A placebo (/ pləˈsiːboʊ / plə-SEE-boh) can be roughly defined as a sham medical treatment. [1][2] Common placebos include inert tablets (like sugar pills), inert injections (like saline), sham …

Mar 12, 2024 · A placebo is anything that seems to be a "real" medical treatment -- but isn't. It could be a pill, a shot, or some other type of "fake" treatment.

What Is a Placebo? A placebo can be any treatment or substance that appears to be genuine but isn't. Placebos do not generally have long-lasting effects and they do not cure diseases.

Doctors doing research on new treatments for disease often give one group a placebo while a second group takes the new medication. Since those in the placebo group usually believe …

Jul 22, 2024 · A placebo is used in clinical trials to test the effectiveness of treatments and is most often used in drug studies. For instance, people in one group get the actual drug, while the …

Sep 18, 2025 · What is the placebo effect? The placebo effect is a phenomenon where people experience benefits from a medical intervention, like a pill or procedure, if they expect that it …

3 days ago · The placebo effect is a beneficial health outcome resulting from a person's anticipation that an intervention—pill, procedure, or injection, for example—will help them.

Aug 19, 2024 · A placebo (or dummy pill) is an inactive substance, typically a tablet, capsule or other dose form that does not contain an active drug ingredient and has no pharmacologic action.

Feb 26, 2023 · A placebo is a fake treatment, which can have genuine therapeutic value, called the placebo effect. Examples of placebos include sugar pills and saline solution injections.

Dec 19, 2025 · The term placebo refers to the inactive substance itself, while the term placebo effect refers to any effects of taking a medicine that cannot be attributed to the treatment itself.