Placebo. A word we hear all the time in pharmacy. I saw a jogger the other day, running alone and wearing a T-Shirt with an arrow pointing to his running partner, and the inscription on his shirt read: "I'm With Placebo."
A second look confirmed that he appeared to be runnning alone. For a microsecond I didn't get it, but as my car passed him, I began to howl with laughter.
While placebo is generally considered a research tool--"this drug performed significantly better than placebo"-- many believe that the effects of certain popular marketed drugs work soley through a placebo effect.
A recent Associated Press article blared the following headline:
Experts: Placebo power behind many natural cures
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g2gbCpUe6MuJCcaBJ_YDq138cjHwD9BSQS200
While I don't discount their findings, it does raise one question: so what if it is by placebo effect that people feel better? At least they feel better. Problem is, research estimates that only 1 in 3 persons will experience a placebo effect. What about the other 2 people?
A really cool study was done whereby they pitted one placebo against another. They called the second one "nocebo." The results are fascinating. Read it at: http://ehp.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/29/4/394
So next time you get a 'script for Obecalp, remember all that is is Placebo spelled backwards!
It's enough to give you a headache. I think I'll go take a placebo!
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