How Placebo Effects Work to Change Our Biology & Psychology

In this episode, I discuss placebo and belief and mindset effects — all of which exert a powerful and real influence on our biology and psychology. I discuss how your beliefs and expectation that a certain outcome will occur after taking a substance (or any intervention cause genuine changes in brain and bodily function. I discuss how placebos can change neurotransmitter and hormone release, pain levels, whether the stress response is beneficial or detrimental and more. I also explain how placebo effects can work with traditional drug or behavioral treatments to help improve health outcomes and why some people are more susceptible to placebo effects. By the end of the episode, listeners will understand the placebo effect, how it works, and how beliefs and mindsets can be leveraged toward mental health, physical health, and performance goals. For show notes, including referenced articles and additional resources, please visit hubermanlab.com.

Actionable Insights

1. Frame Daily Activity as Exercise

Consciously reframe your everyday activities, such as cleaning, walking, or climbing stairs, as a form of exercise. Believing that your routine movements contribute to health can lead to measurable improvements in health metrics like blood pressure, heart rate, and body weight.

2. Cultivate Positive Mindsets for Food Consumption

Develop a positive mindset regarding the food you consume, as your beliefs about its nature (e.g., ‘indulgent’ vs. ‘sensible’) can significantly impact physiological responses like ghrelin release and subjective feelings of satiety.

3. Align Expectation with Outcome

Understand that the magnitude of an effect you experience can scale with your expectation of that effect, provided the outcome is modifiable by knowledge and belief. Expect a larger effect to potentially elicit a greater physiological response.

4. Manage Stress and Sleep for Health

Actively reduce stress, prioritize adequate sleep, and seek social support, as these are proven practices that genuinely reduce inflammation and stress hormones, leading to improved health outcomes.

5. Optimize Treatment Context for Efficacy

When engaging in any treatment or protocol, consider factors like brand names, packaging, and the perceived complexity or invasiveness of the method. These elements can enhance your expectation and thereby increase the magnitude of the placebo effect.

6. Restore Cognitive & Physical Energy

Practice yoga nidra or non-sleep deep rest (NSDR) sessions, even for just 10 minutes, by lying very still with an active mind. This technique is scientifically shown to greatly restore levels of cognitive and physical energy.

7. Daily Electrolyte Hydration

Dissolve one packet of Element in 16-32 ounces of water and drink it first thing in the morning to ensure proper hydration and adequate electrolytes. Also, consume Element dissolved in water during any physical exercise to maintain optimal brain and body function.

8. Utilize Prefrontal Cortex Suppression

Recognize that your prefrontal cortex actively suppresses impulsive or dangerous behaviors. Acknowledge these thoughts and the subsequent suppression as a sign of proper brain function, reinforcing your capacity for self-control.

9. Awareness of Conditioned Responses

Be mindful that your brain and body can form conditioned associations between environmental stimuli (e.g., specific sounds or smells) and automatic physiological responses (e.g., insulin release). Understanding this mechanism can help you better manage your body’s reactions to contextual cues.