Reflexology may reduce the intensity of migraines
Migraines affect twice as many women as men and are experienced by one in seven people in the UK. (Migrane Action, 2018).
Reflexology could be a beneficial treatment for people who are experiencing migraines a recent study suggest.
A randomised control trial was conducted with 75 male subjects who all had a nitrogylcerine induced migraine-type headache. The subjectes were divided into three groups. The first group received 20 mins refleoxlogy while the second group received an ineffective foot massage (a placebo) and the third group no intervention. Three hours after the first treatment the subjects received a second treatment.
Data on pain intensity was created before the first treatment and after the second treatment. The results showed a statistically significant reduction of headache intensity in the reflexology group when compared with both other groups after treatments.
Reference
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30028477
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Can a placebo work for back pain, even when you now you’re taking it?
My initial response to this question, is off course not. A placebo is anything that seems to be a "real" medical treatment -- but isn't i.e. it is fake. The judgement of what is fake is based on the availability of scientific evidence. Traditionally in medical trails patients don't know if they are taking a placebo. For most of my readers, they would probably refuse to take a placebo, as they know its a placebo, so you would think your wasting your time. I would agree with this, but was a bit surprised by some recent research. Around half of 97 patients with chronic lower back pain were given a pill bottle with the word "Placebo" printed on it - after they been told that a placebo contains no active ingredient - along with a standard NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug) pain killer, while the remainder of the group was just given the NSAID. After taking the pills twice a day for three weeks, the patients taking they placebo plus the NSAID reported a 30% reduction in pain compared with a 9% decrease in those given only the NSAID. So the researches discovered that a placebo may be effective treatment for lower back pain even when people know they are taking a placebo! Reference Carvalho, Cláudia; Caetano et al, 2016, Open-label placebo treatment in chronic low back pain: a randomized controlled trial, Journal of Pain, December 2016, Vol 157, Issue 2, p 2766 - 2772
