> swallowing an entire bottle of homeopathic sleeping pills If you wanted to induce a placebo effect, playing up the potency of the sugar pill would be helpfu

> swallowing an entire bottle of homeopathic sleeping pills If you wanted to induce a placebo effect, playing up the potency of the sugar pill would be helpful - for example saying "Do not, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, take more than two, as this can result produce DANGEROUS effects" is a lot better than going "Ehh, take more if it'll make you feel better, this stuff's completely inert anyways.". I believe we already do this in medical field: for example those big ibuprofens they give you after a trip to the ER. Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't it the exact. same. thing. as just taking multiple over-the-counter ibuprofen pills? The underlying idea being that the patient will be satisfied the doctor is "doing something" to alleviate his pain, while not having to write risky pain killer Rx. Maybe, homeopathy works in a similar way - it gives a compelling sci-fi / witchcraft / whatever-you-fetish backstory to a sugar pill. And when your subconscious buys in, you may cure yourself. Certainly with the example of insomnia, it seems quite plausible.