Archive for April, 2022
Taking the White (Sugar) Pill
Four placebo pills a day work better than two. Blue placebo pills are superior at improving sleep; you’ll want green placebo pills for reducing anxiety. But placebo capsules beat placebo pills—and placebo injections were even better. Oh, and expensive, brand-name placebos beat cheap generic ones. Huh? Why would the method of administration make such a difference when the (inactive) substance delivered was always the same? And the craziest result of all? Placebos even worked when they were “open label” placebos—yes, you could tell people that the fake medication was fake and they’d still feel better.