The placebo and nocebo effects on peak minute power during incremental arm crank ergometry

This investigation aimed to explore the effects of inert sugar-free drinks described as either ‘performance enhancing’ (placebo) or ‘fatigue inducing’ (nocebo) on peak minute power (PMP;W) during incremental arm crank ergometry (ACE). Twelve healthy, non-specifically trained individuals volunteered to take part. A single-blind randomised controlled trial with repeated measures was used to assess for differences in PMP;W, oxygen uptake, heart rate (HR), minute ventilation, respiratory exchange ratio (RER) and subjective reports of local ratings of perceived exertion (LRPE) and central ratings of perceived exertion (CRPE), between three separate, but identical ACE tests. Participants were required to drink either 500 ml of a ‘sports performance’ drink (placebo), a ‘fatigue-inducing’ drink (nocebo) or water prior to exercise. The placebo caused a significant increase in PMP;W, and a significant decrease in LRPE compared to the nocebo (p=0.01; p=0.001) and water trials (p=0.01). No significant differences in PMP;W between the nocebo and water were found. However, the nocebo drink did cause a significant increase in LRPE (p=0.01). These results suggest that the time has come to broaden our understanding of the placebo and nocebo effects and their potential to impact sports performance.

Effects of Prochlorperazine on Normal Vestibular Ocular and Perceptual Responses: A Randomised, Double-Blind, Crossover, Placebo-Controlled Study

Background: The present study investigated whether prochlorperazine affects vestibular-ocular reflex (VOR) and vestibulo-perceptual function. Methods: We studied 12 healthy naïve subjects 3 hours after a single dose of oral prochlorperazine 5mg in a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind, cross-over study in healthy young subjects. Two rotational tests in yaw were used: 1) a Threshold task investigating perceptual motion detection and nystagmic thresholds (acceleration steps of 0.5deg/s/s) and 2) Suprathreshold responses to velocity steps of 90deg/s in which vestibulo-ocular (VO) and vestibulo-perceptual (VP) time constants of decay, as well as VOR gain, were measured. Results: Prochlorperazine had no effect upon any measure of nystagmic or perceptual vestibular function compared to placebo. This lack of effects on vestibular-mediated motion perception suggests that the drug is likely to act more as an antiemetic than as an anti-vertiginous agent.

The placebo and nocebo effects on peak minute power during incremental arm crank ergometry

This investigation aimed to explore the effects of inert sugar-free drinks described as either ‘performance enhancing’ (placebo) or ‘fatigue inducing’ (nocebo) on peak minute power (PMP;W) during incremental arm crank ergometry (ACE). Twelve healthy, non-specifically trained individuals volunteered to take part. A single-blind randomised controlled trial with repeated measures was used to assess for differences in PMP;W, oxygen uptake, heart rate (HR), minute ventilation, respiratory exchange ratio (RER) and subjective reports of local ratings of perceived exertion (LRPE) and central ratings of perceived exertion (CRPE), between three separate, but identical ACE tests. Participants were required to drink either 500 ml of a ‘sports performance’ drink (placebo), a ‘fatigue-inducing’ drink (nocebo) or water prior to exercise. The placebo caused a significant increase in PMP;W, and a significant decrease in LRPE compared to the nocebo (p=0.01; p=0.001) and water trials (p=0.01). No significant differences in PMP;W between the nocebo and water were found. However, the nocebo drink did cause a significant increase in LRPE (p=0.01). These results suggest that the time has come to broaden our understanding of the placebo and nocebo effects and their potential to impact sports performance.

The effect of carbohydrate mouth rinse on a 30-minute arm cranking performance

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of carbohydrate mouth rinse on 30-min arm cranking performance. Twelve healthy, active males (age 21.6, standard deviation (SD)=3.1 years; mass 76.2, SD=12.2 kg) volunteered in a single-blind, randomised crossover design. Firstly they completed an incremental exercise test to exhaustion (VO2max test) on an arm crank (50W for 2 min, increasing by 10W every min). During visit 2 and 3 they arm cranked for maximal distance over 30 min at a resistance equivalent to 50% of their peak power, mouth rinsing for 5 s with either 25 ml of a tasteless 6.4% maltodextrin solution (CHO) or 25 ml of water (placebo) every 6 min. A letter cancellation test was performed pre and post exercise to measure cognitive function. The result showed that cognitive function was not significantly different between trials (P=0.874). There was no significant difference in distance arm cranked between trials (P=0.164) even though 9 out of 12 participants had improved performance on the CHO trial. In conclusion, further research is needed to determine the ergogenic effect of CHO mouth rinsing on upper body exercise performance.

Understanding the non-pharmacological correlates of self-reported efficacy of antidepressants

Objective: To explore the non-pharmacological correlates of the perceived effectiveness of antidepressants (ADs), thereby enhancing understanding of the mechanisms involved in recovery from depression while taking ADs. Method: An online survey was completed by 1781 New Zealand adults who had taken ADs in the previous 5 years. Results: All 18 psychosocial variables measured were associated with depression reduction, and 16 with improved quality of life (QoL). Logistic regression models revealed that the quality of the relationship with the prescriber was related to both depression reduction and improved QoL. In addition, depression reduction was related to younger age, higher income, being fully informed about ADs by the prescriber, fewer social causal beliefs for depression and not having lost a loved one in the 2 months prior to prescription. Furthermore, both outcome measures were positively related to belief in ‘chemical’ rather than ‘placebo’ effects. Conclusion: There are multiple non-pharmacological processes involved in recovery while taking ADs. Enhancing them, for example focusing on the prescriber–patient relationship and giving more information, may enhance recovery rates, with or without ADs.