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Schoolgirls eat fast food as they walk past an Alli slimming pill display on April 23, 2009.

If you are merely told that you are getting a good workout every day, even if you aren’t, you will lose weight. If you are simply lead to believe that the food you eat is indulgent and filling, even if it isn’t, you will feel fuller after eating it. These statements may sound far-fetched, but they are actually proven to be true, according to several medical studies conducted in the last few years on the “placebo effect.”

In addition to losing weight, research shows placebos have real-world benefits for many health conditions including Parkinson’s disease, depression, and irritable bowel syndrome. In some instances, placebos have even been reported to be more effective than actual treatment. Doctors continue to study placebos in order to more effectively use them, but evidence indicates that a patient’s mind-set and openness to change really does make a difference.

WEIGH IN:

How have you benefitted from taking a placebo or from changing your mind-set? How can medical professionals more effectively utilize placebos?

Guests:

Michael Specter, staff writer, The New Yorker; author, “Denialism”