Red light therapy is often referred to as low level light therapy, and it is a treatment that emits photons deep into the body to provide a number of health benefits. It usually comes in the form of light panels that cover either the whole body or localized treatment areas.
Research indicates that red light therapy is a useful treatment for hair growth, acne and skin anti-aging benefits, healing wounds, improving mood, treating pain muscles and joints, muscle repair and improvement of neurodegenerative conditions, among others.
How is red light therapy different from sunlight or light bulbs?
Most of the difference is related to the wavelengths emitted by red light therapy, which are at a therapeutic level between 620 nm and approximately 1000 nm. At this distance, light effectively penetrates the body to provide health benefits. Light bulbs or the sun emit full-spectrum light that does not include enough longer wavelengths to penetrate the skin.
How does red light therapy work?
Red light therapy usually comes in the form of panels that emit light at wavelengths around 620 to 1000 nm. There are usually a number of wavelengths offered, and they determine how deep photons will penetrate your body for various benefits.
Lower wavelengths around 600-700 nm infiltrate only to a small extent and are suitable for small wounds or skin conditions. Higher level wavelengths penetrate deeper into the body to heal issues such as joint and muscle pain.
The photons lead to the release of ATP (adenosine triphosphate), which provides cellular energy for the whole body. This leads to many health benefits, such as reduced inflammation.
Is red light therapy safe?
Research indicates that for the most part, this is a perfectly safe technology that has no harmful side effects. Although there are no real dangers for red light therapy, when buying a brand it is important to ensure that it has very low levels of non-native electromagnetic.
Benefits of red light therapy include healing wounds, hair growth, muscle repair, improving oral health, relieving joint and muscle pain, healing acne, smoothing fine lines and wrinkles, boosting mood, treating neurodegenerative disorders and boosting the immune system.
What wavelength of light should I get?
You select the appropriate wavelength of red light depending on the problem you want to treat. At 600-700 nm, penetration is not great and is ideal for healing skin conditions or surface level wounds. If you are looking for a more complex treatment such as joint or muscle pain, you will need a wavelength like 800-850 nm to penetrate these regions.
Can I use too much red light?
Ideally, you should use your device 3-5 times a week, and you can also use it once a day. However, that’s the upper limit and more than that and the benefits begin to diminish. The effects of red light begin to diminish with excessive use, destroying the effects of the sessions. You can easily find out more details about therapy through our blogs.
