this post was submitted on 16 Jun 2024
292 points (98.7% liked)

Asklemmy

43816 readers
981 users here now

A loosely moderated place to ask open-ended questions

Search asklemmy 🔍

If your post meets the following criteria, it's welcome here!

  1. Open-ended question
  2. Not offensive: at this point, we do not have the bandwidth to moderate overtly political discussions. Assume best intent and be excellent to each other.
  3. Not regarding using or support for Lemmy: context, see the list of support communities and tools for finding communities below
  4. Not ad nauseam inducing: please make sure it is a question that would be new to most members
  5. An actual topic of discussion

Looking for support?

Looking for a community?

~Icon~ ~by~ ~@Double_A@discuss.tchncs.de~

founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] kersploosh@sh.itjust.works 54 points 4 months ago (4 children)

Homeopathics, though sometimes even a placebo can have beneficial effects.

[–] otter@lemmy.ca 12 points 4 months ago

Definitely this one, the products are sometimes placed right next to legitimate ones and worse:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/marketplace-homeopathic-products-1.6254025

Hidden camera reveals some pharmacists recommend homeopathic products to treat kids' cold and flu

[–] RobotToaster@mander.xyz 2 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Not really "modern day" snake oil when it was invented in the 1700's lol.

[–] Skyhighatrist@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 months ago

As long as it continues to be sold on store shelves, it's modern enough to count.

[–] ForgotAboutDre@lemmy.world 1 points 4 months ago

This is a common misconception of the placebo effect. The placebo effect is a measurement issue, not an actual benefit.

Tests are corrupted by using the reposnes and judgement of humans. People will say they had some sort of benefit because of expectations, poor recollection and politeness. It doesn’t mean a benefit was gained. A placebo group allows researchers to quantify how much the placebo effect has on the data they gathered, they can then see if the experiment they did had any effect. Placebo is literally our definition of zero effect.

Anyone telling you placebo is a good thing is wrong, misinformed or deliberately misleading you. In many countries it is illegal for doctors to prescribe ‘placebo treatments’. They will still recommend such things to their patients - not because they work but because they get the patient out the door and less likely to come bother them again.