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Wednesday, 24 August 2005 11:59

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Placebos trigger natural pain killers

Scientists in the US researching the placebo effect have found that when a person takes a medicine that they believe will relieve pain, the brain releases its own natural pain killing chemicals.

Researchers believe the study explains why ‘dummy’ therapies with no active ingredients often have medical benefits.

Many conventional and alternative therapies rely heavily on the placebo effect, with 80 per cent of the benefits of SSRI antidepressants thought to be produced by the mind.

The University of Michigan team studied the brain activity of 14 healthy male volunteers who were given pain-inducing injections in their jaw muscles.

Brain activity was also monitored as the men were given regular doses of what they believed to be a pain-relieving drug. The drug was in fact a placebo.

The volunteers were then asked to describe the level of pain they were feeling at 15-second intervals, with the results revealing that those who received the placebo experienced significantly less pain than those who received the jaw injection alone.

Research leader, Jon-Kar Zubieta, said: “This study deals another blow to the idea that the placebo effect is a purely psychological phenomenon.”

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