Children with abdominal pain or irritable bowel syndrome may experience less pain and require fewer medications when placebos are prescribed, a small study suggests.

Nearly three-quarters of 30 children in a pilot study reported a 30% improvement in their abdominal pain when placebos were given along with usual care.

And half of them experienced a 50% improvement in pain when placebos were prescribed, researchers reported in JAMA Pediatrics.

Both the children and their parents were told in advance that the treatment they would be receiving was a placebo.