READING
2. Read the texts. For text 1, choose the correct answers. For text 2, complete the
sentences.
Text 1
The Power of Expectation
The placebo effect is one of the most mysterious phenomena in medicine. People find it
fascinating that inactive treatment can actually relieve pain or ensure a faster recovery.
Let us start by explaining the basic facts. The placebo effect is commonly used in new
drug trials. The drug is given to a group of patients and the results of treatment are
compared to those in the placebo group. But there are other, more interesting facts
about the phenomenon. For instance, it has been found that the effects of a placebo
are not only psychological. Patients who receive a placebo and believe that it will help
not only report that they feel better, but changes in their blood pressure or heart rate
are also confirmed by medical tests. Another intriguing fact is that the placebo effect is
visible in areas other than human medicine. Researchers have shown that dogs with
epilepsy react positively to both medication and placebo pills. Last but not least, the
effect has been observed in the world of medicine. For example, people who think that
they are drinking alcohol tend to have impaired not only judgment and obtain poorer
results in IQ tests.
Interestingly, just as people tend to believe that a placebo can help them get better, if
they think that a pill or substance they have taken may have a harmful effect, a negative
effect is more likely to manifest itself. The adverse placebo effect is termed the nocebo.
Without a doubt, the placebo effect is something real, and hardly anyone nowadays
denies its existence. But there are still things we don’t know, for instance, why the
effect is more intense for some individuals but weaker for others. It is assumed that the
greater a person’s expectations about the substance, the greater the placebo effect.
This complicates medical research on new drugs because expectations cannot be
measured or predicted.
Another theory suggests that cultural and regional factors may influence the intensity of
the effect. Europeans, for instance, respond better to placebo pills than injections.
Americans also respond well to placebos probably due to regular exposure to
advertising for health care products.
The placebo effect needs further research so that we can learn more about it. Were this
to take place, hopefully, it will be used even more productively in clinical practice.
1. Which information is presented in the text as an opinion?
A. The placebo effect often depends on the cultural background of patients.
