Placebos Essay, Research Paper

A placebo is defined as an inactive substance resembling a medication, given for

psychological effect or as a control in evaluating a medicine believed to be

active. However the placebo only fits this description under the restraints it

has been given by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which refers to the

placebo as an investigational new drug. In actuality, up until the present much

of medicine was built on placebos. "Not very long ago, the rituals and

symbols of healing constituted the bulk of the physicians armamentarium. In the

early decades of the 20th century, most of the medication that doctors carried

in their little black bags and kept in their office cabinets had little or no

pharmacological value against the maladies for which they were prescribed.

Nevertheless, their use in the appropriate clinical context was no doubt

frequently beneficial."(Brown, 6) Even though placebos have been proven

effective medicine time and time again the FDA remains reluctant to approve them

for anything more than clinical research. The FDA stands on their disapproval of

placebos as medicine on the basis that patients are to be given the best

treatment available. Who is to say that a placebo is not as, if not more

effective than the accepted remedy? There are an endless variety of cases that

have proven placebos inconclusively effective. Among the most famous of these

cases is the story of "Mr. Wright," who was found to have cancer and

in 1957 was given only days to live. Hospitalized in Long Beach, California,

with tumors the size of oranges, he heard that scientists had discovered a horse

serum, Krebiozen, that appeared to be effective against cancer. After Wright

begged to receive the serum, his physician, Dr. Philip West, finally agreed and

gave wright the injection on a Friday afternoon, not telling Wright that

injection consisted only of water. The following Monday the doctor was

astonished to find that the patient’s tumors were gone. Dr. West later wrote the

tumors, " had melted like snowballs on a hot stove." At Tulane

University, Dr. Eileen Palace has been using a placebo to restore sexual arousal

in women who say they are nonorgasmic. The women are hooked up to a biofeedback

machine that they are told measures their vaginal blood flow, an index of

arousal. Then they are shown sexual stimuli that would arouse most women. The

experiment then tricks the women by sending a false feedback signal, within 30

seconds, that their vaginal blood flow has increased. Almost immediately after

they become genuinely aroused. In another case a study was carried out in Japan

on 13 people that were extremely allergic to poison ivy. Each individual was

rubbed on one arm with a harmless leaf and told that it was poison ivy and then

rubbed on the opposite arm with poison ivy and told that it was harmless. All

thirteen broke out in a rash where the harmless leaf had contacted their arm.

Only two reacted to the poison ivy leaves. (Blakeslee, 2) In yet another

example, patients with angina pectoris, chest pain, associated with heart

disease, have been shown to improve substantially following an operation that

involved nothing more than a simple skin incision. Angina also improved

following a type of artery surgery once thought to be effective but later found

to be ineffective. (Turner, 1) These are just a few of a great number of cases

that prove the effectiveness of placebos. How do placebos work? There are many

theories on how placebos work but really no definite answers. Many believe that

the response to placebos is one of conditioning. That is that the site of a

doctor, his white coat, the sterile smell, and a prescribed medication is

equated with being cured, and because we think that we will get better we do.

Some think that a placebo might reduce stress, allowing the body to regain some

natural optimum level of health. Others believe that special molecules in the

brain help carry out the placebo effect. A recent study found that stressed

animals could produce a valium like substance in their brain if they have some

control over the source of the stress. People must certainly share similar brain

chemistry. (Blakeslee, 3) In any case, do we have to know how a placebo works if

it is proven that it does work? There are certain birth control methods and

stress therapies that work effectively, without explanation and with FDA

approval. Many physicians discredit placebos because the feel that the use of a

placebo is lying to the patient. However it is impossible to prove that doctors

aren’t lying by putting their faith in accepted treatments because it is

impossible to prove that the treatment doesn?t rely, even in part, on a

placebo effect. It is inconsevable to the medical field that the treatment is

not 100% responsible for the cure. " Nobody wants to own it. Even shamans

and witch doctors would be offended by the idea that their healing powers

depended on the placebo effect."(Harvard college, 1) It is important to

understand that placebos are not a cure and that they cannot cure. The patient’s

belief in the value of the treatment makes the treatment work. There is no

question that the placebo effect is very real. Between 30 and 80% of various

studies participants have shown positive reactions to placebos. They clearly

reduce the feelings of pain and can work against depression and insomnia among

ailments. Many experimental fields such as acupuncture and chiropractic rely on

a placebo effect, admittedly or not. It is also very conceivable to me that the

only reason that placebos are not effective against many terminal illnesses,

such as cancer and AIDs, is because of the way the diseases are presented to us,

as incurable. Who could ever believe that you could be cured if you where told

that you where going to die. I believe that placebos could make great strides in

medicine if they where FDA approved for medicinal use. They would cut down on

treatment costs and the use of needless medications. The use of placebos could

be extremely effective in situations to reduce stress and as a remedy for small

ailments such as colds. There are many instances where medications such as

antibiotics are prescribed only to ease the patient’s mind. A common saying is

that if you treat a cold it will last a week, but if you leave it alone it will

be gone in seven days. As a parting thought I invite you to think about all the

times that a mother has made a child’s pains go away just by kissing it better.

Blakeslee, Sandra. "Placebo." New York Times. 13, October 1998:

Article 2. A collection of stories documenting the success of the placebo effect

in medicine. This article was an excellent source of validation to the healing

effects of placebos. Brown, A. Walter. "Harnessing the Placebo

Effect." Hospital Practice. 1999: 5-6. A collection of theories on how the

placebo effect works along with a description of where the placebo effect could

be incorporated into modern medicine and how the placebo made up much of early

medicine. I found this to be an excellent source to find quotes. Kwik, Jessica.

"Placebo Power as Good Medicine." Imprint Online: Science. 23, January

1998: volume 20, number 23. A collection of statistics and doctors descriptions

of placebo treatment success rates. This was an excellent source of statistical

facts along with various views to support the placebo effect. Turner, A. Judith.

"Placebo Effects on Pain." Healthline Magazine. April 1995: volume 14,

number 4. A collection of documented cases of successful treatments

incorporating the placebo effect along with theories on how the placebo works.

This article gives great insight into how placebos can be incorporated into

modern medicine along with a brief overview of how the placebo is thought to

work. President and fellows of Harvard College. "The Pleasing

Placebo." Mind/Brain/Behavior. 1995: A collection on theories of how the

placebo effect works and in contrast how it could fail. A great source of quotes

concerning why the placebo is denied in the medical field and how the placebo

heals.