|
|
Article: Placebos might hold promise in drug treatment.
- Article from:
- The Dallas Morning News (Dallas, TX)
- Article date:
- June 8, 2002
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 The Dallas Morning News. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
Byline: Tom Siegfried
There's no denying the power of the mind over the body. Ask any drug addict.
As St. Augustine said in his ``Confessions,'' "The mind commands the body, and it obeys."
But you could find a few scientists who would deny one prominent medical example of mind over matter _ the effectiveness of placebos, "medicines" with no active ingredients.
When a study published last year questioned the reality of the placebo effect, most doctors shrugged. They knew that placebos often work. If a study suggested otherwise, there must be something wrong with the study.
On the other hand, nobody can say with any certainty ...