The weird power of the placebo effect, explained - Vox

Over the last several years, doctors noticed a mystifying trend: Fewer and fewer new pain drugs were getting through double-blind placebo control trials, the gold standard for testing a drug's effectiveness.

In these trials, neither doctors nor patients know who is on the active drug and who is taking an inert pill. At the end of the trial, the two groups are compared. If those who actually took the drug report significantly greater improvement than those on placebo, then it's worth prescribing.

When researchers started looking closely at pain-drug clinical trials, they found that an average of 27 percent of patients in 1996 reported pain reduction from a new drug compared to placebo. In 2013, it was 9 percent.

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https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2017/7/7/15792188/placebo-effect-explained

Why Chocolate May Be Good for the Heart - NYTimes.com

Eating chocolate has been tied to a reduced risk of heart disease. Now scientists have uncovered one possible reason.

Using data from a large Danish health study, researchers have found an association between chocolate consumption and a lowered risk for atrial fibrillation, the irregular heartbeat that can lead to stroke, heart failure and other serious problems. The study is in Heart.

Scientists tracked diet and health in 55,502 men and women ages 50 to 64. They used a well-validated 192-item food-frequency questionnaire to determine chocolate consumption. During an average 14 years of follow-up, there were 3,346 diagnosed cases of atrial fibrillation.

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https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/05/23/well/why-chocolate-may-be-good-for-the-heart.html

When Your Doctor Is Fitter Than You Are - The New York Times

"I enjoy working out at the gym," declares one profile. "To keep myself fit, I like to hike, bike and exercise," says another.

These comments aren't part of a dating site. Rather, they come from physicians' online profiles that prospective patients view when they are looking for a new doctor.

There are good reasons doctors might strive to lead by example. "I practice what I preach by living healthy every day," declares one physician on Kaiser Permanente's online doctor search portal. Patients may trust or be inspired by such a doctor, the thinking goes. And if health care professionals fail to follow their own advice, they may be accused of hypocrisy.

But for some patients, particularly those battling weight issues, a doctor's declarations of personal fitness may not have the intended effect of attracting new patients. Instead, rather than inspiring them, it can drive them away.

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https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/13/well/family/when-your-doctor-is-fitter-than-you-are.html?