| Man, I don't even know how to use this site anymore... Here's an interesting thought we should perhaps consider in ministry applications...
Caution: Side Effects May Be Positive: For years, TMQ has contended that in order to spread the benefits of the placebo effect to patients outside controlled trials, placebos should become expensive and excessively marketed -- that way, everyone will want them! Numerous readers, including Leah Castle of Wilmington, Del., have noted that a new book, "The Placebo Response and the Power of Unconscious Healing" by Richard Kradin, a physician, also contends placebos should be more broadly used -- but adds the wonderful fact that about 25 percent of people who receive placebos report experiencing side effects!  AP Photo/Remy de la Mauviniere It's long been known that side-effect warnings on prescription medications cause patients to report experiencing side effects even when they are statistically unlikely, or cause patients to attribute routine conditions they probably would have had anyway (tiredness, headache) to the medication. But Kradin's book makes me think: If those taking placebo pills nonetheless experience side effects, why not warn of positive side effects, and by power of suggestion, trick people into feeling positive things? If a warning of a negative effect such as dizziness causes you to feel dizzy, warn of something nice! Thus Placebon®, my proposed extremely expensive, prescription-only, high-pressure-marketed placebo, would have this warning disclaimer: Caution: Side effects may include euphoria, romance, serenity, goodwill, open-mindedness and willingness to assist strangers.
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