Your body makes its own morphine (endorphins)
Stefano, G. B., et al. (2012), “Endogenous morphine: up-to-date review 2011,” Folia Biol (Praha) 58 (2), 49–56.
Side effects of antidepressants
Lilly USA LLC (2009), Medication Guide (PROZAC).
National Institutes of Health (2017), Antidepressant Medications for Children and Adolescents: Information for Parents and Caregivers, http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/child-and-adolescent-mental-health/antidepressant-medications-for-children-and-adolescents-information-for-parents-and-caregivers.shtml.
Arroll, B., et al. (2005), “Efficacy and tolerability of tricyclic antidepressants and SSRIs compared with placebo for treatment of depression in primary care: a meta-analysis,” Ann Fam Med 3 (5), 449–56.
Saperia, J.; Ashby, D.; and Gunnell, D. (2006), “Suicidal behaviour and SSRIs: updated meta-analysis,” BMJ 332 (7555), 1453.
Placebo knee surgery is as good as real knee surgery
Buchbinder, R., et al. (2009), “A randomized trial of vertebroplasty for painful osteoporotic vertebral fractures,” N Engl J Med 361 (6), 557–68.
The amazing advances of modern medicine
LeFanu, J. (2012), The Rise and Fall of Modern Medicine (New York: Basic Books).
The problem with antibiotic resistance and how it is leading to what some call an “apocalypse”
O’Neill, J. “Tackling drug-resistant infections globally: final reports and recommendations.” London: Wellcome Trust, HM Government, 2016.
Wellcome Trust. “A global call for action on drug-resistant infections.” 2017. https://wellcome.ac.uk/news/global-call-action-drug-resistant-infections (accessed 9 December 2017).
The most recent analysis shows that one in eleven children in the United States is diagnosed with ADHD and more than 50 percent of kids with an ADHD diagnosis are medicated as a result.
Bloom, B., and Cohen, R. A. (2009), “Summary health statistics for U.S. children: national health interview survey, 2007,” in National Center for Health Statistics, Vital and Health Statistics, ser, 10, no. 239 (Washington DC).
Evidence that one in ten adults are on antidepressants
Andrade, L., et al. (2003), “The epidemiology of major depressive episodes: results from the international consortium of psychiatric epidemiology (ICPE) surveys,” Int J Methods Psychiatr Res, 12 (1), 3–21.
Claim that everyone over age fifty should be put on statins
Mittal, M., and Fay, W. P. (2013), “Almost everyone over 50 should be put on a statin to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease: a contrarian view,” Mo Med 110 (4), 339–41.
Elderly population takes too many pills
Canada Institute for Health Information (2014), “Drug use among seniors on public drug programs in Canada, 2012” (Ottawa: Canada Institute for Health Information).
Duerden, M.; Avery, T.; and Payne, R. (2013), “Polypharmacy and medicines optimisation: making it safe and sound” (London: The King’s Fund).
Rambhade, S., et al. (2012), “A survey on polypharmacy and use of inappropriate medications,” Toxicol In 19 (1), 68–73.
The prevalence of polypharmacy (taking too many pills): the harms it causes
Maher, R. L.; Hanlon, J.; and Hajjar, E. R. (2014), “Clinical consequences of polypharmacy in elderly,” Expert Opin Drug Saf 13 (1), 57–65.
Golchin, N., et al. (2015), “Polypharmacy in the elderly,” J Res Pharm Pract 4 (2), 85–88.
Trumic, E., et al. (2012), “Prevalence of polypharmacy and drug interaction among hospitalized patients: opportunities and responsibilities in pharmaceutical care,” Mater Sociome 24 (2), 68–72.
Evidence that antipsychotic drugs are given to healthy older people to prevent possible psychosis
Bruser, D., and McLean, J. (2014), “Use of antipsychotics soaring at Ontario nursing homes,” Toronto Star, April 15.
Hirota, T., and Kishi, T. (2013), “Prophylactic antipsychotic use for postoperative delirium: a systematic review and meta-analysis,” J Clin Psychiatry 74 (12), e1136–44.
Evidence that more people die from prescription painkillers than cocaine and heroin
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2015), “Policy impact: prescription painkiller overdoses,” http://www.cdc.gov/homeandrecreationalsafety/rxbrief/%3E.
Evidence that medical error is the third leading cause of death in the United States
Makary, M. A., and Daniel, M. (2016), “Medical error—the third leading cause of death in the US,” BMJ 353, i2139.
Side effects of prescription drugs kill more than 100,000 people in the United States each year
Lazarou, J.; Pomeranz, B. H.; and Corey, P. N. (1998). “Incidence of adverse drug reactions in hospitalized patients: a meta-analysis of prospective studies,” JAMA 279 (15), 1200–1205.
The Opioid Crisis in the United States and Canada
Hirschfield Davis, Julie. “Trump Declares Opioid Crisis a ‘Health Emergency’ but Requests No Funds.” New York Times. 2017.
The Council of Economic Advisors. “The Underestimated Cost of the Opioid Crisis.” In: States EOotPotU, editor. Washington: Executive Office of the President of the United States; 2017.
“Responding to Canada’s opioid crisis. 2017” (Canadian Government Report). https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/substance-abuse/prescription-drug-abuse/opioids/responding-canada-opioid-crisis.html (accessed 9 December 2017).
Shei A, Hirst M, Kirson NY, Enloe CJ, Birnbaum HG, Dunlop WC. “Estimating the health care burden of prescription opioid abuse in five European countries.” ClinicoEconomics and outcomes research: CEOR 2015; 7: 477-88.
Trials showing that “deprescribing” (taking away medications from people who are taking many drugs) usually makes them live better
Page, A. T., et al. (2016), “The feasibility and the effect of deprescribing in older adults on mortality and health: a systematic review,” Br J Clin Pharmacol 82 (3) 583–623.
Most money spent on finding new drugs rather than prevention
Calitz C, Pollack KM, Millard C, Yach D. National Institutes of Health funding for behavioral interventions to prevent chronic diseases. American journal of preventive medicine 2015; 48(4): 462-71.
Money spent on prescription drugs in the United States
Constantino, T. (2015). “IMS Health Forecasts Global Drug Spending to Increase 30 Percent by 2020, to $1.4 Trillion, As Medicine Use Gap Narrows.” https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20151118005301/en/IMS-Health-Forecasts-Global-Drug-Spending-Increase.
Money spent on prescription drugs in Canada
“Canadian Institute for Health Information. Prescribed Drug Spending in Canada 2013: A Focus on Public Drug Programs,” (2015). Canadian Institute for Health Information.
Cost of health-care spending in the United Kingdom
UK Public Spending Details for 2006, http://www.ukpublicspending.co.uk/year_spending_2006UKbn_15bc1n_10-ukgs302.
UK Public Spending Details for 2016, https://www.ukpublicspending.co.uk/year_spending_2016UKbn_15bc1n_10-ukgs302.
Healthcare spending threat to U.S. military
Keith T. “Health Care Costs New Threat To U.S. Military.” National Security: National Public Radio; 2011.
Claim that all (or at least most) modern medicine is bad
McTaggart, L. (2005). What doctors don’t tell you: the truth about the dangers of modern medicine. Rev. and updated ed. London: Thorsons.
Mercola, J. (2016), “The Terrifying Side Effects of Prescription Drugs,” http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/04/12/the-terrifying-side-effects-of-prescription-drugs.aspx.
Bad regulation of trials leading to hidden data about harms (and how governments allow this to happen)
Grey A, Bolland M. “Web of industry, advocacy, and academia in the management of osteoporosis.” BMJ 2015; 351: h3170.
Hoffmann T, Glasziou P, Beller E, Goldacre B, Chalmers I. “Focus on sharing individual patient data distracts from other ways of improving trial transparency.” BMJ 2017; 357: j2782.
Davis C, Naci H, Gurpinar E, Poplavska E, Pinto A, Aggarwal A. “Availability of evidence of benefits on overall survival and quality of life of cancer drugs approved by European Medicines Agency: retrospective cohort study of drug approvals 2009-13.” BMJ 2017; 359: j4530.
Goldacre B. Written evidence submitted by Dr Ben Goldacre. In: Committee SaT, editor. London: http://www.parliament.uk;/ 2013.
Evidence that 80 percent of US patient groups are funded by industry in order to promote so-called “diseases” that aren’t what many would consider to be diseases
McCarthy, M. (2017), “More than 80% of US patients’ groups take industry funds, study finds,” BMJ 356, j1180, doi: 10.1136/bmj.j1180.
Description of, and examples of, “disease mongering”
Moynihan, R.; Heath, I.; and Henry, D. (2002), “Selling sickness: the pharmaceutical industry and disease mongering,” BMJ 324 (7342), 886–891.
Life expectancy going down in the United States, and stopped going up in the United Kingdom
Kochanek KD, Murphy S, Xu J, Arlas E. Mortality in the United States, 2016. NCHS Data Brief, no 293. In: Services USDoHaH, editor. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics; 2017.
Marmot M. “Life expectancy rises ‘grinding to halt.’” 2017. http://www.ucl.ac.uk/iehc/iehc-news/michael-marmot-life-expectancy (accessed 28 December.)
Claim that alternative medicine is all nonsense
The Original Skeptical Raptor (2016), “Pseudoscience and science—alternative medicine is bullshit,” http://www.skepticalraptor.com/skepticalraptorblog.php/pseudoscience-and-science-alternative-medicine-is-bullshit/%3E.
Explanation of the “tools” of modern medicine (randomized trials and systematic reviews)
Evans, I.; Thornton, H.; and Chalmers, I. (2010), Testing Treatments: Better Research for Better Healthcare (London: Pinter & Martin).
Evidence of the problem with unpublished trials
The following website contains a database of systematic reviews showing that half of trials are unpublished: http://www.alltrials.net/news/half-of-all-trials-unreported/.
(Evidence for the health benefits of positive thinking, empathetic doctors, social networks, and how these might influence your brain and DNA are in their own chapters in the book.)
Doctors who take time with patients can reduce their blood sugar levels
Dambha-Miller H, Cooper AJM, Kinmonth AL, Griffin SJ. “Effect on cardiovascular disease risk factors of interventions to alter consultations between practitioners and patients with type 2 diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis of trials in primary care.” Health expectations: an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy 2017; 20(6): 1218-27.
Loneliness is bad for health
(see Chapter 11)
Ha-Joon Chang quote. Ha-Joon’s book is also similar in that it is both “much less and much more” than (in his case) an economics textbook and (in my case) a self-help book.
Chang, H-J. (2012), 23 Things They Don’t Tell You About Capitalism (New York: Bloomsbury).
Book that traces the successes of modern medicine (ironically, the author says they arise owing to chance)
LeFanu, J. (2005), The Rise and Fall of Modern Medicine (New York: Basic Books).
Quote about a cold going away in a week
Patulin Clinical Trials Committee, Medical Research Council (2004), “Clinical trial of patulin in the common cold, 1944,” Int J Epidemiol 33 (2), 243–46.
Archie Cochrane’s story about the prisoner-of-war camp
Cochrane, A. L., and Blythe, M. (1989), One Man’s Medicine: An Autobiography of Professor Archie Cochrane (London: BMJ).
Life expectancy tables
Roser, M. (2016), “Life expectancy,” http://ourworldindata.org/data/population-growth-vital-statistics/life-expectancy/.
Number of cells in human body
Sender, R., Fuchs, S.; and Milo, R. (2016), “Revised estimates for the number of human and bacteria cells in the body,” PLOS Biol 14 (8), e1002533.
Description of selection bias, in which certain people (in the case of Cochrane’s story, young healthy people) are selected for a study or group
Howick, J. (2011), The Philosophy of Evidence-Based Medicine (Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell).
Reference to fact that your bones are stronger than steel
University of Cambridge (2015), “Mechanical properties of bone,” http://www.doitpoms.ac.uk/tlplib/bones/bone_mechanical.php.
Reference to fact that your stomach acid can melt steel
Li, P. K., et al. (1997), “In vitro effects of simulated gastric juice on swallowed metal objects: implications for practical management,” Gastrointest Endosc 46 (2), 152–55.
Reference to fact that you have 30 trillion cells in your body
Bianconi, E., et al. (2013), “An estimation of the number of cells in the human body,” Ann Hum Biol 40 (6), 463–71.
Reference to the number of neurons and neural connections in the human brain
Azevedo, F. A., et al. (2009), “Equal numbers of neuronal and non-neuronal cells make the human brain an isometrically scaled-up primate brain,” J Comp Neurol 513 (5), 532–41.
Reference to fact that your skin regenerates itself in less than a month
American Academy of Dermatology (2015), “How skin grows,” http://www.aad.org/dermatology-a-to-z/for-kids/about-skin/how-skin-grows.
General anatomy and physiology
Tortora, G. J.; Derrickson, B.; and Prezbindowski, K., Schmidt Learning Guide (2006), Principles of Anatomy and Physiology, Learning Guide, 11th ed. (Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons).
Cell age in human body
Spalding, K. L., et al. (2005), “Retrospective birth dating of cells in humans,” Cell 122 (1), 133–43.
Your liver can almost completely regenerate itself
Bird, T., and Iredale, J. (2011), “Liver regeneration by hepatic progenitor cells,” PhD thesis, University of Edinburgh.
General immune system
Parham, P. (2009), The Immune System, 3rd ed. (London: Garland Science).
Nerve signals travel almost 275 miles per hour
Cummins, K. L., and Dorfman, L. J. (1981), “Nerve fiber conduction velocity distributions: studies of normal and diabetic human nerves,” Ann Neurol 9 (1), 67–74.
How natural killer cells work
Topham, N. J., and Hewitt, E. W. (2009), “Natural killer cell cytotoxicity: how do they pull the trigger?,” Immunology 128 (1), 7–15.
Immunity and the skin
Pasparakis, M.; Haase, I.; and Nestle, F. O. (2014), “Mechanisms regulating skin immunity and inflammation,” Nat Rev. Immunol 14 (5), 289–301.
Innate immunity in the lungs
Martin, T. R., and Frevert, C. W. (2005), “Innate immunity in the lungs,” Proc Am Thorac Soc 2 (5), 403–11.
Neotenic complex syndrome (in which a child doesn’t age)
Walker, R. F., et al. (2009), “A case study of ‘disorganized development’ and its possible relevance to genetic determinants of ageing,” Mech Ageing Dev 130 (5), 350–56.
Endorphins
Stefano, G. B., et al. (2012), “Endogenous morphine: up-to-date review 2011,” Folia Biol (Praha), 58 (2), 49–56.
Winston Churchill quote
Churchill, W., and Langworth, R. M. (2011), Churchill by Himself: The Definitive Collection of Quotations (New York: PublicAffairs).
Study provides some indirect evidence that marijuana might benefit patients suffering from depression
Korem, N., and Akirav, I. (2014), “Cannabinoids prevent the effects of a footshock followed by situational reminders on emotional processing,” Neuropsychopharmacology 39 (12), 2709–22.
Even if a bit of marijuana can improve depression, too much seems to make it worse
Bambico, F. R., et al. (2007), “Cannabinoids elicit antidepressant-like behavior and activate serotonergic neurons through the medial prefrontal cortex,” J Neurosci 27 (43), 11700–11711.
Systematic review shows that marijuana worsens depressive symptoms
Lev-Ran, S., et al. (2014), “The association between cannabis use and depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis of longitudinal studies,” Psychol Med 44 (4), 797–810.
Ben Goldacre’s book about things being complicated
Goldacre, B. (2015), I Think You’ll Find It’s a Bit More Complicated Than That (London: Fourth Estate).
Explanations of randomization, blinding, and systematic reviews
Evans, I.; Thornton, H.; and Chalmers, I. (2010), Testing Treatments: Better Research for Better Healthcare (London: Pinter & Martin).
Goldacre, B. (2013), Bad Pharma: How Drug Companies Mislead Doctors and Harm Patients (New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux).
Howick, J. (2011), The Philosophy of Evidence-Based Medicine (Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell).
Cyclist gets caught with hidden motor
Anonymous (2016), “A professional cyclist just got caught with an electric motor in her bicycle frame,” http://www.techinsider.io/bike-investigated-technological-fraud-cycling-world-championships-cyclocross-2016-1.
“Pygmalion in the classroom” experiment
Rosenthal, R., and Jacobson, L. F. (1992), Pygmalion in the Classroom: Teacher Expectation and Pupils’ Intellectual Development (New York: Irvington Publishers), 266.
Pygmalion effects in medicine and management
Learman, L. A., et al. (1990), “Pygmalion in the nursing home: the effects of caregiver expectations on patient outcomes,” J Am Geriatr Soc 38 (7), 797–803.
McNatt, D. B. (2000), “Ancient pygmalion joins contemporary management: a meta-analysis of the result,” J Appl Psychol 85 (2), 314–22.
Evidence that randomization is often subverted
Schulz, K. F. (1995), “Subverting randomization in controlled trials,” JAMA 274 (18), 1456–58.
Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race tie
Anonymous (2014), “Honest John and the Boat Race legacy,” Telegraph, 6 April.
Vitamin C can reduce the duration of colds in some people
Hemila, H., and Chalker, E. (2013), “Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev (1), CD000980.
Ben Goldacre quote: what doctors don’t know about the drugs they prescribe (transcript from his TED talk)
TED (2012), “What doctors don’t know about the drugs they prescribe,” http://www.ted.com/talks/ben_goldacre_what_doctors_don_t_know_about_the_drugs_they_prescribe/transcript.
Great article explaining that most trials are never published, and the ones that are published are often hijacked by special interests
Ioannidis, J. P. (2016), “Evidence-based medicine has been hijacked: a report to David Sackett,” J Clin Epidemiol 73, 82–86.
Article about the crisis within evidence-based medicine due to publication bias (and other problems)
Greenhalgh, T., et al. (2014), “Evidence based medicine: a movement in crisis?,” BMJ 348, g3725.
Hidden biases that favor new drugs almost 100 percent of the time
Gøtzsche, P. (1989), “Methodology and overt and hidden bias in reports of 196 double-blind trials of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in rheumatoid arthritis,” Control Clin Trials 10 (1), 31–56.
Why olanzapine beats risperidone, risperidone beats quetiapine, and quetiapine beats olanzapine
Heres, S., et al. (2006), “Why olanzapine beats risperidone, risperidone beats quetiapine, and quetiapine beats olanzapine: an exploratory analysis of head-to-head comparison studies of second-generation antipsychotics,” Am J Psychiatry 163 (2), 185–94.
Study of scientific fraud (industry aren’t the only ones who are guilty)
Fanelli, D. (2009), “How many scientists fabricate and falsify research? A systematic review and meta-analysis of survey data,” PloS one 4 (5), e5738.
Systematic review showing that when drug industry pays for the trial, it is more likely to show that the drug works than if the study is conducted by independent researchers
Bero, L. (2013), “Industry sponsorship and research outcome: a Cochrane review,” JAMA Intern Med 173 (7), 580–81.
The EUROPA study example in which a small relative-risk reduction was used as evidence that everyone with coronary heart disease should take perindopril, and two books taking apart the claim that small effects matter
Fox, K. M., et al. (2003), “Efficacy of perindopril in reduction of cardiovascular events among patients with stable coronary artery disease: randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicentre trial (the EUROPA study),” Lancet 362 (9386), 782–88.
Penston, J. (2010), Stats.con—How We’ve Been Fooled by Statistics-Based Research in Medicine (London: London Press).
Penston, J. (2003), Fiction and Fantasy in Medical Research: The Large-Scale Randomised Trial (London: London Press).
Cochrane review of the effects of statins, showing they have a clear but small absolute benefit compared with placebo and mild side effects
Taylor, F., et al. (2013), “Statins for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 1, CD004816.
Trial showing small benefits of statins for intermediate risk of cardiovascular disease
Yusuf, S., et al. (2016), “Cholesterol lowering in intermediate-risk persons without cardiovascular disease,” N Engl J Med 374 (21), 2021–31.
Trial showing very small benefit of statins for people with a low risk of cardiovascular disease
Zomer, E., et al. (2012), “Statins for people at low risk of cardiovascular disease,” Lancet 380 (9856), 1817; author reply 17–18.
Evidence that exercise is as good as drugs for preventing heart disease, coronary heart disease, rehabilitation after stroke, treatment of heart failure, and prevention of diabetes
Naci, H., and Ioannidis, J. P. (2015), “Comparative effectiveness of exercise and drug interventions on mortality outcomes: metaepidemiological study,” Br. J Sports Med, 49 (21), 1414–22.
“Expert” review of the evidence for statins (many of the authors have conflicts of interest)
Collins, R.; Reith, C.; Emberson, J. et al. (2016), “Interpretation of the evidence for the efficacy and safety of statin therapy,” Lancet 388 (10059), 2532–61.
Alleged benefits of relative-effect sizes
Barratt, A., et al. (2004), “Tips for learners of evidence-based medicine: 1. Relative risk reduction, absolute risk reduction and number needed to treat,” CMAJ 171 (4), 353–58.
Back-to-sleep campaign to prevent sudden infant death syndrome (a good tiny effect)
Gilbert, Ruth, et al. (2005), “Infant sleeping position and the sudden infant death syndrome: systematic review of observational studies and historical review of recommendations from 1940 to 2002,” IJ Epidemiology 34 (4), 874–87.
Discussing putting statins in tap water
Zaman, M. J., and Jones, M. M. (2010), “Strategies to screen and reduce vascular risk—putting statins in the tap water is not the answer,” Heart 96 (3), 177–78.
Spoof recommendation to use parachutes to prevent death
Smith, G. C., and Pell, J. P. (2003), “Parachute use to prevent death and major trauma related to gravitational challenge: systematic review of randomised controlled trials,” BMJ 327 (7429), 1459–61.
Systematic review showing that new treatments are almost as likely to be worse than old treatments as they are to be better
Djulbegovic, B., et al. (2012), “New treatments compared to established treatments in randomized trials,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev 10, MR000024.
The AllTrials campaign is fighting against publication bias, and is making progress
Donald Gillies moped example (“I am different”)
Gillies, D. (2000), Philosophical Theories of Probability (London: Routledge).
My geeky papers about mechanism
Howick, J. (2011), “Exposing the vanities—and a qualified defense—of mechanistic evidence in clinical decision-making,” Phil of Sci 78 (5), 926–40.
Howick, J.; Glasziou, P.; and Aronson, J. K. (2010), “Evidence-based mechanistic reasoning,” J Royal Soc Med 103 (11), 433–41.
Ibid. (2013), “Problems with using mechanisms to solve the problem of extrapolation,” Theoret Med and Bioethics 34 (4), 275–91.
European Carotid Surgery Trial (ECST)
Anonymous (1998), “Randomised trial of endarterectomy for recently symptomatic carotid stenosis: final results of the MRC European Carotid Surgery Trial (ECST),” Lancet 351 (9113), 1379–87.
Up to 90 percent of potentially eligible patients are excluded from trials
Mant, D. (1999), “Can randomised trials inform clinical decisions about individual patients?,” Lancet 353 (9154), 743–46.
Penston, J. (2003), Fiction and Fantasy in Medical Research: The Large-Scale Randomised Trial (London: London Press).
Penston, J. (2010), Stats.con—How We’ve Been Fooled by Statistics-Based Research in Medicine (London: London Press).
Zetin, M., and Hoepner, C. T. (2007), “Relevance of exclusion criteria in antidepressant clinical trials: a replication study,” J Clin Psychopharmacol 27 (3), 295–301.
Zimmerman, M.; Mattia, J. I.; and Posternak, M. A. (2002), “Are subjects in pharmacological treatment trials of depression representative of patients in routine clinical practice?,” Am J Psychiatry 159 (3), 469–73.
Zimmerman, M.; Posternak, M. A.; and Chelminski, I. (2002), “Symptom severity and exclusion from antidepressant efficacy trials,” J Clin Psychopharmacol 22 (6), 610–14.
Children respond differently to antidepressants than adults
Bylund, D. B., and Reed, A. L. (2007), “Childhood and adolescent depression: why do children and adults respond differently to antidepressant drugs?,” Neurochem Int 51 (5), 246–53.
Deupree, J. D.; Reed, A. L.; and Bylund, D. B. (2007), “Differential effects of the tricyclic antidepressant desipramine on the density of adrenergic receptors in juvenile and adult rats,” J Pharmacol Exp Ther 321 (2), 770–76.
Evaluation of the Tamil Nadu Integrated Nutrition Projects (worked in Tamil Nadu but not in Bangladesh because the environment and culture were different)
Karim, R., et al. (2003), The Bangladesh Integrated Nutrition Project: Endline Evaluation of the Community Based Nutrition Component (Boston, and Dhaka, Bangladesh: Institute of Nutrition and Food Sciences, and Friedman School of Nutrition Science).
Save the Children Federation (2003), Thin on the Ground: Questioning the Evidence Behind World Bank–Funded Community Nutrition Projects in Bangladesh (London: Save the Children Federation).
World Bank (1998), Implementation Completion Report: India—Second Tamil Nadu Integrated Nutrition Project (Washington: World Bank, Operations Evaluation Department).
White, H. (2009), “Theory-based impact evaluation: principles and practice,” in International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (New Delhi: International Initiative for Impact Evaluation).
Ernst Schumacher quote
Schumacher, E. F. (2010), Small Is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered (New York: Harper Perennial).
Mark Twain quote
Beard, D. C., and Stein, B. L. (2011), A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (Berkeley: University of California Press).
Semmelweis story
Gillies, D. (2005), “Hempelian and Kuhnian approaches in the philosophy of medicine: the Semmelweis case,” Stud Hist Philos Biol Biomed Sci 36 (1), 159–81.
Semmelweis, I. (1983), The Etiology, Concept, and Prophylaxis of Childbed Fever, edited by K. C. Codell (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press).
Epstein, A. E., et al. (1993), “Mortality following ventricular arrhythmia suppression by encainide, flecainide, and moricizine after myocardial infarction: the original design concept of the Cardiac Arrhythmia Suppression Trial (CAST),” JAMA 270 (20), 2451–55.
NIH (1986), “The cardiac arrhythmia suppression trial (CAST),” in National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) (National Institutes of Health).
Evidence that most people don’t want to take drugs with tiny absolute-effect sizes
Fontana, M., et al. (2014), “Patient-accessible tool for shared decision making in cardiovascular primary prevention: balancing longevity benefits against medication disutility,” Circulation 129 (24), 2539–46.
The GOBSAT (“Good Old Boys Sat Around a Table”) method described
Greenhalgh, T. (2006) How to Read a Paper: The Basics of Evidence-Based Medicine, 3rd ed. (Malden, MA.: BMJ Books/Blackwell Pub).
Book about consensus statements to rule whether treatments work (before the dawn of EBM)
Goodman, C., and Baratz, S. R. (1990), Consensus Development at the NIH: Improving the Program: Institute of Medicine (US) Committee to Improve the National Institutes of Health Consensus Development Program (Washington: National Academy Press).
Iain Chalmers’s story about listening to experts and theory about antibiotics for measles
Chalmers, I. (2002), “Why we need to know whether prophylactic antibiotics can reduce measles-related morbidity,” Pediatrics 109 (2), 312–15.
American Psychiatric Association members have strong link with industry
Cosgrove, L., and Krimsky, S. (2012), “A comparison of DSM-IV and DSM-5 panel members’ financial associations with industry: a pernicious problem persists,” PLOS Med,9 (3), e1001190.
Other industries also have conflicts of interest (psychiatry is not alone)
Catala-Lopez, F.; Sanfelix-Gimeno, G.; Ridao, M.; and Peiro, S. (2013) “When are statins cost-effective in cardiovascular prevention? A systematic review of sponsorship bias and conclusions in economic evaluations of statins,” PLOS One 8 (7), e69462.
Lexchin, J.; Bero, L. A.; Djulbegovic, B.; and Clark, O. (2003), “Pharmaceutical industry sponsorship and research outcome and quality: systematic review,” BMJ 326 (7400), 1167–70.
Study showing that textbooks (written by experts) do not reflect latest evidence and therefore continue to recommend treatments that are useless or harmful
Antman, E. M., et al. (1992), “A comparison of results of meta-analyses of randomized control trials and recommendations of clinical experts. Treatments for myocardial infarction,” JAMA 268 (2), 240–48.
Systematic review of health benefits of fasting (positive but weak evidence)
Horne, B. D.; Muhlestein, J. B.; and Anderson, J. L. (2015), “Health effects of intermittent fasting: hormesis or harm? A systematic review,” Am J Clin Nutrit 102 (2), 464–70.
Systematic review of pomegranate for lowering blood pressure and other things
Sahebkar, A.; Ferri, C.; Giorgini, P.; Bo, S.; Nachtigal, P.; and Grassi, D. (2017), “Effects of pomegranate juice on blood pressure: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials,” Pharmacol Res 115, 149–61.
NHS Choices review of pomegranate evidence, http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/superfoods/Pages/is-pomegranate-a-superfood.aspx.
Systematic review of positive psychology interventions (including the “Best Possible Self” exercise)
Bolier, L.; Haverman, M.; Westerhof, G. J.; Riper, H.; Smit, F.; and Bohlmeijer, E. (2013), “Positive psychology interventions: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled studies,” BMC Public Health 13, 119.
Henry Knowles Beecher’s systematic review of placebo effects
Beecher, H. K. (1955), “The powerful placebo,” J Am Med Assoc 159 (17), 1602–6.
Beecher, H. K. (1961) “Surgery as placebo: a quantitative study of bias,” JAMA 176; 1102–7.
Article questioning Beecher’s method (the “post hoc ergo propter hoc” fallacy)
Kienle, G. S., and Kiene, H. (1997), “The powerful placebo effect: fact or fiction?,” J Clin Epidemiol 50 (12), 1311–18.
Peter Gøtzsche and Asbjorn Hróbjartsson’s systematic review comparing placebo with no treatment
Hróbjartsson, A., and Gøtzsche, P. (2001), “Is the placebo powerless? An analysis of clinical trials comparing placebo with no treatment,” N Engl J Med 344 (21), 1594–1602.
Hróbjartsson, A., and Gøtzsche, P. (2004) “Is the placebo powerless? Update of a systematic review with 52 new randomized trials comparing placebo with no treatment,” J Internal Med 256 (2), 91–100.
Hróbjartsson, A., and Gøtzsche, P. (2010) “Placebo interventions for all clinical conditions,” Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 1, CD003974.
Irving Kirsch noting the problem of heterogeneity in the placebo systematic review
Kirsch, I. (2002) “Yes, there is a placebo effect, but is there a powerful antidepressant effect?,” Prevention and Treatment 5 (22).
My study comparing average treatment effects with average placebo effects
Howick, J.; Friedemann, C.; Tsakok, M.; et al. (2013), “Are treatments more effective than placebos? A systematic review and meta-analysis,” PlOS One 8 (5), e62599.
De Amici, D.; Klersy, C.; Ramajoli, F.; Brustia, L.; and Politi, P. (2000), “Impact of the Hawthorne effect in a longitudinal clinical study: the case of anesthesia,” Control Clin Trials 21 (2), 103–14.
Hanson, D. L. (1967), “Influence of the Hawthorne effect upon physical education research,” Res Q 38 (4), 723–24.
Kohli, E.; Ptak, J.; Smith, R.; Taylor, E.; Talbot, E. A.; and Kirkland, K. B. (2009), “Variability in the Hawthorne effect with regard to hand hygiene performance in high- and low-performing inpatient care units,” Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol, 30 (3); 222–25.
Systematic review showing that patients in the “no treatment” groups within Hróbjartsson and Gøtzsche’s placebo systematic review got better
Krogsboll, L.T.; Hrobjartsson, A.; and Gotzsche, P. C. (2009) “Spontaneous improvement in randomised clinical trials: meta-analysis of three-armed trials comparing no treatment, placebo and active intervention” BMC Med Res Methodol,9, 1.
Systematic review showing that SSRI antidepressants only have tiny effects for depression compared with placebo
Kirsch, I.; Deacon, B. J.; Huedo-Medina, T. B.; Scoboria, A.; Moore, T. J.; and Johnson, B. T. (2008), “Initial severity and antidepressant benefits: a meta-analysis of data submitted to the Food and Drug Administration,” PLOS Med 5 (2), e45.
Systematic review showing that “active” placebos are more effective than standard placebos
Moncrieff, J.; Wessely, S.; and Hardy, R. (2004), “Active placebos versus antidepressants for depression,” Cochrane Database of Syst Rev 1, CD003012.
Trials of “open label” placebos
Kaptchuk, T. J.; Friedlander, E., Kelley, J. M.; et al. (2010), “Placebos without deception: a randomized controlled trial in irritable bowel syndrome,” PlOS One 5 (12), e15591.
Sandler, A.D., and Bodfish, J. W. (2008), “Open-label use of placebos in the treatment of ADHD: a pilot study,” Child Care Health Dev 34 (1), 104–10.
Kelley, J. M.; Kaptchuk, T.; Cusin, C.; Lipkin, S.; and Fava, M. (2012), “Open-label placebo for major depressive disorder: a pilot randomized controlled trial,” Psychother and Psychosom 81, 312–14.
Ethics of placebos
Howick, J. (2009), “Questioning the methodologic superiority of ‘placebo’ over ‘active’ controlled trials,” Am J Bioethics 9 (9), 34–48.
Foddy, B. (2009), “A duty to deceive: placebos in clinical practice,” Am J Bioethics 9 (12), 4–12.
Interview with Linda Buonanno, who said open-label placebos made her feel better than ever
Placebos Helping IBS, Migraine Sufferers Find Relief (2016), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0Yw35TR_SU.
Rice powder used as a lie detector test in ancient times
Kleinmuntz, B., and Szucko, J. J. (1984), “Lie detection in ancient and modern times: a call for contemporary scientific study,” Am Psychol 39 (7), 766–76.
Walter Cannon and the discovery of the fight-or-flight response
Cannon, W. B. (1915), Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear and Rage: An Account of Recent Researches into the Function of Emotional Excitement (New York: Appleton).
Cannon, W. B. (1932), The Wisdom of the Body (New York: W. W. Norton).
Evidence that people are too stressed out these days
APA (2013), “2013 Work and Well-Being” survey by the American Psychological Association.
US Department of Health and Human Services (1999), Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General, (Pittsburgh, PA: US Public Health Service). http://www.apaexcellence.org/assets/general/2013-work-and-wellbeing-survey-results.pdf.
Taelman, J., et al. (2011), “Instantaneous changes in heart rate regulation due to mental load in simulated office work,” Eur J Appl Physiol 111 (7), 1497–505.
Selye’s discovery and description of the stress response
Selye, H. (1976), The Stress of Life, rev. ed. (New York: McGraw-Hill).
Evidence linking stress with poor health outcomes
Heart disease
Li, J.; Zhang, M.; Loerbroks, A.; Angerer, P.; and Siegrist, J. (2014), “Work stress and the risk of recurrent coronary heart disease events: a systematic review and meta-analysis,” Int J Occupational Med and Environmental Health 28 (1), 8–19.
Stress and sleeping disorders
Han, K. S.; Kim, L.; and Shim, I. (2012), “Stress and sleep disorder,” Exp Neurobiol 21 (4), 141–50.
Depression and heart disease
Meijer, A., et al. (2011), “Prognostic association of depression following myocardial infarction with mortality and cardiovascular events: a meta-analysis of 25 years of research,” Gen Hosp Psychiatry 33 (3), 203–16.
Mahar, I., et al. (2014), “Stress, serotonin, and hippocampal neurogenesis in relation to depression and antidepressant effects,” Neurosci Biobehav Rev 38, 173–92.
Monroe, S. M.; Slavich, G. M.; and Gotlib, I. H. (2014), “Life stress and family history for depression: the moderating role of past depressive episodes,” J Psychiatr Res 49, 90–95.
Roest, A. M., et al. (2010), “Prognostic association of anxiety post myocardial infarction with mortality and new cardiac events: a meta-analysis,” Psychosom Med 72 (6), 563–69.
Financial stress
Georgiades, A., et al. (2009), “Financial strain predicts recurrent events among women with coronary artery disease,” Int J Cardiol 135 (2), 175–83.
Autoimmune diseases
Temajo, N. O., and Howard, N. (2014), “The mosaic of environment involvement in autoimmunity: the abrogation of viral latency by stress, a non-infectious environmental agent, is an intrinsic prerequisite prelude before viruses can rank as infectious environmental agents that trigger autoimmune diseases,” Autoimmun Rev 13 (6), 635–40.
Angina pectoris
King, M. S., Carr, T., and D’Cruz, C. (2002), “Transcendental meditation, hypertension and heart disease,” Aust Fam Physician 31 (2), 164–68.
Anxiety and restlessness
Shannahoff-Khalsa, D. S., et al. (1999), “Randomized controlled trial of yogic meditation techniques for patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder,” CNS Spectr 4 (12), 34–47.
Asthma
Rietveld, S.; Everaerd, W.; and Creer, T. L. (2000), “Stress-induced asthma: a review of research and potential mechanisms,” Clin Exp Allergy 30 (8), 1058–66.
Trueba, A. F., and Ritz, T. (2013), “Stress, asthma, and respiratory infections: pathways involving airway immunology and microbial endocrinology,” Brain Behav Immun 29, 11–27.
Cardiac arrhythmias
Ditto, B.; Eclache, M.; and Goldman, N. (2006), “Short-term autonomic and cardiovascular effects of mindfulness body scan meditation,” Ann Behav Med 32 (3), 227–34.
Vadiraja, S. H., et al. (2009), “Effects of yoga on symptom management in breast cancer patients: a randomized controlled trial,” Int J Yoga 2 (2), 73–79.
Diabetes mellitus
Miller, C. K., et al. (2014), “Comparison of a mindful eating intervention to a diabetes self-management intervention among adults with type 2 diabetes: a randomized controlled trial,” Health Educ Behav 41 (2), 145–54.
Mild and moderate depression
Goyal, M., et al. (2014), “Meditation programs for psychological stress and well-being: a systematic review and meta-analysis,” JAMA Intern Med 174 (3), 357–68.
Fatigue and energy levels
Kim, Y. H., et al. (2013), “Effects of meditation on anxiety, depression, fatigue, and quality of life of women undergoing radiation therapy for breast cancer,” Complement Ther Med 21 (4), 379–87.
Focus
Chan, D., and Woollacott, M. (2007), “Effects of level of meditation experience on attentional focus: is the efficiency of executive or orientation networks improved?,” J Altern Complement Med 13 (6), 651–57.
Kozasa, E. H., et al. (2012), “Meditation training increases brain efficiency in an attention task,” Neuroimage 59 (1), 745–49.
Herpes simplex (cold sores)
Cruess, S., et al. (2000), “Reductions in herpes simplex virus type 2 antibody titers after cognitive behavioral stress management and relationships with neuroendocrine function, relaxation skills, and social support in HIV-positive men,” Psychosom Med 62 (6), 828–37.
Hypertension (high blood pressure)
Barnes, V. A., and Orme-Johnson, D. W. (2006), “Clinical and pre-clinical applications of the transcendental meditation program in the prevention and treatment of essential hypertension and cardiovascular disease in youth and adults,” Curr Hypertens Rev. 2 (3), 207–18.
Benson, H., et al. (1974), “Decreased blood pressure in borderline hypertensive subjects who practiced meditation,” J Chronic Dis 27 (3), 163–69.
Immune system
Cohen, S., et al. (1998), “Types of stressors that increase susceptibility to the common cold in healthy adults,” Health Psychol 17 (3), 214–23.
Infertility
Domar, A. D.; Seibel, M. M.; and Benson, H. (1990), “The mind/body program for infertility: a new behavioral treatment approach for women with infertility,” Fertil Steril 53 (2), 246–49.
Insomnia
Kaul, P., et al. (2010), “Meditation acutely improves psychomotor vigilance, and may decrease sleep need,” Behav Brain Funct 6, 47,
Linton, S. J. (2004). “Does work stress predict insomnia? A prospective study.” British Journal of Health Psychology, Volume 9 (2), 127–136.
Pain
Schaffer, S. D., and Yucha, C. B. (2004), “Relaxation & pain management: the relaxation response can play a role in managing chronic and acute pain,” Am J Nurs 104 (8), 75–76, 78–79, 81–82.
Zeidan, F., et al. (2010), “The effects of brief mindfulness meditation training on experimentally induced pain,” J Pain 11 (3), 199–209.
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Chung, M. C., and Wall, N. (2013), “Alexithymia and posttraumatic stress disorder following asthma attack,” Psychiatr Q, 84 (3), 287–302.
Rees, B., et al. (2013), “Reduction in posttraumatic stress symptoms in Congolese refugees practicing transcendental meditation,” J Trauma Stress 26 (2), 295–98.
Hedon, F. (2003), “Anxiety and erectile dysfunction: a global approach to ED enhances results and quality of life,” Int J Impot Res 15, suppl. 2, S16–19.
Substance abuse
Sinha, R., et al. (2000), “Psychological stress, drug-related cues and cocaine craving,” Psychopharmacology (Berl.) 152 (2), 140–48.
Teeth problems
Goyal, S., et al. (2013), “Stress and periodontal disease: the link and logic!!,” Ind Psychiatry J, 22 (1), 4–11.
Wound healing
Gouin, J. P., and Kiecolt-Glaser, J. K. (2011), “The impact of psychological stress on wound healing: methods and mechanisms,” Immunol Allergy Clin North Am, 31 (1), 81–93.
Heart disease leading cause of death worldwide, and it is growing
World Health Organization (2014), “The top 10 causes of death.” http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs310/en/.
We have multiple stress responses per day on average
Benson, H. (2001), The Relaxation Response (New York: HarperCollins).
McEwen, B. S., and Lasley, E. N. (2002), The End of Stress As We Know It (Washington: Joseph Henry).
Work stress questionnaire
Sanne, B., et al. (2005), “The Swedish Demand-Control-Support Questionnaire (DCSQ): factor structure, item analyses, and internal consistency in a large population,” Scand J Public Health 33 (3), 166–74.
Mindfulness reduces heart disease
Schneider, R. H., et al. (2012), “Stress reduction in the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease: randomized, controlled trial of transcendental meditation and health education in blacks,” Circ Cardiovasc Qual Outcomes 5 (6), 750–58.
Researchers identified 293 studies that showed an impact of stress on the immune system
Segerstrom, S. C., and Miller, G. E. (2004), “Psychological stress and the human immune system: a meta-analytic study of 30 years of inquiry,” Psychol Bull 130 (4), 601–30.
Dhabhar, F. S. (2014), “Effects of stress on immune function: the good, the bad, and the beautiful,” Immunol Res 58 (2–3), 193–210.
Overview with examples of how stress changes physiology
Nakata, A. (2012), “Psychosocial job stress and immunity: a systematic review,” Methods Mol Biol 934, 39–75.
Mechanism linking stress and brain activity
Calcia, M. A., et al. (2016), “Stress and neuroinflammation: a systematic review of the effects of stress on microglia and the implications for mental illness,” Psychopharmacology (Berl.), 233 (9), 1637–50.
Alice Herz-Sommer’s story (Holocaust survivor who died at 110 and remained positive her whole life)
Fox, Margalit (2014), “Alice Herz-Sommer, who found peace in Chopin amid Holocaust, dies at 110,” New York Times, February 27.
Story of Chinese farmer
Chu, Chin-Ning (1991), The Asian Mind Game: Unlocking the Hidden Agenda of theAsian Business Culture: A Westerner’s Survival Manual (New York: Rawson Associates).
Mary Schmich article about chewing bubble gum to solve algebra problems
Schmich, M. (1997), “Wear sunscreen,” Chicago Tribune, June 1.
Paul McCartney saying “We’d been into drugs, the next step is, you’ve got to try and find a meaning then”
Swanson, D., “The History of the Beatles and the Maharishi,” http://ultimateclassicrock.com/the-beatles-india-maharishi/?trackback=tsmclip%3E.
The relaxation response and how it changes your biology: Benson’s initial experiments
Benson, H. (2001), The Relaxation Response (New York: Harper Collins).
Relaxing jaw can relax entire body
Mohammadi Fakhar, F.; Rafii, F.; and Jamshidi Orak, R. (2013), “The effect of jaw relaxation on pain anxiety during burn dressings: randomised clinical trial,” Burns 39 (1), 61–67.
List of different types of meditation
IAM (2014), “8 Basic Kinds of Meditation,” http://www.iam-u.org/index.php/8-basic-kinds-of-meditation-and-why-you-should-meditate-on-your-heart%3E.
Systematic reviews of the relaxation response (including “Bensonian” relaxation, meditation, and yoga) for lowering blood pressure and preventing heart disease
Cramer, H., et al. (2014), “A systematic review and meta-analysis of yoga for hypertension,” Am J Hypertens 27 (9), 1146–51.
Hagins, M., et al. (2013), “Effectiveness of yoga for hypertension: systematic review and meta-analysis,” Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 2013, 649836.
Hartley, L., et al. (2014), “Transcendental meditation for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev12, CD010359.
Ibid. (2014), “Yoga for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev 5, CD010072.
Nagele, E., et al. (2014), “Clinical effectiveness of stress-reduction techniques in patients with hypertension: systematic review and meta-analysis,” J Hypertens 32 (10), 1936–44; discussion, 19444.
Rainforth, M. V., et al. (2007), “Stress reduction programs in patients with elevated blood pressure: a systematic review and meta-analysis,” Curr Hypertens Rep 9 (6), 520–28.
More evidence that meditation lowers blood pressure and is recommended by the American Heart Association
Brook, R. D., et al. (2013), “Beyond medications and diet: alternative approaches to lowering blood pressure: a scientific statement from the American Heart Association,” Hypertension 61 (6), 1360–83.
Gregoski, M. J., et al. (2012), “Differential impact of stress reduction programs upon ambulatory blood pressure among African American adolescents: influences of endothelin-1 gene and chronic stress exposure,” Int J Hypertens, Article ID 510291.
Kabat-Zinn and the relationship between Buddhist meditation and mindfulness
Ludwig, D. S. and Kabat-Zinn, J. (2008), “Mindfulness in medicine,” JAMA 300 (11), 1350–52.
Trial showing that mindfulness can reduce anxiety among caregivers of family members with dementia
Whitebird, R. R., Kreitzer, M., Crain, A. L., et. al. Mindfulness-based stress reduction for family caregivers: a randomized controlled trial. The Gerontologist 2013; 53(4): 676–86.
Systematic review evidence that the relaxation response, etc., improve health
Transcendental meditation for preventing heart disease
Hartley, L., et al. (2014, “Transcendental meditation for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev 12, CD010359.
Mindfulness reduces depression and anxiety and depression
Goyal, M., et al. (2014), “Meditation programs for psychological stress and well-being: a systematic review and meta-analysis,” JAMA Intern Med 174 (3), 357–68.
Relaxation response and various disorders (systematic review evidence)
Anxiety: reducing anxiety
Kirkwood, G., et al. (2005), “Yoga for anxiety: a systematic review of the research evidence,” Br J Sports Med 39 (12), 884–91; discussion 891.
Arthritis
A systematic review including eleven randomized trials showed a benefit of mindfulness therapy for treating chronic pain (including arthritis):
Bawa, F. L.; Mercer, S. W.; Atherton, R. J., et al. (2015), “Does mindfulness improve outcomes in patients with chronic pain? Systematic review and meta-analysis,” B Journal GP 65 (635), e387–400.
Low-back pain
Cramer, H., et al. (2014), “A systematic review and meta-analysis of yoga for hypertension,” Am J Hypertens 27 (9), 1146–51.
Binge eating: decreasing binge eating
Katterman, S. N.; Kleinman, B. M.; Hood, M. M.; Nackers, L. M.; and Corsica, J. A. (2014), “Mindfulness meditation as an intervention for binge eating, emotional eating, and weight loss: a systematic review,” Eating Behaviors 15 (2): 197–204.
Cancer: improving psychological health of cancer patients
Cramer, H., et al. (2012), “Yoga for breast cancer patients and survivors: a systematic review and meta-analysis,” BMC Cancer 12, 412.
Cognitive decline: offsetting cognitive decline
Gard, T.; Holzel, B. K.; and Lazar, S. W. (2014), “The potential effects of meditation on age-related cognitive decline: a systematic review,” Ann N Y Acad Sci 1307, 89–103.
Depression
Klainin-Yobas, P., et al. (2015), “Effects of relaxation interventions on depression and anxiety among older adults: a systematic review,” Aging Ment Health 19 (12), 1043–55.
Piet, J., and Hougaard, E. (2011), “The effect of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for prevention of relapse in recurrent major depressive disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis,” Clin Psychol Rev 31 (6), 1032–40.
Diabetes mellitus
Aljasir, B.; Bryson, M.; and Al-Shehri, B. (2010), “Yoga practice for the management of type ii diabetes mellitus in adults: a systematic review,” Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 7 (4), 399–408.
Innes, K. E., and Vincent, H. K. (2007), “The influence of yoga-based programs on risk profiles in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a systematic review,” Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 4 (4), 469–86.
Hypertension
Bai, Z., et al. (2015), “Investigating the effect of transcendental meditation on blood pressure: a systematic review and meta-analysis,” J Hum Hypertens, 29(11): 653–62.
Cramer, H., et al. (2014), “A systematic review and meta-analysis of yoga for hypertension,” Am J Hypertens, 27 (9), 1146–51.
Rainforth, M. V., et al. (2007), “Stress reduction programs in patients with elevated blood pressure: a systematic review and meta-analysis,” Curr Hypertens Rep 9 (6), 520–28.
Tyagi, A., and Cohen, M. (2014), “Yoga and hypertension: a systematic review,” Altern Ther Health Med 20 (2), 32–59.
Wang, J.; Xiong, X.; and Liu, W. (2013), “Yoga for essential hypertension: a systematic review,” PLOS One 8 (10), e76357.
Insomnia
Kim, S. M.; Park, J. M.; and Seo, H. J. (2016), “Effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction for adults with sleep disturbance: a protocol for an update of a systematic review and meta-analysis,” Syst Rev 5, 51.
Neuendorf, R., et al. (2015), “The effects of mind-body interventions on sleep quality: a systematic review,” Evid Based Complement Alternat Med, Article ID 902708. https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2015/902708/.
Ischemic heart disease: recovery and secondary prevention for ischemic heart disease
van Dixhoorn, J., and White, A. (2005), “Relaxation therapy for rehabilitation and prevention in ischaemic heart disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis,” Eur J Cardiovasc Prev Rehabil 12 (3), 193–202.
Irritable bowel syndrome
A systematic review with eight trials suggests that relaxation meditation can reduce IBS symptoms.
Park, S-H.; Han, K.S.; and Kang, C-B. (2014), “Relaxation therapy for irritable bowel syndrome: a systematic review,” Asian Nursing Research 8 (3); 182–92.
Multiple sclerosis (MS): managing MS
Levin, A. B.; Hadgkiss, E. J., Weiland, T. J.; and Jelinek, G. A. (2014), “Meditation as an adjunct to the management of multiple sclerosis,” Neuro Res Int, Article ID 704691.
Senders, A.; Wahbeh, H.; Spain, R.; and Shinto, L. (2012), “Mind-body medicine for multiple sclerosis: a systematic review,” Autoimmune Diseases, Article ID 567324.
Pain: reducing pain
Carroll, D., and Seers, K. (1998) “Relaxation for the relief of chronic pain: a systematic review,” J Advanced Nursing 27 (3); 476–87.
Sheinfeld Gorin, S.; Krebs, P.; Badr, H.; et al. (2012), “Meta-analysis of psychosocial interventions to reduce pain in patients with cancer,” J Clin Oncology 30 (5), 539–47.
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Bisson, J. I.; Roberts, N. P.; Andrew, M.; Cooper, R.; and Lewis, C. (2013), “Psychological therapies for chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in adults,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev 12, CD003388.
Pregnancy: positive effects on neonatal outcomes
Fink, N. S.; Urech, C.; Cavelti, M.; and Alder, J. (2012), “Relaxation during pregnancy: what are the benefits for mother, fetus, and the newborn? A systematic review of the literature,” J Perinatal and Neonatal Nursing 26 (4), 296–306.
Schizophrenia: reducing anxiety in schizophrenic patients
Vancampfort, D.; Correll, C. U.; Scheewe, T. W.; et al. (2013), “Progressive muscle relaxation in persons with schizophrenia: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials,” Clin Rehab 27 (4), 291–98.
Chong, C. S.; Tsunaka, M.; Tsang, H. W.; Chan, E. P.; and Cheung, W. M. (2011), “Effects of yoga on stress management in healthy adults: a systematic review,” Alternat Health and Med 17 (1), 32–38.
Lower-quality (not from systematic reviews) evidence concerning relaxation response and various disorders (evidence from lower-quality studies)
Asthma
Huntley, A.; White, A. R.; and Ernst, E. (2002), “Relaxation therapies for asthma: a systematic review,” Thorax 57 (2), 127–31.
Pbert, L.; Madison; J. M.; Druker, S.; et al. (2102), “Effect of mindfulness training on asthma quality of life and lung function: a randomised controlled trial,” Thorax 67 (9), 769–76.
Nickel, C.; Lahmann, C.; Muehlbacher, M.; et al. (2006), “Pregnant women with bronchial asthma benefit from progressive muscle relaxation: a randomized, prospective, controlled trial,” Psychotherapy and Psychosom 75 (4), 237–43.
Yorke, J.; Fleming, S. L.’ and Shuldham, C. (2007), “Psychological interventions for adults with asthma: a systematic review,” Respiratory Med 101 (1), 1–14.
Increases well-being / happiness
Chang, B. H.; Boehmer, U.; Zhao, Y.; and Sommers, E. (2007), “The combined effect of relaxation response and acupuncture on quality of life in patients with HIV: a pilot study,” J Alternat and Complement Med 13 (8), 807–15.
Kim, Y. H.; Kim, H. J.; Ahn, S. D.; Seo, Y. J.; and Kim, S. H. (2013), “Effects of meditation on anxiety, depression, fatigue, and quality of life of women undergoing radiation therapy for breast cancer,” Complement Ther in Med 21 (4), 379–87.
Reduces irritability
Speca, M.; Carlson, L. E.; Goodey, E.; and Angen, M. (2000), “A randomized, wait-list controlled clinical trial: the effect of a mindfulness meditation-based stress reduction program on mood and symptoms of stress in cancer outpatients,” Psychosom Med 62 (5), 613–22.
Haaga, D. A.; Grosswald, S.; Gaylord-King, C.; et al. (2011), “Effects of the transcendental meditation program on substance use among university students,” Cardiol Res Pract, Article ID: 537101.
Shafil, M.; Lavely, R.; and Jaffe, R. (1975), “Meditation and the prevention of alcohol abuse,” Am J Psychiatry 132 (9), 942–45.
Improves memory
Deffenbacher, K. A.; Bornstein, B. H.; Penrod, S. D.; and McGorty, E. K. (2004), “A meta-analytic review of the effects of high stress on eyewitness memory,” Law Hum Behav 28 (6), 687–706.
Guglietti, C. L.; Daskalakis, Z. J.; Radhu, N.; Fitzgerald, P. B.; and Ritvo, P., “Meditation-related increases in GABAB modulated cortical inhibition,” Brain Stimul 6 (3), 397–402.
Study showing the effect of stress on gene expression (see Chapter 15 for more references)
Dusek, J. A.; Otu, H. H.; Wohlhueter, A. L.; et al. (2008), “Genomic counter-stress changes induced by the relaxation response,” PlOS One 3 (7), e2576.
The modified candle problem—Glucksberg’s original study
Glucksberg, S. (1962), “The influence of strength of drive on functional fixedness and perceptual recognition,” J Exper Psychol 63, 36–41.
Meditation activates the parasympathetic nervous response
Wu, S. D., and Lo, P. C. (2008), “Inward-attention meditation increases parasympathetic activity: a study based on heart rate variability,” Biomed Res, 29(5), 245–50.
Svenson et al. have written about more research exploring the relationship between stress and (reduced) creativity
Svenson, O., and Maule, A. J., eds. (1993) Time pressure and stress in human judgment and decision making (New York: Plenum).
Abiola Keller’s study showing that worrying about stress is worse than the actual stress
Keller, A.; Litzelman, K.; Wisk, L. E.; et al. (2012), “Does the perception that stress affects health matter? The association with health and mortality,” Health Psychol 31 (5), 677–84.
Relaxation improves the immune system function
Black, D. S., and Slavich, G. M. (2016), “Mindfulness meditation and the immune system: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials,” Ann New York Acad Sciences, 1373 (1), 13–24.
The belief that stress is okay reduces the effects of stress
Keller, A.; Litzelman, K.; Wisk, L. E.; et al. (2012), “Does the perception that stress affects health matter? The association with health and mortality,” Health Psychol 31 (5), 677–84.
Eustress and the zone (The Yerkes/Dodson Law)
Yerkes, R. M, and Dodson, J. D. (1908), “The relation of strength of stimulus to rapidity of habit-formation,” J Comp Neurol and Psychol 18, 459–82.
The sigh of relief
Vlemincx, E.; Taelman, J.; Van Diest, I.; and Van den Bergh, O. (2010), “Take a deep breath: the relief effect of spontaneous and instructed sighs,” Physiol Behav 101 (1), 67–73.
Benson’s relaxation exercise
Benson, H. (2001), The Relaxation Response (New York, HarperCollins). xviii-xxii.
Williams, M., and Penman, D. (2011), Mindfulness: An Eight-Week Plan for Finding Peace in a Frantic World (New York: Rodale).
Bruce Moseley’s trial of placebo knee surgery
Moseley, J. B.; O’Malley, K.; Petersen, N. J.; et al. (2002), “A controlled trial of arthroscopic surgery for osteoarthritis of the knee,” N Eng J Med 347 (2), 81–88.
Prevalence of knee arthroscopic surgery
American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine (2016), “Knee arthroscopy,” http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=a00299.
Kim, S.; Bosque, J.; Meehan, J. P.; Jamali, A.; and Marder, R. (2011), “Increase in outpatient knee arthroscopy in the United States: a comparison of National Surveys of Ambulatory Surgery, 1996 and 2006,” J Bone and Joint Surgery 93 (11), 994–1000.
Placebo controlled vertebroplasty procedure
Buchbinder, R.; Osborne, R. H.; Ebeling, P. R.; et al. (2009), “A randomized trial of vertebroplasty for painful osteoporotic vertebral fractures,” New Eng J Med 361 (6), 557–68.
Staples, M. P.; Kallmes, D. F.; Comstock, B. A.; et al. (2011), “Effectiveness of vertebroplasty using individual patient data from two randomised placebo controlled trials: meta-analysis,” BMJ 343, d3952.
Vertebroplasty prevalence
Long, S. S.; Morrison, W. B.; and Parker, L. (2012), “Vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty in the United States: provider distribution and guidance method, 2001–2010,” Am J Roentgenology 199 (6), 1358–64.
Vertebroplasty can lead to the side effect of cement leakage
Teng, M. M.; Cheng, H.; Ho, D. M.; and Chang, C. Y. (2006), “Intraspinal leakage of bone cement after vertebroplasty: a report of 3 cases,” Am J Neuroradiology 27 (1), 224–29.
Vertebroplasty can increase the risk of adjacent fractures
Lin, E. P.; Ekholm, S.; Hiwatashi, A.; and Westesson, P. L. (2004), “Vertebroplasty: cement leakage into the disc increases the risk of new fracture of adjacent vertebral body,” Am J Neuroradiology 25 (2), 175–80.
Physical therapy can reduce knee pain
Wang, S. Y.; Olson-Kellogg, B.; Shamliyan, T. A.; Choi, J. Y.; Ramakrishnan, R.; and Kane, R. L. (2012), “Physical therapy interventions for knee pain secondary to osteoarthritis: a systematic review,” Annals Internal Med 157 (9), 632–44.
Placebo surgery systematic review
Wartolowska, K.; Judge, A.; Collins, G.; et al. (2014), “Use of placebo controls in the evaluation of surgery: systematic review,” BMJ 348, g3253.
Wound-healing mechanism
Krafts, K. P. (2010), “Tissue repair: the hidden drama,” Organogenesis 6 (4), 225–33.
Enoch, S., and Price, P. (2004), World Wide Wounds, http://www.worldwidewounds.com/2004/august/Enoch/Pathophysiology-Of-Healing.html.
Exercise for back pain
Hayden, J. A.; van Tulder, M. W.; Malmivaara, A.; and Koes, B. W. (2005), “Exercise therapy for treatment of non-specific low back pain,” Cochrane Database Systematic Reviews 3, CD000335.
Yoga for back pain
Cramer, H.; Lauche, R.; Haller, H.; and Dobos, G. (2013), “A systematic review and meta-analysis of yoga for low back pain,” Clinical J Pain 9 (5), 450–60.
Descartes
Descartes, R.; Clarke, D. M. (2011), Meditations and Other Metaphysical Writings (London: Folio Society).
Ryle on why Descartes is wrong
Ryle, G. (2009), The Concept of Mind, 60th anniversary ed. (Abingdon, Oxfordshire: Routledge).
The link between mental and physical illness
Novick, D.; Montgomery, W.; Kadziola, Z.; et al. (2013), “Do concomitant pain symptoms in patients with major depression affect quality of life even when taking into account baseline depression severity?,” Patient Prefer Adherence 7, 463–70.
Trivedi, M. H. (2004) “The link between depression and physical symptoms,” Primary Care Companion to J Clin Psychiatry 6 (suppl. 1), 12–16.
The TGN1412 tragic case gone wrong
Goldacre, B. (2012), Bad Pharma: How Drug Companies Mislead Doctors and Harm Patients (London: Fourth Estate).
Coghlan, A. (2006), “Mystery over drug trial debacle deepens,” New Scientist, 14 August.
Suntharalingam, G.; Perry, M. R.; Ward, S.; et al. (2006), “Cytokine storm in a phase 1 trial of the anti-CD28 monoclonal antibody TGN1412,” New Eng J Med 355 (10), 1018–28.
Link between depression and physical symptoms (like pain)
Trivedi, M. H. (2004) “The link between depression and physical symptoms,” Primary Care Companion to J Clin Psychiatry 6 (suppl. 1), 12–16.
Studies on the problems of inferring that something works based on a mechanism picture
Howick, J.; Glasziou, P.; and Aronson, J. K. (2010), “Evidence-based mechanistic reasoning,” J Royal Society Med 103 (11), 433–41.
Howick, J.; Glasziou, P.; and Aronson, J. K. (2013), “Problems with using mechanisms to solve the problem of extrapolation,” Theoretic Med and Bioethics 34 (4), 275–91.
Composition of the human body
Emsley, J. (1998), The Elements, 3rd ed. (Oxford: Clarendon Press).
Description of the problem of consciousness
van Gulick, R. (2014), “Consciousness,” in E. N. Zalta (ed.), Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Stanford, CA: Metaphysics Research Lab).
Evidence that people in comas are still conscious to some degree
Rosenberg, R. N. (2009), “Consciousness, coma, and brain death,” JAMA 301 (11), 1172–74.
Discussion of emergent properties
O’Connor, T. (2015), “Emergent Properties,” in E. N. Zalta (ed.), Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Stanford, CA: Metaphysics Research Lab).
Harrington (contains Morris quote about Earl Grey Tea)
Harrington, A. (ed.) (1997) The Placebo Effect: An Interdisciplinary Exploration (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press).
Moerman (reply to Earl Grey tea quote)
Moerman, D. E., “Meaningful placebos—controlling the uncontrollable,” New Engl J Med 365 (2), 171–72.
Conservative treatment is as good as surgery for back problems
Zaina, F.; Tomkins-Lane, C.; Carragee, E.; and Negrini, S. (2016), “Surgical versus non-surgical treatment for lumbar spinal stenosis,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 1(1), Article No. CD010264.
van Middelkoop, M.; Rubinstein, S. M.; Kuijpers, T.; Verhagen, A. P.; Ostelo, R.; Koes, B. W.; et al. (2011), “A systematic review on the effectiveness of physical and rehabilitation interventions for chronic non-specific low back pain,” Eur Spine J, 20(1), 19–39.
. . . and neck problems
van Middelkoop, M.; Rubinstein, S. M.; Ostelo, R.; van Tulder, M. W.; Peul, W.; Koes, B. W.; et al. (2013), “Surgery versus conservative care for neck pain: a systematic review,” Eur Spine J, 22(1), 87–95.
. . . and hip fractures
Handoll, H. H., and Parker, M. J. (2008), “Conservative versus operative treatment for hip fractures in adults,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev 16 (3), CD000337.
. . . and knee problems
Katz, J. N., and Losina, E. (2013), “Surgery versus physical therapy for meniscal tear and osteoarthritis,” N Engl J Med 369 (7), 677–78.
Low doses of amphetamines have an effect on ADHD
Sandler, A. D., and Bodfish, J. W. (2008), “Open-label use of placebos in the treatment of ADHD: a pilot study,” Child Care Health Dev 34 (1), 104–10.
Bruce Thomas study on the power of being positive
Thomas, K. B. (1987), “General practice consultations: is there any point in being positive?,” BMJ 294 (6581), 1200–1202.
Benedetti’s open versus hidden design (and information about how placebos can induce the body to produce endorphins)
Benedetti, F. (2009), Placebo Effects: Understanding the Mechanisms in Health and Disease (Oxford: Oxford University Press).
My systematic review showing that empathy and positive expectations can reduce symptoms of pain and some other ailments
Howick, J.; Fanshawe, T. R.; Mebius, A.; Lewith, G.; Heneghan, C. J.; Bishop, F.; Little, P.; Mistiaen, P.; and Roberts, N. W. (2015), “Effects of changing practitioner empathy and patient expectations in health-care consultations,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev, issue 11, art. no. CD011934, DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD011934.
Placebos work by reducing anxiety
Petrovic, P.; Dietrich, T.; Fransson, P.; Andersson, J.; Carlsson, K.; and Ingvar, M. (2005), “Placebo in emotional processing—induced expectations of anxiety relief activate a generalized modulatory network,” Neuron 46 (6), 957–69.
Expectations reduce anxiety (and subsequently reduce pain and depression)
Wager, T. D. (2005) “Expectations and anxiety as mediators of placebo effects in pain,” Pain 115 (3), 225–26.
Staats, P. S.; Staats, A.; and Hekmat, H. (2001), “The additive impact of anxiety and a placebo on pain,” Pain Med 2 (4), 267–79.
Dopamine, expectations, and pain
Wood, L.; Egger, M.; Gluud, L. L.; et al. (2008), “Empirical evidence of bias in treatment effect estimates in controlled trials with different interventions and outcomes: meta-epidemiological study,” BMJ 336 (7644) 601–5.
Colloca, L., and Benedetti, F. (2007), “Nocebo hyperalgesia: how anxiety is turned into pain,” Current Opinion in Anaesthesiology 20 (5), 435–39.
ADHD sales growth
IMS Institute (2012), The Use of Medicines in the United States: Review of 2011 (Parsippany, NJ: IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics).
Open versus hidden placebo treatments for Parkinson’s and anxiety and pain
Benedetti, F. (2009), Placebo Effects: Understanding the Mechanisms in Health and Disease (Oxford: Oxford University Press).
Placebos and back pain
Linde, K.; Witt, C. M.; Streng, A.; et al. “The impact of patient expectations on outcomes in four randomized controlled trials of acupuncture in patients with chronic pain,” Pain 128 (3), 264–71.
Exercise and diet prevent diabetes
Bain, E.; Crane, M.; Tieu, J.; Han, S.; Crowther, C. A.; and Middleton, P. (2015), “Diet and exercise interventions for preventing gestational diabetes mellitus,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev 4, CD010443.
Self-efficacy and expectancy (the belief that you can do what it takes to achieve your goals)
Bandura, A. (1997), Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control (New York: W. H. Freeman).
Pygmalion studies
Learman, L. A. Avorn, J.; Everitt, D. E.; and Rosenthal, R. (1990), “Pygmalion in the nursing home: the effects of caregiver expectations on patient outcomes,” J Am Geriatr Soc 38 (7), 797–803.
McNatt, D. B. (2000), “Ancient pygmalion joins contemporary management: a meta-analysis of the result,” J Appl Psychol 85 (2), 314–22.
Rosenthal, R., and Jacobson, L. F. (1998), Pygmalion in the Classroom: Teacher Expectation and Pupils’ Intellectual Development (New York: Irvington Publishers).
Studies showing a link between what the doctor says (“this may hurt”) and what the patient feels
Krauss, B. S. (2015), “‘This may hurt’: predictions in procedural disclosure may do harm,” BMJ 350, h649.
Cohen, L. L.; MacLaren, J. E.; Fortson, B. L.; et al., “Randomized clinical trial of distraction for infant immunization pain,” Pain 125 (1–2), 165–71.
Taddio, A.; Appleton, M.; Bortolussi, R.; et al. (2010), “Reducing the pain of childhood vaccination: an evidence-based clinical practice guideline (summary),” CMAJ 182 (18), 1989–95.
Chinese study of negative words on morphine use
Wang, F.; Shen, X.; Xu, S.; et al. (2008), “Negative words on surgical wards result in therapeutic failure of patient-controlled analgesia and further release of cortisol after abdominal surgeries,” Minerva Anestesiologica 74 (7–8), 353–65.
Nocebo effects—parent distractions
Cohen, L. L.; MacLaren, J. E.; Fortson, B. L.; et al. “Randomized clinical trial of distraction for infant immunization pain,” Pain 125 (1–2), 165–71.
Adverse events in placebo groups within clinical trials of migraine, pain, and epilepsy drugs
Zaccara, G.; Giovannelli, F.; and Schmidt, D. (2015), “Placebo and nocebo responses in drug trials of epilepsy,” Epilepsy and Behavior 43, 128–34.
Hauser, W.; Sarzi-Puttini, P.; Tolle, T. R.; and Wolfe, F. (2012), “Placebo and nocebo responses in randomised controlled trials of drugs applying for approval for fibromyalgia syndrome treatment: systematic review and meta-analysis,” Clin and Experimental Rheumatology 30 (6 suppl. 74), 78–87.
Amanzio, M.; Corazzini, L. L., Vase, L.; and Benedetti, F. (2009), “A systematic review of adverse events in placebo groups of anti-migraine clinical trials,” Pain 146 (3), 261–69.
Raj Ragunathan’s description of mental chatter
Raghunathan, R. (2013), “How Negative Is Your ‘Mental Chatter’?,” Psychology Today, October 10.
Fuck-it therapy
Parkin, J. C. (2014), F**k It: The Ultimate Spiritual Way (London: Hay House).
Weinberg quote
Weinberg, S. (2011), Dreams of a Final Theory (New York: Vintage).
The link between mental and physical illness
Novick, D.; Montgomery, W.; Kadziola, Z.; et al. (2013), “Do concomitant pain symptoms in patients with major depression affect quality of life even when taking into account baseline depression severity?,” Patient Prefer Adherence 7, 463–70.
Trivedi, M. H. (2004), “The link between depression and physical symptoms,” Primary Care Companion to J Clin Psychiatry 6 (suppl. 1), 12–16.
Open-label placebo studies
Park, L. C.; and Covi, L. (1965), “Nonblind placebo trial: an exploration of neurotic patients’ responses to placebo when its inert content is disclosed,”Archives Gen Psychiatry 12, 36–45.
Petkovic, G.; Charlesworth, J. E.; Kelley, J.; Miller, F.; Roberts, N.; and Howick, J. (2015), “Effects of placebos without deception compared with no treatment: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis,” BMJ 5 (11), e009428.
Even single cells can be conditioned
Ridge, J. P.; Di Rosa, F.; and Matzinger, P. (1998), “A conditioned dendritic cell can be a temporal bridge between a CD4+ T-helper and a T-killer cell,” Nature 393 (6684), 474–48.
Pavlovian conditioning
Benedetti, F.; Carlino, E.; and Pollo, A. (2011), “How placebos change the patient’s brain,” Neuropsychopharmacology 36 (1), 339–54.
Producing allergy with plastic rose
MacKenzie, J. N. (1886), “The production of the so-called ‘rose cold’ by means of an artificial rose,” Am J Life Sciences 91, 45–47.
Ader’s description of his studies
Ader, R. (2003), “Conditioned immunomodulation: research needs and directions,” Brain, Behavior, and Immunity,17 (suppl. 1), S51–57.
Goebel’s study of conditioned immunosuppression in humans
Goebel, M. U.; Trebst, A. E.; Steiner, J.; et al. (2002) “Behavioral conditioning of immunosuppression is possible in humans,” FASEB 16 (14), 1869–73.
Colloca replicates Goebel’s study
Colloca, L.; Petrovic, P.; Wager, T. D.; Ingvar, M.; and Benedetti, F. (2010), “How the number of learning trials affects placebo and nocebo responses,” Pain 151 (2), 430–39.
Debate over difference between expectancy and conditioning
Stewart-Williams, S., and Podd, J. (2004), “The placebo effect: dissolving the expectancy versus conditioning debate,” Psycholog Bull 130 (2), 324–40.
Active dopamine reward systems associated with placebo responses
Benedetti, F. (2009), Placebo Effects: Understanding the Mechanisms in Health and Disease (Oxford: Oxford University Press).
Knutson, B., and Cooper, J. C. (2005), “Functional magnetic resonance imaging of reward prediction,” Current Opinion Neurology 18 (4), 411–17.
Most thoughts subconscious
Soon, C. S.; Brass, M.; Heinze, H. J.; and Haynes, J. D. (2008), “Unconscious determinants of free decisions in the human brain,” Nature Neuroscience 11 (5), 543–45.
World Health Organization quote about the definition of health
Leppo, N. E. (1958) “The first ten years of the World Health Organization,” Minnesota Med 41 (8), 577–83.
Susan Pinker’s Village Effect
Pinker, S. A. (2014), The Village Effect: Why Face-to-Face Contact Matters (New York: Speigel & Graw).
Patrick O’Brian quote
O’Brian, P. (1990), Master and Commander (New York: W. W. Norton).
Quesalid story
Levi-Strauss, C. (1974), Structural Anthropology (New York: Basic Books).
Survey of US doctors showing how much time they spend with patients
Peckham C. Medscape Physician Compensation Report, 2016. New York.
My systematic review of surveys showing that while some practitioners do demonstrate empathy, many are less empathetic (or don’t have enough time)
Howick, J.; Steinkopf, L.; Ulyte, A.; Roberts, A. N.; and Meissner, K. (2017), “How empathetic is your doctor? A systematic review and meta-analysis of patient surveys,” BMC Med Educ 17(1): 136.
Atul Gawande’s Being Mortal
Gawande, A. (2015). Being Mortal: Illness, Medicine and What Matters in the End (New York: Picador).
Aetna insurance company study showing that patients in palliative care live longer
Krakauer, R.; Spettell, C. M.; Reisman, L.; and Wade, M. J. (2009), “Opportunities to improve the quality of care for advanced illness,” Health Affairs 28 (5), 1357–59.
Discussion of other studies that replicate the Aetna study
Parikh, R. B.; Kirch, R. A.; Smith, T. J.; and Temel, J. S. (2013), “Early specialty palliative care—translating data in oncology into practice,” New Eng J Med 369 (24), 2347–51.
Some authors have questioned the link between serotonin and depression
Cowen, P. J., and Browning, M. (2015), “What has serotonin to do with depression?,” World Psychiatry 14 (2), 158–60.
Systematic reviews showing that practitioner empathy improves patient outcomes
Derksen, F.; Bensing, J.; Lagro-Janssen, A. (2013), “Effectiveness of empathy in general practice: a systematic review,” Br. J Gen Pract 63 (606), e76–84.
Mistiaen, P.; van Osch, M.; van Vliet, L.; et al. (2016), “The effect of patient-practitioner communication on pain: a systematic review,” Eur J Pain 20 (5), 675–88.
Kelley, J. M., et al. (2014), “The influence of the patient-clinician relationship on healthcare outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials,” PLOS One 9 (4), e94207.
Kelm, Z.; Womer, J.; Walter, J. K.; and Feudtner, C. (2014), “Interventions to cultivate physician empathy: a systematic review,” BMC Med Educ 14, 219.
Randomized trial showing that training doctors in empathy increases their empathy
Riess, H.; Kelley, J. M.; Bailey, R. W.; Dunn, E. J.; and Phillips, M. (2012), “Empathy training for resident physicians: a randomized controlled trial of a neuroscience-informed curriculum,” J Gen Intern Med 27 (10), 1280–86.
Evidence that the immune system can use up a lot of energy
Kominsky, D. J.; Campbell, E. L.; and Colgan, S. P. (2010), “Metabolic shifts in immunity and Inflammation,” J Immunology 184(8), 4062–68.
Segerstrom, S. C.(2007), “Stress, energy, and immunity: an ecological view,” Current Directions in Psycholog Science 16 (6), 326–30.
Randomized trial of empathy training reduce patient anxiety
Little, P.; White, P.; Kelly, J.; Everitt, H.; and Mercer, S.W. (2015), “Randomized controlled trial of a brief intervention to improve non-verbal communication in general practice consultations,” Br J Gen Prac 65(635): 351–6.
Randomized trial of an augmented consultation to treat irritable bowel syndrome
Kaptchuk, T. J.; Kelley, J. M.; Conboy, L. A; et al. (2008), “Components of placebo effect: randomised controlled trial in patients with irritable bowel syndrome,” BMJ 336 (7651), 999–1003.
Animal studies shows there is a cost to launching the full immune response
Demas, G. E.; Chefer, V.; Talan, M. I.; and Nelson, R. J. (1997), “Metabolic costs of mounting an antigen-stimulated immune response in adult and aged C57BL/6J mice,” Am J Physiol 273 (5, pt 2), R1631–37.
Hanssen, S. A.: Hasselquist, D.; Folstad, I; and Erikstad, K. E. (2004), “Costs of immunity: immune responsiveness reduces survival in a vertebrate,” Proc Biol Sciences/The Royal Society 271 (1542), 925–30.
Vangronsveld study of negative words and lack of empathy harming patients
Vangronsveld, K. L., and Linton, S. J. (2012), “The effect of validating and invalidating communication on satisfaction, pain and affect in nurses suffering from low back pain during a semi-structured interview,” Euro J Pain 16 (2), 239–46.
Evidence showing that practitioner empathy may also reduce practitioner burnout
Thomas, M. R.; Dyrbye, L. N.; Huntington, J. L.; Lawson, K. L.; Novotny, P. J.; Sloan, J. A.; et al. (2007), “How do distress and well-being relate to medical student empathy? A multicenter study” J Gen Internal Med, 22(2), 177–83.
Kelm, Z.; Womer, J.; Walter, J. K.; and Feudtner, C. (2014), “Interventions to cultivate physician empathy: a systematic review,” BMC Med Educ 14, 219.
DiLalla, L. F.; Hull, S. K.; Dorsey, J. K. (2004), “Effect of gender, age, and relevant course work on attitudes toward empathy, patient spirituality, and physician wellness,” Teaching and Learning in Med 16 (2), 165–70.
Shanafelt, T. D.; West, C.; Zhao, X.; Novotny, P.; Kolars, J.; Habermann, T; et al. (2005), “Relationship between increased personal well-being and enhanced empathy among internal medicine residents,” J Gen Internal Med 20 (7), 559–64.
Aspirin side effects
Choices, N. (2016), Aspirin, http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Anti-platelets-aspirin-low-dose-/Pages/Introduction.aspx.
Nocebo effects cause dropouts in placebo arms of clinical trials of Parkinson’s and other diseases
Stathis, P.; Smpiliris, M.; Konitsiotis, S.; and Mitsikostas, D. D. (2013), “Nocebo as a potential confounding factor in clinical trials for Parkinson’s disease treatment: a meta-analysis,” Eur J Neurol 20 (3), 527–33.
Mitsikostas, D. D.; Chalarakis, N. G.; Mantonakis, L. I.; Delicha, E. M.; and Sfikakis, P. P. (2012), “Nocebo in fibromyalgia: meta-analysis of placebo-controlled clinical trials and implications for practice,” Eur J Neurol 19 (5), 672–80.
Mitsikostas, D. D.; Mantonakis, L. I.; and Chalarakis, N. G. (2011), “Nocebo is the enemy, not placebo: a meta-analysis of reported side effects after placebo treatment in headaches,” Cephalalgia 31 (5), 550–61.
The Oxman-Chalmers-Sackett alternative informed consent
Oxman, A. D.; Chalmers, I.; and Sackett, D. L. (2001), “A practical guide to informed consent to treatment,” BMJ 323 (7327), 1464–66.
Stories about dying of a broken heart
Hodgekiss, A. (2013), “You really CAN die of a broken heart: surviving spouses have a 66% higher risk of dying in the three months after their partner’s death,” Daily Mail, November 15.
Shakespeare, W. (1988), The Tempest, 6th ed., edited by F. Kermode (London: Routledge).
Chinese Americans who have a birth year combination that is considered ill fated die younger than non–Chinese Americans
Phillips, D. P.; Ruth, T. E.; and Wagner, L. M. (1993), “Psychology and survival,” Lancet 342 (8880), 1142–45.
Takotsubo syndrome
Ghadri, J. R.; Sarcon, A.; Diekmann, J.; et al. (2016), “Happy heart syndrome: role of positive emotional stress in Takotsubo syndrome,” Eur Heart J 37(37): 2823–9.
Studies linking widowhood and marriage with life expectancy
Andrade, L.; Caraveo-Anduaga, J. J.; Berglund, P.; et al. (2003), “The epidemiology of major depressive episodes: results from the International Consortium of Psychiatric Epidemiology (ICPE) Surveys,” Int J Methods in Psychiat Res 12 (1), 3–21.
Moon, J. R.; Glymour, M. M.; Vable, A. M.; Liu, S. Y.; and Subramanian, S. V. (2014), “Short- and long-term associations between widowhood and mortality in the United States: longitudinal analyses,” J Public Health 36 (3), 382–89.
Shor, E.; Roelfs, D. J.; Curreli, M.; Clemow, L.; Burg, M. M.; and Schwartz, J. E. (2012), “Widowhood and mortality: a meta-analysis and meta-regression,” Demography 49 (2), 575–606.
Systematic review linking loneliness with mortality (including details of individual studies)
Holt-Lunstad, J.; Smith, T. B.; Baker, M.; Harris, T.; and Stephenson, D. (2015), “Loneliness and social isolation as risk factors for mortality: a meta-analytic review,” Perspectives on Psychological Science 10 (2), 227–37.
Marc Schoen’s book claiming that because we are too comfortable we activate the fight-or-flight response for too many silly little things. The book makes sense but is not based on randomized trial evidence.
Shoen, M. (2014), Your Survival Instinct Is Killing You: Retrain Your Brain to Conquer Fear and Build Resilience (New York: Plume Books).
Vitamin C does not reduce the frequency of colds but reduces the symptom duration once we catch a cold (a systematic review)
Hemila, H., and Chalker, E. (2013), “Vitamin C for preventing and treating the common cold,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 1, CD000980.
Association between a spouse dying and mortality
Hodgekiss, A. (2013), “You really CAN die of a broken heart: Surviving spouses have a 66% higher risk of dying in the three months after their partner’s death,” Daily Mail, November 15.
Moon, J. R.; Glymour, M. M; Vable, A. M.; Liu, S. Y.; and Subramanian, S. V. (2014), “Short- and long-term associations between widowhood and mortality in the United States: longitudinal analyses,” J Public Health 36 (3), 382–89.
Social networks make us live longer
House, J. S.; Landis, K. R.; and Umberson, D. (1988), “Social relationships and health,” Science 241 (4865), 540–45.
Holt-Lunstad, J.; Smith, T. B.; and Layton, J. B. (2010), “Social relationships and mortality risk: a meta-analytic review,” PLOS Med 7 (7), e1000316.
Rosengren, A.; Orth-Gomer, K.; Wedel, H.; and Wilhelmsen, L. (1993), “Stressful life events, social support, and mortality in men born in 1933,” BMJ 307 (6912), 1102–5.
Sheldon Cohen describes his study and the mechanisms by which social networks improve health
Cohen, S., and Janicki-Deverts, D. (2009), “Can We Improve Our Physical Health by Altering Our Social Networks?,” Perspectives on Psycholog Science 4(4):375–8.
You are more likely to quit smoking if your friends quit smoking
Christakis, N. A., and Fowler, J. H. (2008), “The collective dynamics of smoking in a large social network,” New Eng J Med, 358 (21), 2249–58.
Systematic review of studies showing we are more likely to engage in unhealthy behaviors after a bereavement
Stahl, S. T., and Schulz, R. (2014), “Changes in routine health behaviors following late-life bereavement: a systematic review,” J Behavioral Med 37 (4), 736–55.
Social networks reduces the likelihood of depression after a heart attack
Berkman, L. F.; Blumenthal, J.; Burg, M.; et al. (2003), “Effects of treating depression and low perceived social support on clinical events after myocardial infarction: the enhancing recovery in coronary heart disease patients (ENRICHD) randomized trial,” JAMA 289 (23), 3106–16.
The widowhood effect
Shor, E.; Roelfs, D. J.; Curreli, M.; Clemow, L.; Burg, M. M.; and Schwartz, J. E. (2012), “Widowhood and mortality: a meta-analysis and meta-regression,” Demography 49 (2), 575–606.
The stress buffering hypothesis
Cohen, S., and Wills, T. A. (1985), “Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis,” Psycholog Bull 98 (2), 310–57.
Oxytocin and social support
Heinrichs, M.; Baumgartner, T.; Kirschbaum, C.; and Ehlert, U. (2003), “Social support and oxytocin interact to suppress cortisol and subjective responses to psychosocial stress,” Biol Psychiatry 54 (12), 1389–98.
Tom, N., and Assinder, S. J. (2010), “Oxytocin in health and disease,” Int J Biochem and Cell Biology 42 (2), 202–5.
Swedish study of social support protecting against stress
Rosengren, A.; Orth-Gomer, K.; Wedel, H.; and Wilhelmsen, L. (1993), “Stressful life events, social support, and mortality in men born in 1933,” BMJ 307 (6912), 1102–5.
Social support reduces colds
Cohen, S.; Frank, E.; Doyle, W. J.; Skoner, D. P.; Rabin, B. S.; and Gwaltney, J. M. Jr. (1998), “Types of stressors that increase susceptibility to the common cold in healthy adults,” Health Psychol 17 (3), 214–23.
Experiments on maternal deprivation in humans (these are overviews because there are too many individual studies to cite)
Casler, L. (1961), “Maternal deprivation: a critical review of the literature,” Monographs of the Soc for Res in Child Development 26 (2), 1–64.
Bowlby, J. (1951), “Maternal care and mental health: a report prepared on behalf of the World Health Organization” (Geneva: WHO).
Spitz, R. A. (1945), “Hospitalism; an inquiry into the genesis of psychiatric conditions in early childhood,” Psychoanalytic Study of the Child 1, 53–74.
Karen, R. (1994), Becoming Attached: Unfolding the Mystery of the Infant-Mother Bond and Its Impact in Later Life (New York: Warner).
Experiments on maternal deprivation in monkeys
Kaufman, I. C., and Rosenblum, L. A. (1967), “The reaction to separation in infant monkeys: anaclitic depression and conservation-withdrawal,” Psychosoma Med 29 (6), 648–75.
Ibid. (1967), “Depression in infant monkeys separated from their mothers,” Science 155 (3765), 1030–31.
Ibid. (1969), “Effects of separation from mother on the emotional behavior of infant monkeys,” Ann New York Acad Sciences 159 (3), 681–95.
Harlow, H. F.; Gluck, J. P.; and Suomi, S. J. (1972), “Generalization of behavioral data between nonhuman and human animals,” Am Psychologist 27 (8), 709–16.
Rosenblum, L. A. (1999), “Experimental studies of susceptibility to panic,” NIMH Grant award MH-42545. http://www.mrmcmed.org/mom2.html.
Great article about the difference between a real and a “fake” cause (spurious correlation)
Aschwanden, C., You Can’t Trust What You Read About Nutrition, January 6, 2016. http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/you-cant-trust-what-you-read-about-nutrition.
Story about man with Alzheimer’s whose heart (but not brain) knew it was Mother’s Day
McGlensey, M. (2014), “Man with Alzheimer’s proves that even if the mind forgets, ‘the heart remembers,’” Huffington Post, 28 May.
Hartman, S. (2014), “As man’s mind fades, heart comes to the rescue,” CBS News, 23 May.
Randomized trial of health benefits of volunteering
George, D. R., and Singer, M. E. (2011), “Intergenerational volunteering and quality of life for persons with mild to moderate dementia: results from a 5-month intervention study in the United States,” Am J Geriatr Psychiatry,19 (4), 392–96.
Systematic review of health benefits of volunteering
Jenkinson, C. E.; Dickens, A. P.; Jones, K.; et al. (2013), “Is volunteering a public health intervention? A systematic review and meta-analysis of the health and survival of volunteers,” BMC Public Health 13, 773.
Randomized trial showing that volunteering changes the biology of the volunteers
Schreier, H. M.; Schonert-Reichl, K. A.; and Chen, E. (2013), “Effect of volunteering on risk factors for cardiovascular disease in adolescents: a randomized controlled trial,” JAMA Pediatrics 167 (4), 327–32.
Article about man who jumped in front of a subway to save someone
BBC (2007), “NY subway ‘hero’ saves teenager.” 4 Jan, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6231971.stm.
Evolutionary explanation for altruism: the unit of evolution is not our genes
Axelrod, R., and Hamilton, W. D. (1981), “The evolution of cooperation,” Science 211 (4489), 1390–96.
Altruistic motivations for altruistic behaviors improve health more than selfish motivations
Konrath, S.; Fuhrel-Forbis, A.; Lou, A.; and Brown, S. (2012), “Motives for volunteering are associated with mortality risk in older adults,” Health Psychol 31 (1), 87–96.
People who care for family members with dementia develop numerous health problems
Pinquart, M., and Sorensen, S. (2007), “Correlates of physical health of informal caregivers: a meta-analysis,” J Gerontology: Series B 62 (2), P126–37.
Oxytocin and social support
Heinrichs, M.; Baumgartner, T.; Kirschbaum, C.; and Ehlert, U. (2003), “Social support and oxytocin interact to suppress cortisol and subjective responses to psychosocial stress,” Biological Psychiatry 54 (12), 1389–98.
Tom, N., and Assinder, S. J. (2010), “Oxytocin in health and disease,” Int J Biochemistry and Cell Biology 42 (2), 202–5.
The benefits of gratitude
Emmons, R. A., and McCullough, M. E. (2003), “Counting blessings versus burdens: an experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life,” J Personality and Social Psychol 84 (2), 377–89.
Eid, M., and Larsen, R. J. (2008), The Science of Subjective Well-Being (New York and London: Guilford).
Mirror neurons
Rizzolatti, G., and Craighero, L. (2004), “The mirror-neuron system,” Annu Rev Neurosci 27, 169–92.
Mirror neurons and contagious yawning
Haker, H.; Kawohl, W.; Herwig, U.; and Rossler, W. (2013), “Mirror neuron activity during contagious yawning—an fMRI study,” Brain imaging and behavior 7(1), 28–34.
Helping others helps the helper and the person helped
Pagano, M. E.; Friend, K. B.; Tonigan, J. S.; and Stout, R. L. (2004), “Helping other alcoholics in Alcoholics Anonymous and drinking outcomes: findings from project MATCH,” J Studies on Alcohol 65 (6), 766–73.
Schwartz, C. E. (1999), “Teaching coping skills enhances quality of life more than peer support: results of a randomized trial with multiple sclerosis patients,” Health Psychol 18 (3), 211–20.
Spiegel, D.; Bloom, J. R.; Kraemer, H. C.; and Gottheil, E. (1989), “Effect of psychosocial treatment on survival of patients with metastatic breast cancer,” Lancet 2 (8668): 888–91.
Mustafa, M.; Carson-Stevens, A.; Gillespie, D.; and Edwards, A. G. (2013) “Psychological interventions for women with metastatic breast cancer,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev 6, CD004253.
Dale, J.; Caramlau, I. O.; Lindenmeyer, A.; and Williams, S. M. (2008), “Peer support telephone calls for improving health,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev 4, CD006903.
Just thinking about doing good boosts your immune system
McClelland, M., and Nelson, M. (1988), “The effect of site-specific DNA methylation on restriction endonucleases and DNA modification methyltransferases—a review,” Gene 74 (1), 291–304.
And so does giving away money you received as part of an experiment
Moll, J.; Krueger, F.; Zahn, R.; Pardini, M.; de Oliveira-Souza, R.; and Grafman, J. (2006), “Human fronto-mesolimbic networks guide decisions about charitable donation,” Proc Nat Acad Sciences of the United States of America 103 (42), 15623–28.
Too much volunteering (in the wrong way) can be detrimental to health
Ziersch, A. M., and Baum, F.E. (2004), “Involvement in civil society groups: is it good for your health?,” J Epidemiol and Community Health 58 (6), 493–500.
Relationship between “voluntourism” and child trafficking
Punaks, M., and Feit, K. (2014), The Paradox of Orphanage Volunteering: Combating Child Trafficking Through Ethical Voluntourism (Eugene, OR: Next Generation Nepal).
Giving time to volunteer makes you feel like you have more time
Mogilner, C.; Chance, Z.; and Norton, M. I. (2012), “Giving time gives you time,” Psycholog Science 23 (10), 1233–38.
Website claims that thoughts can cure diseases
Mercola, J. (2016), How Your Thoughts Can Cause or Cure Cancer, http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/02/19/how-your-thoughts-can-cause-or-cure-cancer.aspx.
Website says you can “think yourself into a new person”
Storr, W. (2014), “Can you think yourself into a different person?,” Pacific Standard, 22 Jan. https://psmag.com/social-justice/can-you-think-yourself-into-a-different-person.
Angelina Jolie reports that her doctors state she had an 87 percent chance of breast cancer (and that people with the BRCA1 gene have a 65 percent chance of getting it, on average). She doesn’t state how she came up with the figure of 87 percent.
Jolie, A. (2013), “My medical choice,” New York Times, May 14. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/14/opinion/my-medical-choice.html.
Meta-analysis of studies that investigate the link between BRCA1 genes and breast cancer (suggests 57 percent)
Chen, S., and Parmigiani, G. (2007), “Meta-analysis of BRCA1 and BRCA2 penetrance,” J Clin Oncol 25 (11), 1329–33.
Watson and Crick’s discovery of DNA
Watson, J. D., and Crick, F. H. (1953), “Molecular structure of nucleic acids: a structure for deoxyribose nucleic acid,” Nature 171 (4356), 737–38.
The exaggerated claims of the Human Genome Project
Rose, H., and Rose, S. (2014), Genes, Cells and Brains: The Promethean Promises of the New Biology (New York: Verso Books).
Hall, S. S. (2010), “Revolution postponed: why the human genome project has been disappointing,” Scientific American, October. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/revolution-postponed.
Claim that there is a gene for depression
Birkett, J. T.; Arranz, M. J.; Munro, J.; Osbourn, S.; Kerwin, R. W.; and Collier, D. A. (2000), “Association analysis of the 5-HT5A gene in depression, psychosis and antipsychotic response,” Neuroreport 11 (9), 2017–20.
Claim that there is a gene for autism
Berkel, S.; Marshall, C. R.; Weiss, B.; et al. (2010), “Mutations in the SHANK2 synaptic scaffolding gene in autism spectrum disorder and mental retardation,” Nature Genetics 42 (6), 489–91.
Claim that there is a gene for happiness
Okbay, A.; Baselmans, B. M.; De Neve, J. E.; et al. (2016), “Genetic variants associated with subjective well-being, depressive symptoms, and neuroticism identified through genome-wide analyses,” Nature Genetics 48 (6), 624–33.
Dr. Eric Lander and the failure of the Human Genome Project
Nova Online (2001), “Meet the decoders: Dr. Eric Lander,” http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/genome/deco_lander.html.
Enucleated cells (cells with their nucleus removed) still live
Goldman, R. D.; Pollack, R.; and Hopkins, N. H. (1973), “Preservation of normal behavior by enucleated cells in culture,” Pro Nat Acad Sciences of the United States of Am, 70 (3), 750–54.
The tabula rasa theory
Skinner, B. (1976), About Behaviorism (New York: Vintage Books).
Skinner and Watson’s radical behaviorism
Schneider, S. M., and Morris E. K. (1987), “A history of the term radical behaviorism: from Watson to Skinner,” Behavior Analyst 10 (1), 27–39.
Charles Darwin and evolutionary theory
Herbert, S. (2011), Charles Darwin and the Question of Evolution: A Brief History with Documents (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s).
Gershenowitz, H. (1978), “The treatment of Lamarckism as found in forty-one college textbooks,” Indian Journal History of Science 13 (2), 144–50.
Deichmann, U. (2016) “Why epigenetics is not a vindication of Lamarckism—and why that matters,” Studies in History and Philos Biologic and Biomed Sciences 57, 80–82.
Evolutionary theory and capitalism
Bergman, J. (2001), “Darwin’s Influence on Ruthless Laissez Faire Capitalism,” Acts & Facts 30 (3).
Weisman’s claim that Lamarckism is dead
Gauthier, P. (1990), “Does Weismann’s experiment constitute a refutation of the Lamarckian hypothesis,” BIOS 61 (1/2), 6–8.
The study about people from Överkalix in Sweden who inherited something from their grandparents who had survived a famine
Kaati, G.; Bygren, L. O.; and Edvinsson, S. (2002), “Cardiovascular and diabetes mortality determined by nutrition during parents’ and grandparents’ slow growth period,” Eur J Human Genetics 10 (11), 682–8.
Pembrey, M.; Saffery, R.; and Bygren, L. O. (2014), “Human transgenerational responses to early-life experience: potential impact on development, health and biomedical research,” J Med Genetics 51 (9), 563–72.
Dean Ornish’s study of men who changed their diet and lifestyle and changed their risk of prostate cancer
Ornish, D.; Magbanua, M. J.; Weidner, G.; et al. (2008), “Changes in prostate gene expression in men undergoing an intensive nutrition and lifestyle intervention,” Proc Nat Acad Sciences of the United States of America 105 (24), 8369–74.
Article about junk DNA
Palazzo, A. F., and Gregory, T. R. (2014), “The case for junk DNA,” PLOS Genetics 10 (5), e1004351.
The potential influence of stress on DNA
Poljsak, B., and Milisav, I. (2012), “Clinical implications of cellular stress responses,” Bosnian J Basic Med Sciences, 12 (2), 122–26.
Vinkers, C. H.; Kalafateli, A. L.; Rutten, B. P.; et al. (2015), “Traumatic stress and human DNA methylation: a critical review,” Epigenomics 7 (4), 593–608.
Houtepen, L. C.; Vinkers, C. H.; Carrillo-Roa, T.; et al. (2016), “Genome-wide DNA methylation levels and altered cortisol stress reactivity following childhood trauma in humans,” Nature Communications 7, 10967.
Link between BRCA1, BCRA2, and breast cancer
This study suggests that having the BRCA1 gene leads to a 65 percent risk of breast cancer.
Antoniou, A.; Pharoah, P. D.; Narod, S.; et al. (2003), “Average risks of breast and ovarian cancer associated with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations detected in case Series unselected for family history: a combined analysis of 22 studies,” American journal of human genetics. 72(5):1117–30.
This more recent study suggests it is closer to 57 percent.
Chen, S., Parmigiani, G. (2007), “Meta-analysis of BRCA1 and BRCA2 penetrance,” Journal of clinical oncology: official journal of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. 10;25(11):1329–33.
Systematic reviews are beginning to show support for Ornish’s conclusions
Deng, W.; Cheung, S. T.; Tsao, S. W.; Wang, X. M.; and Tiwari, A. F. (2016), “Telomerase activity and its association with psychological stress, mental disorders, lifestyle factors, and interventions: a systematic review,” Psychoneuroendocrinology 64, 150–63.
Cecile Janssens’s study showing that most diseases are about half inherited
Janssens, A. C., and van Duijn, C. M. (2010), “An epidemiological perspective on the future of direct-to-consumer personal genome testing,” Investigative Genetics 1 (1), 10.
Studies claiming that lifestyle accounts for 90 percent of cancers
Anand, P.; Kunnumakkara, A. B.; Sundaram, C.; et al. (2008), “Cancer is a preventable disease that requires major lifestyle changes,” Pharmaceutical Res 25 (9), 2097–116.
Sumamo, E.; Ha, C.; Korownyk, C.; Vandermeer, B.; and Dryden, D. M. (2011), Lifestyle Interventions for Four Conditions: Type 2 Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome, Breast Cancer, and Prostate Cancer (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality: Rockville, MD).
Wu, S.; Powers, S; Zhu, W.; and Hannun, Y.A. (2016), “Substantial contribution of extrinsic risk factors to cancer development,” Nature 529 (7584), 43–47.
Theories of personality—where do they come from?
Bynum, W. F. E., and Porter, R. (1993), Companion Encyclopedia of the History of Medicine, vol. 2 (London: Routledge).
A neural network model of personality types
Berdahl, C. H. (2010), “A neural network model of Borderline Personality Disorder,” Neural Networks 23 (2), 177–88.
Wood, W., and Neal, D. T. (2007), “A new look at habits and the habit-goal interface,” Psychological Rev 114 (4), 843–63.
Gonzalez-Heydrich, J. (1993), “Using neural networks to model personality development,” Med Hypotheses 41 (2), 123–30.
Quek, M., and Moskowitz, D. (2006), “Testing neural network models of personality,” J Res Personality 41 (3), 700–706.
Summary of studies linking genes to personality (the evidence is mixed)
Van Gestel, S., and Van Broeckhoven, C. (2003), “Genetics of personality: are we making progress?,” Molecular Psychiatry 8 (10), 840–52.
Norman Doidge’s classic book about neuroplasticity, containing all the stories about Taub and Bach-y-Rita
Doidge, N. (2008), The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph From the Frontiers of Brain Science (London: Penguin Books).
Studies of sensory substitution (using the tongue to see, and so forth)
Bach-y-Rita, P.; Collins, C. C.; Saunders, F. A.; White, B; and Scadden, L. (1969), “Vision substitution by tactile image projection,” Nature 221 (5184), 963–64.
Bach-y-Rita, P. (2004). “Tactile sensory substitution studies,” Ann New York Acad Sciences 1013, 83–91.
Taub’s experiments
Taub, E., and Morris, D. M. (2001), “Constraint-induced movement therapy to enhance recovery after stroke,” Current Atherosclerosis Reports 3 (4), 279–86.
Evidence for constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT)
Taub, E. and Morris, D. M. (2001), “Constraint-induced movement therapy to enhance recovery after stroke,” Current Atherosclerosis Reports 3 (4), 279–86.
Chen, Y. P.; Pope, S.; Tyler, D.; and Warren, G. L. (2014), “Effectiveness of constraint-induced movement therapy on upper-extremity function in children with cerebral palsy: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials,” Clin Rehab 28 (10), 939–53.
Fleet, A.; Page, S. J.; MacKay-Lyons, M.; and Boe, S. G. (2014), “Modified constraint-induced movement therapy for upper extremity recovery post stroke: what is the evidence?,” Topics in Stroke Rehab 21 (4), 319–31.
Richards, D. (2008), “Handsearching still a valuable element of the systematic review,” Evidence-Based Dentistry 9 (3), 85.
Wolf, S. L.; Newton, H.; Maddy, D.; et al. (2007), “The Excite Trial: relationship of intensity of constraint induced movement therapy to improvement in the wolf motor function test,” Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience 25 (5–6), 549–62.
Medical students’ brains change in just months while preparing for exams
Draganski, B.; Gaser, C.; Kempermann, G.; et al. (2006), “Temporal and spatial dynamics of brain structure changes during extensive learning,” J Neuroscience 26 (23), 6314–17.
William James (1890) claims that brains are not hardwired
James, W. (1998), The Principles of Psychology (Bristol, UK: Thoemmes).
Explanation of neuroplasticity in the brain and how it works
Pascual-Leone, A.; Freitas, C.; Oberman, L.; et al. (2011), “Characterizing brain cortical plasticity and network dynamics across the age-span in health and disease with TMS-EEG and TMS-fMRI,” Brain Topography 24 (3–4), 302–15.
Historical (pre-1960) experiments with neuroplasticity
Rosenzweig, M. R. (1996), “Aspects of the search for neural mechanisms of memory,” Annu Rev Psychology, 47, 1–32.
Variability hypothesis of evolution (why our brains are plastic)
Potts, R. (1999), “Variability selection in hominid evolution,” Evolutionary Anthropology 7, 81–96.
Most thoughts subconscious
Soon, C. S.; Brass, M.; Heinze, H. J.; and Haynes, J. D. (2008), “Unconscious determinants of free decisions in the human brain,” Nature Neuroscience 11 (5), 543–45.
It takes two months to change a habit
Lally, P.; van Jaarsveld, C. H.; Potts, H. W.; and Wardle, J. (2009), “How are habits formed: modelling habit formation in the real world,” Eur J Social Psychology 40, 998–1009.
The relationship between habits and goals
Wood, W., and Neal, D. T. (2007), “A new look at habits and the habit-goal interface,” Psychology Rev, 114 (4), 843–63.
Review paper explaining the relationship between emotions and the brain; the conclusion is that emotions are better represented as neural networks
Lindquist, K. A.; Wager, T. D.; Kober, H.; Bliss-Moreau, E.; and Barrett, L. F. (2012), “The brain basis of emotion: a meta-analytic review,” Behavioral and Brain Sciences 35 (3), 121–43.
Duhigg, C. (2012), The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business (New York: Random House).
My epilogue was inspired by the end of Dan Moerman’s wonderful book
Moerman, D. E. (2002), Meaning, Medicine, and the “Placebo Effect” (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press).