The Healing Power of Light: How Red Light Therapy Can Support Your Health

What if light could heal and all you had to do was sit in front of it each day to benefit? Sound too good to be true?

It’s not – with red light therapy, light can truly heal. Research has shown that red light therapy reduces muscle and joint inflammation, speeds up recovery and healing, supports cellular energy, boosts collagen production, and strengthens your body. All by simply sitting in front of a red light therapy device daily.

But what really is red light therapy and how does it work? Let’s look a little deeper.

What is Photobiomodulation?

Photobiomodulation (PBM) is a safe, noninvasive light therapy that uses red and near-infrared light wavelengths, often in the 600-1100 nm wavelength range, to help cells function better and treat various conditions. While photobiomodulation and red light therapy are often used interchangeably, photobiomodulation is the more technically accurate term, while red light therapy is more commonly used to refer to the same treatment.

For many years, photobiomodulation was used in the form of lasers mainly for wound healing, pain reduction, and inflammation. But with the recent advances in medical devices and the creation of non-coherent light sources like broad-band lamps and LEDs, patients have the benefit of accessing red light therapy at home – with improved safety, larger treatment areas, and at a significantly lower cost than before.

How Does Red Light Therapy Work?

Red light therapy works through photon absorption by the mitochondria, often by cytochrome C oxidase. When we’re exposed to light, the light photons are absorbed in the mitochondria, leading to increased ATP (adenosine triphosphate) production within the mitochondria, which also helps regulate reactive oxygen species and causes changes to intracellular calcium.

All of these effects trigger further events “downstream”, including signaling pathways that influence cellular growth and division, promote healing, tissue regeneration, protein synthesis, as well as insulin-like growth factors This results in a multitude of benefits, including anti-inflammatory effects causing a reduction in inflammation, pain relief, and tissue healing. Red light therapy is typically very well tolerated and its treatment effectiveness depends on specific treatment parameters like duration, output power, and energy density.

Is Red Light Therapy Safe?

Red light therapy is a great treatment option because it’s both non-invasive and safe. The clinical effectiveness and safety of red light therapy has been demonstrated across a variety of health conditions in many studies.

The most common side effect of red light therapy is skin redness or erythema, which is often mild and resolves on its own. This is due to the increased blood flow to superficial capillaries of the skin after red light therapy exposure. However, when used as prescribed or directed with the correct wavelength, power density, and duration, there are minimal to no side effects – and erythema will resolve with no additional treatment needed. Unlike most pharmacological treatment options, red light therapy has little risk of systemic side effects, making it an attractive option for many patients.

Red Light Therapy Benefits

Mitochondrial Function

Because red light therapy supports mitochondrial function, it stimulates the production of ATP. This provides more energy for cells, helping them function more efficiently leading to a multitude of health benefits, including reduced inflammation, improved wound healing, and faster cellular regeneration.

Pain and inflammation

Red light therapy is one of the best non-invasive, drug-free treatments for pain relief. It also helps reduce inflammation and edema in the body by promoting nitric oxide release, which reduces inflammation and improves circulation. Pain relief is one of the best red light therapy benefits that draws people to try this technique. Red light therapy benefits also include antioxidant and immunomodulating effects.

Improved Sleep

Studies have found that red light therapy helps improve sleep quality by reducing stress and anxiety. With less stress and anxiety, you’re able to fall asleep easier and stay asleep longer throughout the night.

Improved Cardiovascular Health

Our body’s circulation system helps deliver nutrients and oxygen throughout the body. Red light therapy increases circulation, which helps improve energy and even promote healing by getting nutrients and oxygen where they’re needed in the body. This helps regenerate damaged tissues like tendons, bones, and even wounds. Red light has positive circulatory and myocardial contractility (the pump function of the heart) effects.

Supports Recovery

Did you know elite athletes have been using red light therapy for years because of its ability to support recovery? You can benefit from this too. With its impact on cellular regeneration, increased blood flow, improved muscle performance, and recovery support, red light therapy can help support your fitness goals – whether you want to run a 5k, lift heavier at the gym, or recover faster with less muscle soreness and fatigue.

Skin Health

Red light therapy is effective for treating chronic skin conditions like acne, acne scarring, psoriasis, and eczema. It also has the added benefit of reducing wrinkles and skin inflammation, while promoting collagen production.

How To Use Red Light Therapy

Using red light therapy is simple. You just place your red light therapy device on a table, chair, or ground about 12 inches in front of you (range of 6 to 18 inches). Expose the desired area of your body to the light for 5 – 15 minutes up to twice daily. For some there is great benefit for using it as little as three times per week. One note of caution is that more is not necessarily better. Just like other things that are good for you, like exercise, you can do too much! You will want to find the right amount that works best for you. The great thing about it is you can easily incorporate this into your daily routine by using red light therapy at home.

The brand of red light therapy we recommend to our patients at Arizona Wellness Medicine is RedVive. Their medical grade, FDA-approved class II medical red light therapy devices come with 2-year warranties and are a step above the rest. The red light therapy devices RedVive offer emit the highest irradiance output of any other LED therapy light available on the market – so you can experience faster, more efficient results. Our patients get a 10% discount with purchase, click here.

Who Is Red Light Therapy Not For?

While red light therapy is a safe and effective approach to wellness for most people, there are some people who should avoid red light therapy before talking with their healthcare provider.

Pregnant women: Because of limited research on expectant mothers, pregnant women should consult their healthcare provider before starting red light therapy.
Seizure disorders: If you have a history of seizures or epilepsy, you should proceed with caution due to the pulsating lights in some red light therapy devices.
Active cancer: There’s the potential that red light therapy could stimulate cell growth or tumors so seek medical advice before starting treatment, especially for skin cancer.
Photosensitizing medications: Certain medications like retinoids, antibiotics, and diuretics can increase light sensitivity.
Photosensitivity disorders: Those with sensitive skin conditions should avoid red light therapy due to their heightened skin sensitivity that can lead to adverse reactions.
Electronic medical implants: Those with pacemakers and other implanted medical devices should proceed with caution when using a red light therapy device, and only after consulting with their healthcare provider. It’s generally recommended these individuals maintain a distance of at least 24 inches away from the device to minimize any electromagnetic interference with their devices.
Certain pre-existing eye conditions: While red light therapy is generally considered safe, those with eye conditions or those taking medications that increase light sensitivity should check with their ophthalmologist first.

The Functional Medicine Approach To Red Light Therapy

Functional medicine recognizes the healing power of light. That’s why we’ve been recommending red light therapy at Arizona Wellness Medicine. If you are looking for an additional way to help optimize your health may be as simple as integrating red light therapy into your wellness routine. But since there’s no one-size-fits-all solution, we also know that red light therapy is often just one facet to your well-rounded treatment plan.

At Arizona Wellness Medicine, we believe that your best health is achieved by taking a whole-person, well-rounded approach. Oftentimes, that includes red light therapy as part of your treatment. When you work with one of our experienced functional medicine providers, we look at your health through a comprehensive lens. If you want to partner with experienced professionals to develop a personalized treatment plan, Arizona Wellness Medicine may be right for you. Contact us here to book your first appointment.

Resources:

What is Photobiomodulation?

How Does Red Light Therapy Work?

Is Red Light Therapy Safe?