Belief in placebos can release natural painkillers in patients

Using brain scans, acupuncture and the nasty stuff that puts the sting in pepper spray, researchers are learning how placebos play out in our brains.These innocuous medications - long used as decoys in clinical drug trials - aren't supposed to have real chemical effect on the body.

But experience over the years has taught doctors that some patients who take placebos experience real relief.Now brain scans show that when test subjects think a placebo is a real medication or treatment, the expectation of relief can release natural painkillers. That, in turn, can ease the discomfort of ailments from overworked muscles to a stinging hand.

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