Can having a positive mental attitude affect the body to the point that it improves the course of a disorder until it disappears? Scientific research tells us yes.
The placebo effect is the oldest and most effective therapeutic method known to man . Even today, there is no drug that can match, in potency and lack of side effects, the strength of the mind.
Recent studies conducted in the United States have shown that the placebo effect is not only the concrete and physiological reaction of the body following emotions and expectations, it is also a reaction of some structures of the brain (such as the amygdala) that respond to a stimulus, before it becomes a conscious thought.
Therefore the placebo effect is the sum of a physiological component and an emotional component.
The emotional state is transformed into a chemical reaction of the body that can induce neurovegetative changes in the brain and increase the production of endorphins, mediators and hormones.
Every slightest action and effort we make to try to get back to health turns into expectations of recovery and, inevitably, will also affect the physiology of the organism. The more convinced you are of the action you are taking, the more effective it will be.
In the same way, unfortunately, it is also possible negatively affect your body . If you don't believe in the actions taken or the substances you take, they will have no value. This process is said walnut effect .
The studies examined show that the nocebo responses can be induced by any type of information acquired, which causes an indisposition capable of making any action aimed at improving one's health in vain.
During some clinical trials this phenomenon occurred: the participants, who were given the placebo substance, experienced the same side effects that would have occurred with the drug, only because they were told that the substance to be tested could cause adverse effects.
Bottom line: the first step is to think positively and believe in your body!