Red Light Therapy is a wellness modality that has been exploding into the world of professional athletes, the US military, and doctors in the know.
Over 2,000 PubMed-indexed clinical trials suggest promising results across multiple biomarkers in the body:
Red Light Therapy is best known for pain-relieving benefits, however the benefits are extensive
Skincare research suggests the ability to improve conditions such as wrinkles, redness, acne, scars, shingles, eczema and other skin issues.
Red Light Therapy presents extraordinary positive effects to help muscle tissue and other parts of the human body heal. It works by exposing the body to low levels of red or near-infrared light to parts of the body or the whole body. Studies suggest athletes will increase single rep max, total reps prior to failure and total reps in a given time. That translates to improved speed, strength, endurance and it has been shown to protect the athlete against mechanical damage that happens during intense training and competition.[1]
Red Light Therapy has pain-relieving benefits as it can inhibit nerve pain signals to the brain. Green Light Therapy works through different pain pathways.
Although Red Light Therapy is new to the public and more clinical research data is needed to document its potential, it shows where the future of wellness therapy is going.
Red Light Therapy History
Light therapy has a long history. For thousands of years physicians prescribed exposure to sunlight. In the late 1800’s light therapy began to shift from old-wives-tales to research-based science. Specifically, in 1893 Niels Ryberg Finsen began using artificial light on smallpox scars and a strain of cutaneous tuberculosis called lupus vulgaris. In 1903 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in medicine for using ultraviolet light to treat lupus vulgaris. And thus began the field of light therapy.
In the mid-1900’s, when antibiotics came onto the scene, light therapy for infections declined, but broader applications for light therapy were still interesting to scientists.
In 1967, Endre Mester accidentally discovered that low-level ruby lasers could stimulate hair regrowth and wound healing in rats. This was the beginning of red light therapy, low-level laser therapy, cold-laser therapy, and what is now known as PhotoBioModulation therapy or PBMt.
In the 1990s, scientists used Red Light Therapy when they tried to grow plants in space. In the work process, they found that light from red light-emitting diodes helped the growth and photosynthesis of plant cells. These results gave them the idea to study red light for its potential application in medicine to determine if it could increase energy inside human cells. The hope was that RLT could be an effective way to treat muscle atrophy, help wound healing, and offset bone density issues caused by weightlessness during space travel.
Since the early 2000’s PBM there have been more than 7,000 clinical trials and there are now more than 100,000 scientific articles in PubMed focused on PBM.
Cellular Benefits of Red Light Therapy
LED Red Light Therapy affects the bioenergetic matrix that builds into cells. The massive list of positive benefits for the cells are then transmitted down into the tissues, organs and systems of the body.
Red light can penetrate the skin to a depth of 1 – 3 mm, and it works by creating the environment in your body so your cells can use Adenosine Triphophate (ATP) to produce more energy[2]. More generally, cells absorb light photons, stimulating them to clean, repair, and perform their functions efficiently and accurately.
Research has shown that this stimulation has the potential of encouraging cells to produce more collagen and elastin, adding volume to the skin, as well as extra firming and toning. Red light penetrates the bottom of the dermis down to the fatty layer, making it beneficial as a natural anti-inflammatory. Research studies have shown red light gets to the epidermal layer and begins to heat the skin’s dermis. Аt higher temperatures, new collagen and elastin are naturally produced by our body, delivering powerful therapeutic benefits to living tissue. Studies suggest that skin cells can grow 150 – 200 percent faster when exposed to specific light wavelengths.
Research suggests that Red Light Therapy has potential benefits to:
- Increase circulation and nutrient transfer
- Detoxify waste and free radicals
- Present an analgesic benefit for nerve cells
- Reduce inflammation, the root cause of most autoimmune diseases
- Stimulate collagen production
- Increase fibroblast production
- Increase blood circulation to the tissue.
Red Light Therapy for Face
Red Light Therapy research is revealing encouraging results for the treatment of acne. Sebaceous glands produce sebum, which clogs the pores and causes acne. Although sunlight may help calm overactive glands, many people have an issue with sunlight exposure because it comes with exposure to ultraviolet and UVB rays which can cause other skin issues over time.
Research suggests Red Light Therapy, alone or combined with other light treatments, is an effective treatment for acne vulgaris as light penetrates the skin and has the potential to reduce inflammation and irritation without exposure to ultraviolet and UVB rays, while also positively affecting sebum production.
Some of the possible effects of Red Light Therapy are:
- Reducing wrinkles, fine lines, and age spots
- Improvement of facial texture
- Improvement of acne
Red Light Therapy for Skin
Studies indicate that RLT may improve skin rejuvenation, and improve the feel and complexion of the skin. The application of Red Light Therapy provides a safe, non-ablative, non-thermal treatment. This therapy may have the potential to extend the spectrum of anti-aging therapy options available to patients looking for mild and pleasant light-only skin rejuvenation.
Red Light Therapy research suggests optimistic results regarding some common skin conditions, including:
- Wound healing
- Stretch marks
- Psoriasis
- Rosacea and eczema
- Scars
- Sun-damaged skin
- Hair loss in people with androgenic alopecia
Other Red Light Therapy Benefits
Red Light Therapy for Back Pain
Red light therapy has been shown in research to have an analgesic effect on nerve fibers.[3] Green light has been shown to add an extra pain pathway not presented with Red/Near-infrared.[4] Together, multiwave photobiomodulation helps to reduce pain in the body.
Studies suggest that Red Light Therapy can promote faster back pain healing by penetrating deep into the skin and improving blood circulation in the body. When red light reaches the cells, mitochondria absorb it, increasing the cell’s metabolism and stimulating muscle, bone, skin, and subcutaneous tissue healing. Improving the metabolism of the cells will increase blood flow, and this will help bring oxygenated blood and nutrients to the whole body. Increased blood flow means faster waste drainage. Photobiomodulation devices such as the Red Light Therapy beds are considered a good choice for patients seeking non-invasive and pain-free therapy for their back pain.
Red Light Therapy for Weight Loss
Since the last decade, Red Light Therapy has been investigated as a pain-free wellness modality for weight loss, cellulite reduction, and blood lipid profile improvement. Researchers suggest that RLT promotes the photoactivation of cytochrome c oxidase in hypertrophic adipocytes. That reaction then results in the formation of transitory pores within the adipocytes’ membrane.[5] Newly formed pores release intracellular lipids, which are further metabolized by the body.
The underlying mechanism of action for such effects still seems unclear, and more studies are needed to understand how RLT can work to reduce weight. Red light therapy alone will not reduce weight in the body however. Weight loss is a function of a complete protocol where exercise and vibration push the lipids out of the cells after permeability is increased.
Efficacy of Red Light Therapy
Studies suggest potential benefits for a broad spectrum of skin conditions. As scientists learn more the emergence of Red Light Therapy as a primary tool to treat skin conditions is expected to grow.
Red Light Therapy Side Effects
Red Light Therapy is considered safe, painless, and non-invasive. However, when working with it, everyone must follow safety protocols. Generally speaking, the contraindications for Red Light Therapy include pregnancy, cancer, epilepsy (if pulsing), and pacemakers. Due to its heavy effect on circulation people on medications should start with lower doses to avoid too heavy a detox and they should be in close contact with their medical provider.
Red Light Therapy Research
A total of 136 volunteers participated in a controlled study in which 113 subjects were treated twice a week with either 611–650 or 570–850 nm polychromatic light and were compared with controls. Irradiances and treatment durations varied in the different treatment groups. The data collected at baseline included blinded evaluations of clinical photography, ultrasonographic collagen density measurements, and mechanical digital profilometry. The data also included an assessment of patient satisfaction.[6]
Results: The subjects experienced significantly improved skin complexion and feeling, profilometrically assessed skin roughness and ultrasonographically measured collagen density. The photographs confirmed improvement in the intervention groups compared with the control groups.
Conclusions: Broadband PBM showed results close to the red-light-only spectrum. However, both novel light sources that have not been previously used for PBM have safely demonstrated efficacy for skin rejuvenation and intradermal collagen increase compared with controls.
Sources
- Photobiomodulation in Human Muscle Tissue: Ferraresi C, et al. (2016). Journal of Biophotonics. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27874264/
- Photobiomodulation or low-level laser therapy: Hamblin MR. (2017). Photobiomodulation, Photomedicine, and Laser Surgery. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5215795/
- Efficacy of low-level laser therapy in the management of neck pain: Chow RT, et al. (2009). The Lancet. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19913903/
- Green Light for Neuropathic Pain: Ibrahim MM, et al. (2017). Pain Journal. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28092651/
- Red Light (635nm) & Fat Cell Pore Formation: Neira R, et al. (2002). Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12221375/
- Low-level Laser (Light) Therapy in Skin: Wunsch A, et al. (2014). Photomedicine and Laser Surgery. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3926176/
