Ajay0 Posted September 30 Researchers have found that meditation offers genuine pain relief that goes beyond the placebo effect of expecting a response. https://www.sciencealert.com/not-a-placebo-study-finds-meditation-offers-genuine-pain-relief Quote The mindfulness meditation produced a greater reduction in self-reported pain and in NPS and NAPS compared to the placebo and controls, but the only treatment to produce a significantly lower response in the placebo-based signature, SIIPS-1, was the placebo cream. This suggests the positive effects of mindfulness meditation were based on mechanisms other than placebo: If there was overlap, the meditation intervention should have produced a significant effect on SIIPS-1. "It has long been assumed that the placebo effect overlaps with brain mechanisms triggered by active treatments, but these results suggest that when it comes to pain, this may not be the case," says Zeidan. "Instead, these two brain responses are completely distinct, which supports the use of mindfulness meditation as a direct intervention for chronic pain rather than as a way to engage the placebo effect." 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites