sugar pill
Fake therapeutic tablet
A sugar pill is a pill containing no active medication—a placebo.
The term emphasizes that there's nothing therapeutic about it; it's just sugar shaped like medicine.
Sugar pills serve as controls in clinical trials and sometimes produce real effects through belief alone: Half the patients improved on the sugar pill.
Figuratively, anything offered as a false remedy: His promises were sugar pills.
Inactive, physically or chemically
- dummyLifelike substitute figure
- shamFraudulent imitation
- placebo effectHealing through expectation
- noceboHarm from negative expectation
psychosomatic · expectation · belief · simulation · inactive · mind-body
Fraudulent imitation
- hoaxDeliberate deception for effect
- fraudIntentional criminal trickery
- charlatanFaker claiming false expertise
- trickeryDeliberate deception or fraud
fake · quackery · snake oil · pseudomedicine · mislead · pretense · chicanery · imposture
Human subject research experiment
- double-blindNeither tester nor tested knows
- control groupUntreated subjects for comparison
- randomizedArranged by chance
- placebo-controlledTested against inactive substance
baseline · test group · blinding · randomization · efficacy · bioethics · subjects · participants
Flat portable computing device
- capsuleEnclosed dose container
- pharmacyMedicinal dispensary
- pharmaceuticalManufactured medicinal compound
- dosageMeasured medicine amount
prescription · drugstore · dispensary · pills · over-the-counter · pharmacology · compounding · filler
Sugary edible treats
- lollipopConfection on a stick
- sweetenerAdditive reducing bitterness
- glucosePrimary cellular fuel
- coatedHaving a surface layer
flavored · chewable · dissolving · sweet taste · saccharine
inert
Inactive, physically or chemically
- dummyLifelike substitute figure
- shamFraudulent imitation
- placebo effectHealing through expectation
nocebo · psychosomatic · expectation · belief · simulation · inactive · mind-body
sham
Fraudulent imitation
- hoaxDeliberate deception for effect
- fraudIntentional criminal trickery
- charlatanFaker claiming false expertise
trickery · fake · quackery · snake oil · pseudomedicine · mislead · pretense · chicanery · imposture · mountebank
clinical trial
Human subject research experiment
- double-blindNeither tester nor tested knows
- control groupUntreated subjects for comparison
- randomizedArranged by chance
placebo-controlled · baseline · test group · blinding · randomization · efficacy · bioethics · subjects · participants · comparison
tablet
Flat portable computing device
- capsuleEnclosed dose container
- pharmacyMedicinal dispensary
- pharmaceuticalManufactured medicinal compound
dosage · prescription · drugstore · dispensary · pills · over-the-counter · pharmacology · compounding · filler · binder
candy
Sugary edible treats
coated · flavored · chewable · dissolving · sweet taste · saccharine
- Placebosplacebo effect, placebo response, dummy pill, placebo-controlled, nocebo effect
- placebodummy pill, nocebo, nocebo effect
- medicationspills, Tylenol, capsules, tablets, Xanax
- controlsbutton, switch, dial, knob, lever
- birth controlthe pill, birth control pill, birth control pills, combination pill, oral contraceptives
- cure-allspanacea, cure-all, nostrum, snake oil, miracle cure
sugar pillchemotherapy
Anti-cancer drug treatment
antibiotic · potent drug · prescription drug · prescription medication · pharmaceutical
sugar, sugary, sugared, sucrose, pillbox, pilling, sugariness