For years now, doctors and scientists have been trying to find a cure for one of the most common mental illnesses – depression. What new findings suggest is fascinating: the negative effects can be reduced by placebo pills and to produce a better mindset!.
Most people have experienced some form of depression. In modern cultures people learned how to hide their problems behind a smile as a coping mechanism. Digital platforms are full of magnificent scenes, adventurous friendships, luxurious meals, but people feel more alone and empty than ever. The technological revolution has eased our lives in terms of fast communication, but it also contributes to increasing mental health issues.
Just think about how many messages our brain has to process daily. Whether they are positive or negative, it leads us to sensory overload.
There are many aspects of modernity that can harm mental health, such as obesity, bad diet, low physical activity, disturbed sleep, and toxic social environment. One of the most serious and, sadly, rising mental disorders is depression. Although dangerous by itself, it can also be the cause of further conditions as coronary artery disease. It can be cured by therapy, medication, and self-help, but it can also be relieved with the placebo effect.
By definition, the placebo effect is a phenomenon where results of the treatment are correlated with the perception of the individual about how successful the treatment was.
Symptoms and causes
The so called upswing of unhappiness has taken its toll in the last 80 years more than ever before. Besides modern life being a factor, it has a lot to do with access to information in the news outside of our control and their increased media coverage. That is not to say that there are no good things in societal and technological evolution – today’s living is far easier than in the past.
But, the paradox doesn’t cease to exist. Over 264 million people worldwide suffer from depression. It starts with a depressive episode, a period of low mood and depressive symptoms, and it can be mild, moderate, or severe. Mild depression may cause irritability, insomnia, hopelessness, appetite and weight changes, a sudden disinterest in socializing, or even reckless behavior.
On the other hand, severe depression is far more dangerous and it can lead to delusions, hallucinations, and suicidal thoughts or behavior.
But what causes depression?
Even though it is a result of chemical imbalances in the brain, factors vary from faulty mood regulation, stressful lifestyles, genetic vulnerability, medications, and medical conditions. Brain imaging has shown that the hippocampus – linked with memory and learning – is smaller in depressed people.
Scientists suggest this is due to stress, which can suppress the production of new neurons. A smaller hippocampus also means fewer serotonin receptors. Serotonin is a chemical that contributes to wellbeing and happiness. This is how biology is related to depression – relatives of patients with depression have a higher chance of developing depression than the general public.
Confirmed: Placebo pills can significantly reduce depressive symptoms
In 2015, Dr. Jon-Kar Zubieta led a team of researchers doing a study of how placebo pills affect symptoms of depression. The study examined 38 people with major depression who weren’t taking medications. In the first phase of the study, they were randomly separated into two groups: the “active” placebo group received placebo pills described as a fast-acting depressant, and the “inactive” placebo group got the identical pills described as a placebo with no antidepressant effects.
After a week of consumption, the groups switched the pills. At the end of every week, the subjects answered a questionnaire about their depression symptoms. This was followed by a PET brain scan that measured the activity of µ-opioid receptors, involved with emotions and depression.
The second phase lasted 10 weeks, in which the participants were treated with antidepressants. The researchers monitored their depressive symptoms. At the end of the study, they briefed the participants on the study summary and the use of placebos in general. The results reported a significant reduction in depression symptoms in the active placebo group.
These decreases were linked to increased brain activity in the regions associated with emotion and stress regulation. Notably, the increased µ-opioid activity caused by the active placebo also resulted in better responses to the subsequent antidepressant treatment.
This study brought into focus how important the intent is – mindset can play a big role in how we are handling situations. In some situations, subjects may be aware they are taking placebo but get the desired effects nonetheless.
A word before you go
The broad research on this subject suggests that attitude and expectations have a huge effect on the symptoms the person will experience. Placebo pills proved to be effective in the reduction of depression, whether taken knowingly or not.
In the end, the mind can be our biggest friend or our biggest enemy.
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