Why and How Is the Brain Fooled by the Placebo Effect?

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“The more you think of an imaginary problem, the more you feel as though it’s real.” (Panova) Our brain is known to work in mysterious ways, and the placebo effect acts is a prime example of exactly that. The concept of this phenomenon is known to confuse the average person, but it should not. Nevertheless, those unaware of it are still affected on a regular basis. In fact, every time a pill is taken, half of its power comes from just thinking and expecting it to work. All humans are gullible, each to a certain extent. Even the most clever individuals would succomb to the sheer power of placebos in, for example, a life-or-death situation. The placebo effect fools our brain effectively because of the trust we put into doctors and medicine, the feeling of safety that comes from social support, and the endorphins (natural pain killers) released by our brains.
First of all, the trust we put into supposedly trustworthy people and product labels leads to the placebo effect. We are taught all our life that medicine and medics are always truthful and their only goal is to help us. Also, we assume the pills we take are legitimate because they have supposedly tested. Our brain expects and anticipates things to get better once a certain pill is taken (Faith). Humans are gullible creatures and are vulnerable to lies. Cardiologist Leonard Cobb once conducted a study on the results of a trial of procedure commonly used to treat angina. Around 90% of his patients were satisfied with the results of the surgery. Then, more people were tested, but this time skipping the most essential procedure. Amazingly, the results were very similar. As a result of this discovery, the procedure was never repeated in hospitals (Cobb). Medical scientist H. K. Bee...

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Freeman, Shanna. "How the Placebo Effect Works." HowStuffWorks. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Nov. 20 13.

Graham, Sarah. "Brain's Own Pain Relievers At Work in Placebo Effect, Study Suggests: Scientific American." Scientific American. N.p., 24 Aug. 2005. Web. 4 Jan. 2014.

Humphrey, Nicholas. "Why Does the Placebo Effect Work?" YouTube. YouTube, 03 June 2013. Web. 08 Jan. 2014.

Knox, Richard. "Half Of A Drug's Power Comes From Thinking It Will Work." NPR. NPR, n.d. Web. 11 Jan. 2014.

Marglin, Elizabeth. "The PLACEBO Effect." EBSCOhost: Health Source - Consumer Edition. EBSCOhost, n.d. Web. 22 Nov. 2013.

Panova, Simona. Nightmarish Sacrifice. N.p.: n.p., 2013. Print.

"Placebo Effect." The Skeptic's Dictionary. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2013.

Specter, Michael. "The Power of Nothing." New Yorker 12 Dec. 2011: 30-36. Print.

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