Adepts of alternative medicine attach great importance to the healing power of thoughts and feelings. Science journalist Joe Marchant explores whether there is any serious scientific basis in such views and what are the chances that autosuggestion will enter medical practice in the future.
The mind affects our psychological state in many ways – from stress to sexual arousal. Therefore, the assumption that it also affects the health of the body seems obvious. And yet, the controversy on this topic does not subside: supporters of alternative medicine talk about miraculous healings with the help of thought, while many scientists and medical doctors of strictly scientific views believe that any idea of the healing power of thoughts is itself a fallacy.
Dummy Secret
If we talk about the scientific side of the issue, then our psychological “ambulance” has at least one reliably described manifestation – the “placebo effect”. However, this term can be misleading because it has different meanings.
It is sometimes used to describe someone who feels better after receiving a “pacifier” instead of a real drug. Of course, it includes those who would have recovered without a placebo. But researchers believe that placebos can produce specific, measurable effects on the body and brain.
The neuroscientist Fabrizio Benedetti, one of the pioneers of placebo research, believes that there should be more than one placebo effect. For example, placebo pain relievers release natural pain-reducing chemicals called endorphins. Patients with Parkinson’s disease respond to placebo with a surge of dopamine. If a climber breathes fake oxygen at high altitude, it will lower the levels of the neurotransmitter prostaglandin (which dilates blood vessels and is responsible for symptoms associated with altitude sickness, among other things).
Why does placebo work?
None of these biological effects are caused by the placebo pills themselves, which are by definition inactive. They arise due to our belief in the effectiveness of medicines. The mechanism of action of the psychological response is not fully understood. Obviously, it includes expectations that we will get better.
Another element is the creation of conditions. If we associate a particular treatment—say, taking a pill—with a particular biological response, we experience that response when we take a similar pill in the future, even if it’s a placebo pill. It affects our psychological functions, such as hormone levels and immune responses, and works independently of our conscious beliefs.
We have yet to answer many questions about the psychological mechanism of placebo. For example, why so-called “honest” placebos – where the person knows they are taking a pacifier – also works. Research in this direction has just begun.
Scientists are also trying to clarify which conditions the placebo effect applies to (the mechanism is now clear for pain, depression, and Parkinson’s disease) and whether genetic factors or personality traits have a stronger effect on susceptibility to it. And of course, the next question is: how can you maximize the effect of a placebo and use it in everyday medical practice.
Virtual world versus real pain
Seattle researchers have developed a therapeutic computer game they call Snow World. You fly inside an icy canyon and shoot snowballs at characters – penguins and bigfoots. This game is designed to relieve pain: the idea is that the brain has a limited ability to concentrate, and the more it diverts to extraneous tasks, the less it is directed to the sensation of pain.
When I tried Snow World, the researchers put my feet in a heated box to induce pain. It was really frustrating, but when I immersed myself in the game, I was so engrossed that I almost didn’t notice it.
This technique was developed in order to help victims of fires. They have to go through painful sessions of treatment and physiotherapy. Even after taking the maximum dose of painkillers, they still experience attacks of terrible pain. Experiments have shown that if patients were in the “Snow World” during the sessions, their pain sensation was reduced by 15-40% in excess of what they received from taking medications.
This is just one of many directions that show us how our sensations depend on our perception. Of course, physical damage is serious, but the sensation of pain during treatment can be ruled out.
I think we have the wrong attitude towards pain. We are focusing solely on exorcising it with medication. Not only is this costly, but it also creates side effects and can lead to addiction. Programs such as Snow World testify to the potential of psychological approaches to pain management, both to unlock the full effects of drugs and, in some cases, to replace them entirely.
About the Developer
Joe Marchant is a science journalist and bestselling author of Cure (2016).