How Placebo Effects Work to Change Our Biology & Psychology

Exercise Mindset

The impact of mindset on exercise outcomes is profound, as demonstrated by Andrew Huberman. He discusses a study by Alia Crum, which involved hotel workers who were divided into two groups. One group was informed that their daily activities were a form of exercise, leading to significant health improvements, while the other group, told only about the importance of their work, saw no such changes 1. This highlights how beliefs can influence physiological outcomes, such as blood pressure and body weight reductions.

Simply on the basis of whether or not people were told, and therefore believed that their daily activities would lead to improvements in these different health metrics... that's exactly what happened.

--- Andrew Huberman

Huberman further explains that the prefrontal cortex plays a crucial role in setting expectations and influencing physiological responses, although it cannot directly control muscle growth 2.

   

Food Beliefs

Beliefs about food intake significantly affect hunger hormones and nutritional processing. Andrew Huberman shares a study by Alia Crum where participants consumed identical milkshakes but were told they were either high-calorie indulgent or low-calorie sensible shakes 3. Those who believed they consumed the indulgent shake experienced a greater reduction in the hunger hormone ghrelin, illustrating the power of belief on physiological responses.

What we believe about the foods we are consuming strongly impacts the downstream hormonal effects of consuming those foods.

--- Andrew Huberman

This study underscores how our mindset can alter the body's hormonal reactions to food, demonstrating the intricate connection between belief and biological processes 4.