intervention worked as well as the real intervention and conclude from that, that the placebo effect is real and powerful! lol

Sharky86 · 36-40, M

A small placebo works on me in some way heheh

Add a comment...