Introduction
The placebo effect is a phenomenon where the person experiences benefit after intake of an inactive substance or treatment. This substance has no medical effect and can be a pill, injection, or liquid. Yoga, in contrast, is a physical activity that has healing effects on the mind and body. Therefore, yoga has a great therapeutic effect.
What Is a Placebo?
A placebo is a substance, pill, or other treatment which appears to be a medical intervention but is not. Placebos are usually given to the control groups during clinical trials. Placebo will not significantly affect the condition as it is not an active treatment. However, it helps to compare the placebo effect with the actual drug and helps people determine the new drug's effectiveness. The placebo effect is when a person experiences an improvement despite administering a placebo against the active drug.
What Are the Psychological Effects of Placebo Effects?
-
Classical Conditioning:
Classical conditioning is a way of learning when the person associates a thing with a specific response. Sometimes, a placebo can be combined with the treatment until the desired effect is evoked.
For example, when a person is given medication for a headache, the person associates pain relief with the medicine. However, when the same person is given a placebo similar to the medication, they feel relieved from the pain even though it is not the actual drug; they are conditioned to do so.
-
Hormonal Response:
One possible explanation of the placebo effect is that it triggers the production of endorphins. These endorphins are similar to morphine and other opiate painkillers in structure and behave as the brain’s natural painkiller. In addition, studies have shown that many opiate receptors are activated in both placebo and treatment groups.
-
Expectation:
In a person’s expectations, a placebo plays a major role. If a person expects something beforehand, it can influence the perception of it. For example, if a person expects a pill to relieve pain, it may be relieved after taking it.
Few cues contribute to a person’s expectations of whether the medicine will have an effect or not; these are:
1. Verbal:
Listening to a doctor or nurse tell the person that the pill or treatment will positively affect the condition.
2. Actions:
A person may feel better when they do something actively to improve the condition, such as taking a pill or getting an injection.
3. Social:
The tone in the voice, body language, and eye contact of the doctor can be reassuring, making the person feel more positive about the treatment or medication.
4. Genetic:
Genes also affect how people respond to a placebo treatment or medication. Some people are prone to respond to a placebo genetically. For example, some studies have shown that higher levels of brain chemicals called dopamine are more effective against a placebo than with less dopamine.
What Are the Benefits of a Placebo?
The main reason for using a placebo while evaluating a new drug is that it removes or weakens the effect that expectation can have on the outcome. If researchers expect a certain result from a drug during clinical trials, they may unknowingly give clues to the participants on how to behave. This affects the result of the study. To avoid this, a double-blind study is conducted. In this study, both the researcher nor the participants will not know who is getting the placebo medicine or treatment. By reducing the risk of biases influencing the study, researchers can look better into the effects of drugs and the placebo.
What Is Yoga?
Yoga is an ancient practice that includes breathing techniques and meditation focusing on healing the body, mind, and spirit. For many, yoga is a retreat from their daily chaotic and busy life. Yoga is a low-intensity physical activity that has numerous benefits. In contrast to the placebo effect, yoga has a therapeutic value, but a common effect of yoga and a placebo effect is that both connect the body and mind.
What Are the Types of Yoga?
There are various forms of yoga. Some forms, like power yoga, are high-intensity yoga practices that involve cardio and help to reduce weight. In contrast, other forms of yoga are low-intensity activities that help to relax the body and mind. The most common type of yoga is hatha yoga which includes many styles which are more physical than a still, meditative form. Instead, they concentrate on breathing techniques followed by some asanas, which end with savasana, the therapeutic form of yoga.
What Are the Benefits of Yoga?
The benefits of regular yoga practice are
-
Stress Reduction:
Yoga helps reduce stress and anxiety by enhancing mood and overall well-being. It also helps to deal with the symptoms of depression and anxiety caused due to various difficult situations.
-
Improve Fitness:
Regular yoga helps improve balance, flexibility, strength, and range of motion.
-
Management of Chronic Conditions:
Yoga can help with many chronic conditions such as heart disease, arthritis, blood pressure, asthma, lower back pain, neck pain, headache, cancer, etc. Yoga also helps to reduce chronic pain caused by various medical conditions. It also helps to reduce the side effects of the treatment in case of certain conditions like cancer treatment.
What Are the Precautions to Be Followed During Yoga?
Usually, consultation with the doctor is recommended before starting any physical activity if
-
A person with a herniated disc.
-
Higher risk of blood clots.
-
Certain eye conditions like glaucoma.
-
Pregnant women.
-
The problem is balancing.
-
Osteoporosis.
-
High blood pressure.
A person can practice yoga even with the above conditions by avoiding certain postures and by modifying certain yoga postures. Therefore, a person should be benefited and should not experience any harm by practicing yoga.
Conclusion
Yoga is a physical activity that heals the body and mind, whereas the placebo effect causes an illusion of a healing state governed by the person's expectation. In the case of yoga, physical postures, meditation, and breathing techniques are used for healing purposes. In the case of the placebo effect, a placebo is given, which resembles the original drug, to the participants during drug trials to know the effectiveness of the original drug. The placebo effect does not have any therapeutic effect on the person.