1,720,987 research outputs found
Placebo and nocebo effects in food craving and hunger
No full textThe aim of this study is to investigate whether verbal suggestions can affect hunger and food craving in healthy volunteers with BMI between 18 and 29
Increasing the efficiency of the Mobile Step Coach with positive verbal suggestions
No full textAccumulating literature shows that EHealth applications can increase physical activity in various groups of populations: in adolescents (Rose et al., 2017), working-age women (Cotie et al., 2018), older people (Jonkman et al., 2018), patients with cardiovascular diseases (Duff et al., 2017), and cancer survivors (Haberlin et al., 2018). At the same time, multiple meta-analyses and literature reviews demonstrate that the effectiveness of various EHealth interventions vary and these intervention often have only short-lasting effects (Jonkman et al., 2018; Oosterveen et al., 2017; Rose et al., 2017). Several characteristics of the interventions have been proposed to increase their effectiveness: a user-friendly design, real-time feedback, individualized elements, detailed information, and health professional involvement (Zhao et al., 2016).
One of potential ways to increase the effectiveness of EHealth intervention that has not yet been extensively investigated, is giving users positive verbal suggestions regarding the intervention. Positive verbal suggestions are aimed to change the expectancies regarding the treatment and by changing these expectancies, may lead to more positive treatment outcomes (Colloca & Miller, 2011; Spagnolo et al., 2015). By informing users about potential benefits of using an EHealth intervention, it is possible to influence their outcome expectancies, i.e. expectancies about how effective the EHealth intervention will be, and these positive expectancies can lead to the higher effectiveness of the intervention. It has repeatedly been shown that with such positive verbal suggestions it is possible to significantly relieve a number of symptoms such as pain, itch, depression, fatigue etc.
(Bartels et al., 2014; Benedetti et al., 2003; Mondloch et al., 2001). Despite the accumulating
evidence of the positive effect of the positive suggestions on the treatment outcomes, no studies so far investigated the possibility to improve the effectiveness of an EHealth intervention by such suggestions.
The goal of this study is to improve the efficiency of the Mobile Coach, an application aimed to increase physical activity of its users. Particularly we will investigate whether positive
suggestions given to the users about the efficiency of Mobile Coach application increase the two main outcomes: 1) expectancies regarding the efficiency of the Mobile Step Coach; 2) the
number of steps taken during the intervention. Additionally, we will investigate whether positive suggestions influence vitality and fatigue participants experienced during the intervention and whether positive suggestions influence engagement with the Mobile Coach
Pharmacological conditioning of insulin effects in patients with diabetes type-2 and healthy controls
No full textPharmacological conditioning of insulin effects in patients with diabetes type-2 and healthy controls
No full textPharmacological conditioning of insulin effects in patients with diabetes type-2 and healthy controls
No full textEffects of oxytocin administration and conditioned oxytocin on brain activity: fMRI data
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The role of self-reported and physiological stress in nocebo hyperalgesia.
No full textNegative expectations can increase pain sensitivity, leading to nocebo hyperalgesia. However, the physiological and psychological factors that predispose individuals to this phenomenon are still not well understood. The present study examined whether stress induced by a social stressor affects nocebo hyperalgesia, and whether this effect is mediated by self-reported and physiological stress responses. We recruited 52 healthy participants (15 men) who were randomly assigned to either the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) or a control condition (a friendly version of the TSST). Nocebo hyperalgesia was induced using negative suggestions combined with a validated pain conditioning paradigm. We assessed self-reported (anxiety and stress) and physiological (cortisol, alpha-amylase, heart rate, and skin conductance) responses to stress. Both groups exhibited significant nocebo hyperalgesia. The stress group showed higher levels of anxiety, self-reported stress, and cortisol levels compared to the control group while no significant differences were found in other physiological markers. The stress and control groups did not differ in the magnitude of nocebo hyperalgesia, but anxiety levels fully mediated the effects of the stress test on nocebo hyperalgesia. Furthermore, cortisol levels were positively associated with the magnitude of nocebo hyperalgesia regardless of whether participants underwent the stress or the control tests. Our findings suggest that an external social stressor does not directly affect nocebo hyperalgesia, but that increased anxiety due to the stressor enhances its magnitude. Thus, it may be worthwhile to investigate whether reducing stress-related anxiety in clinical settings would help alleviate nocebo effects
Implicit gender bias in the diagnosis and treatment of diabetes type-2: a vignette study.
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