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Psychic gastric secretion in man

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The American Journal of Digestive Diseases

Summary

The effect of suggestion of palatable food on gastric secretion measured under controlled conditions is described. The food was not actually seen, smelled or tasted. In 12 out of 14 subjects suggestion alone was followed by an accelerated flow of gastric juice. It was striking that the increase in volume of secretion was much more marked than the increase in acidity in contrast to histamine stimulation which normally has a notable effect on acidity. This may be explained by the fact that psychic stimulation is transmitted to the stomach by way of the vagus whereas histamine acts directly on the secretory cells.

The technique which we have described would lend itself equally well to study of the effect of unpleasant or indifferent stimuli and it would also be of interest to correlate the subject’s psychological make-up with his response to psychic stimulation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. San Francisco, California

    Arthur L. Bloomfield

Authors
  1. Arthur L. Bloomfield
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From the Department of Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, San Francisco, California.

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Bloomfield, A.L. Psychic gastric secretion in man. Jour. D. D. 7, 205–208 (1940). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02997824

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02997824

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