What is a placebo and why is is important to use when dealing with experimental clinical trials of humans? Type your answer. __

## Step 1<br />A placebo is a substance or treatment that appears to be medically active but is not. It is often used in clinical trials to test the effectiveness of a new drug or treatment. The placebo is designed to look exactly like the actual treatment, but it does not contain any active ingredients.<br /><br />## Step 2<br />The importance of using a placebo in clinical trials is to ensure that the results of the trial are due to the treatment itself and not due to the patient's belief that they are receiving a real treatment. This is known as the placebo effect.<br /><br />## Step 3<br />The placebo effect can be a significant source of bias in clinical trials. If a patient believes they are receiving a real treatment, they may experience improvements in their condition, even if the treatment is not actually effective. This can skew the results of the trial and make it appear as though the treatment is more effective than it actually is.<br /><br />## Step 4<br />By using a placebo, researchers can control for the placebo effect. They can compare the results of the group receiving the actual treatment with the group receiving the placebo. This allows them to determine whether the treatment is truly effective or if the improvements are simply due to the placebo effect.