A man attempted suicide by overdosing on a drug he was given in a clinical trial. He was rushed to a hospital in bad shape…shaking, breathing rapidly with a dangerously low pulse, and blood pressure that had bottomed out. He was eventually stabilized, but not by anything the staff at the hospital did. The treatment and cure? He was informed that the overdose he had taken was a placebo. He had downed 29 capsules that were effectively sugar pills and the cause of his medical emergency… was all in his mind…Really, no really!

Jason and Peter were fascinated by the seemingly lethal effects of an inert substance. And while they had heard about the placebo effect, they were amazed that it could be this powerful. To find out more, they sought out the world’s foremost expert and researcher on the subject. Dr. Luana Colloca is a distinguished professor at the University of Maryland and the Director of the Placebo Beyond Opinions Center.

As an NIH-funded, internationally recognized expert, Dr. Colloca and her team research human pain modulation in patients suffering from chronic pain hoping to deepen understanding of placebo and nocebo effects.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• The reason for the placebo’s creation in 1799.
• Why the placebo effect is more powerful than you think.
• The lesser-known nocebo effect and how it works.
• How do placebos mimic active treatments?
• Is it ethical to prescribe placebos without informing patients?
• Why patients who KNEW they were getting placebos improved!
• The placebo effect on positive vs negative-minded people.
• Acupuncture, reiki, other alternative treatments - placebos?
• Jason’s trick for alleviating pain using the power of his mind.
• A placebo to replace erectile dysfunction medications?
• Pondering non-medical uses for placebos - placebo vacations?
• Google-:heim: Placebo “isn’t” but “is.” Here are other things we think “are” that “aren’t.”

FOLLOW LUANA:

The Colloca Lab

Placebo Beyond Opinions (PBO) Center

Instagram: @CollocaLab

Facebook: @LuanaColloca

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