Dr Bob used to believe that medicine had a physiological effect that was the result of the absorption and distribution of the drug, it’s action via enzymes and receptors and then modifications to cellular and other bodily processes producing a physical effect. The placebo effect was little more than slight bias in symptom reporting. As he has got older and a little wiser it has become clear that the interaction of the mind and body is a far more profound and subtle phenomenon.
Science at nine on radio 4 has produced two excellent programs on the topic of placebos which have been broadcast but you can listen again on line.
The placebo effect is particularly marked for pain. Sir Thomas Beachamp, an army surgeon, found that injections of saline were effective when the morphine ran out, and more recent workers have demonstrated that when morphine is given without the patient’s knowledge it is only half as effective as when the patient is aware. Placebos have been shown to change heart rate, blood pressure and even cause dopamine release in the brains of Parkinson’s disease patients.
Placebos are more effective as coloured than white pills, as injections rather than pills and when associated with medical rituals. To put a sporting slant on the topic it might explain the popularity of many of the supplements, alternative therapies and even banned drugs that are so widespread in the sporting world.