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Reading Comprehension Passages-2

1. The Placebo Effect

Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow.
The ‘placebo effect’ is a term used to describe when a person’s physical or mental health improves
after taking a medicine which appears to be real but has
no actual therapeutic benefit. In Latin, the word ‘placebo’
means ‘I will please’. Essentially, what happens is that
because the patient doesn’t know that the medicine is fake,
his or her body responds to the treatment as if it was real.
The placebo effect has been well-known for thousands of
years. Scientists used the placebo effect as a way to prove
that a new medicine didn’t work. During clinical trials, one
group would receive the placebo. If the placebo worked as
well as the actual drug, the drug was believed not to have worked. The placebo effect involves
some complex neurobiological reactions including releasing endorphins and dopamine, which
are related to positive emotions. However, placebos are believed to be successful only with the
ritual of treatment-visiting the doctor, and receiving the doctor’s attention and care. Today,
science is finding that treating patients with placebos can be as effective as treating them with
actual medicines.

1. What is the placebo effect?
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2. How did scientists use the placebo effect?
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3. What does the placebo effect involve?
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4. When are placebos successful?

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5. What does the word ‘placebo’ mean in Latin?
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