Effects of an open-label placebo on visual attention directed to food high in sugar, appetite, and desire for sweet taste.

Background: Interventions with deceptive placebos can reduce visual attention directed to high-calorie sweets. Open-label placebos (OLPs), which avoid the ethical concerns associated with deception, have shown promise in various fields. This is the first study to test the effects of OLPs on appetite, desire for sweet taste and visual attention for high-sugar foods.

Effects of Open-Label Placebos on Visual Food Cue Reactivity in Children and Adolescents.

Background: A high level of food cue reactivity (FCR) is a risk factor for overeating and weight gain. This randomized trial investigated whether open-label placebos (OLPs: placebos honestly administered) can reduce FCR (reported appetite) in children and adolescents.

Method: Children ( = 73; 8-12 years old) and adolescents ( = 187; 16-18 years old) were randomly assigned to either an OLP group or a control group (without OLP).

Neural correlates of expected and perceived treatment efficacy concerning open-label placebos for reducing emotional distress.

Background: Treatment expectations for open-label placebos (OLPs) - placebos prescribed transparently - refer to what a person anticipates will happen as a result of taking the placebo. The actual outcome of OLP treatment may deviate from the initial expectation.

Method: A total of 108 participants received OLP treatment for reducing visually induced emotional distress during functional magnetic resonance imaging.

Placebo Effects on the Enjoyment of Physical Activity and Performance among Kindergarten Children: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Studies with adults and school children have shown that placebos can enhance motivation and performance in physical activities. This study aimed to investigate whether similar effects are present in kindergarten-aged children. A total of 101 children (58 girls, 43 boys) aged 3 to 6 years were randomly assigned to one of two groups that either received a deceptive placebo (DP: "magic potion") or a nondeceptive placebo (NDP: "water") to enhance physical abilities.

Reducing Emotional Distress with Open-Label Placebos: Assessing the Role of Motor Engagement in Pill Consumption.

It has been posited that ingesting a pill constitutes a pivotal action that facilitates the effects of open-label placebos (OLPs: placebos honestly prescribed). In the present OLP experiment, the motor components of a placebo treatment were systematically varied. The participants ( = 183) were randomly allocated to one of four groups that all viewed aversive pictures.

Structural neuroimaging of skin-picking disorder.

Background: Skin-picking disorder (SPD) is conceptualized as an obsessive-compulsive and related disorder (OCRD). Patients with SPD excessively manipulate their skin, which leads to skin lesions, psychological distress, and functional impairment. The neuroanatomical facets of this disorder are still poorly understood.

Cookie cravings - Examining the impact of sugar content information on Christmas treat preferences via mobile eye-tracking.

Background: Diets high in added sugar can promote the development of overweight. Especially during the Holiday season, when high-sugar food is abundant, people overeat and gain more weight than during other times of the year. The present study with mobile eye-tracking glasses (Pupil Labs Invisible) investigated how sugar content information affects food preference (liking/wanting) and visual attention (where and how long one is looking) in a buffet-like situation.

The pill you don't have to take that is still effective: neural correlates of imaginary placebo intake for regulating disgust.

A commonly established protocol for the administration of open-label placebos (OLPs)-placebos honestly prescribed-emphasizes the necessity of ingesting the pill for the placebo effect to manifest. The current functional magnetic resonance imaging study used a novel approach to OLP administration: the imaginary intake of an OLP pill for regulating disgust. A total of 99 females were randomly allocated to one of three groups that either swallowed a placebo pill (OLP Pill), imagined the intake of a placebo pill (Imaginary Pill) or passively viewed (PV) repulsive and neutral images.

Would You Take an Open-Label Placebo Pill or Give One to Your Child? Findings from a Cross-Sectional Survey.

Background: Open-label placebos (OLPs), honestly prescribed regarding their inert nature, have been associated with positive health-related effects in both children and adults. However, OLPs are not always perceived by laypeople as a viable treatment option.

Methods: A brief online survey with 806 adult participants (age range: 18-75 years; 29% parents) was conducted to identify predictor variables that are associated with the willingness to take an OLP pill (criterion 1) or to give an OLP to one's child (criterion 2).

Consequences of positive vs. negative information concerning the amount of sugar consumption on appetite, mood, and visual food cue attention: Findings from two online interventions.

Background: Eating too much sugar is associated with many negative health effects. Two brief online interventions were carried out to investigate whether information about the negative consequences of eating high-sugar food vs. positive consequences of eating low-sugar food can change reported appetite, mood, and visual food cue attention.

A positive side effect of wearing face coverings for socially anxious females: Findings from a speech task.

Background: Wearing face masks has become more common due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Until now, it has not been investigated whether socially anxious individuals can reduce their acute anxiety symptoms by wearing face masks during a speech task.

Method: Fifty-nine socially anxious females were asked to prepare and give an oral presentation.

(No) Effects of a Self-Kindness Intervention on Self-Esteem and Visual Self-Perception: An Eye-Tracking Investigation on the Time-Course of Self-Face Viewing.

Previous research has suggested a favorable impact of self-kindness on subjective well-being. The present experiment investigated the effects of an app-assisted self-kindness intervention for increasing self-esteem and self-face gaze, and for decreasing depression. We explored self-face processing via a time-course analysis of eye-tracking data.

Atypical cerebellar activity and connectivity during affective touch in adults with skin-picking disorder.

Excessive touching and picking of one's skin are core symptoms of skin-picking disorder (SPD). Previous research has shown that patients with SPD display difficulties in motor control and show altered reward responsivity. Considering the limited knowledge about neuronal mechanisms in SPD, particularly concerning the cerebellum, the analysis focused on this brain region due to its involvement in sensorimotor and affective functions.

Non-Deceptive Placebos Can Promote Acts of Kindness: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Placebos have often been used to reduce emotional distress but rarely to increase positive feelings. The present study investigated whether a placebo can promote acts of kindness (AoKs) that are associated with emotional well-being. A total of 160 university students were asked to perform an AoK daily for one week.

Reduction of Pathological Skin-Picking Via Expressive Writing: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Expressive writing (EW: a personal form of writing about emotional distress, without regard to writing conventions) can improve physical and mental health. The present study investigated whether EW can reduce pathological skin-picking. In addition, the effects of two modalities of writing were contrasted with each other: computer vs.

A differentiated look at emotions: association between gaze behaviour during the processing of affective videos and emotional granularity.

The ability to distinguish between subtle differences among emotions of similar valence is labelled emotion differentiation (ED). Previous research has demonstrated that people high in ED are less likely to use disengagement regulation strategies (i.e.

Evaluation of Affective Touch: A Comparison Between Two Groups of Younger and Older Females.

Background: Caress-like touch activates C-tactile (CT) afferents present in the skin of humans. It is generally assumed that this type of touch provides beneficial effects throughout the lifespan. However, little is known about its processing in later adulthood.

A randomized trial that compared brain activity, efficacy and plausibility of open-label placebo treatment and cognitive repappraisal for reducing emotional distress.

Placebo pills can reduce emotional distress even when recipients have been informed about the inert nature of the treatment. However, before such open-label placebos (OLPs) can be recommended for general clinical use, their efficacy and acceptability need to be further investigated and compared with established methods for emotion regulation, such as cognitive reappraisal (CR). The current study with functional magnetic resonance imaging compared the effects of an OLP pill with CR for reducing a specific form of emotional distress: disgust.

Brain mechanisms for processing caress-like touch in skin-picking disorder.

Skin-picking disorder (SPD) is characterized by repetitive touching and picking of one's skin. The picking is typically experienced as pleasant although this behavior leads to tissue damage. The present functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study investigated how individuals with SPD react to caress-like touch, which stimulates C-tactile afferents.

Open-label placebo treatment for reducing overeating in children: A study protocol for a randomized clinical trial with an app-assisted approach.

Food advertising has become almost ubiquitous in Western societies. In adults as well as in children this omnipresence of food cues has been shown to trigger cravings and overeating, which can lead to overweight or even obesity. This is concerning because obesity is a leading cause of preventable diseases.

Effects of (non)deceptive placebos on reported sleep quality and food cue reactivity.

A lack of sleep can increase appetite, particularly for high-calorie food. The current study tested the effects of an open-label placebo for improving sleep quality and reducing food cue reactivity. In open-label placebo interventions, placebo recipients are informed that they are receiving a placebo without a pharmacologically active substance.

Taking Placebos as Needed to Reduce Appetite: A Randomized Controlled Trial with Ecological Momentary Assessment.

Placebos can reduce appetite. However, when placebos are prescribed over a longer period of time, compliance and response rates are not always satisfactory. A new administration approach 'as needed' was tested to improve adherence to placebo treatment and its effectiveness.

Changes in food cue reactivity through affective and nonaffective touch: An event-related potential study.

Affective touch (gentle/slow brushing of the skin) can facilitate the allocation of processing resources to simultaneously present stimuli from different modalities. The present event-related potential (ERP) study investigated whether affective touch can enhance attention to visual cues of healthy food. Female participants (n = 117) were randomly assigned to three different groups that either received affective touch, nonaffective touch (fast brushing of the skin), or no touch during the presentation of pictures of healthy food (fruits and vegetables) and non-food.