‘It seems like sorcery’: is light therapy truly capable of improving your skin, whitening your teeth, and strengthening your joints?
Light therapy is definitely experiencing a wave of attention. Consumers can purchase illuminated devices for everything from dermatological concerns and fine lines to muscle pain and periodontal issues, recently introduced is a toothbrush enhanced with tiny red LEDs, described by its makers as “a major advance in at-home oral care.” Internationally, the industry reached $1 billion in 2024 and is forecast to expand to $1.8 billion by 2035. Options include full-body infrared sauna sessions, which use infrared light to warm the body directly, the infrared radiation heats your body itself. Based on supporter testimonials, it feels similar to a full-body light therapy session, boosting skin collagen, easing muscle tension, relieving inflammation and long-term ailments as well as supporting brain health.
Understanding the Evidence
“It feels almost magical,” says a Durham University professor, who has researched light therapy for two decades. Naturally, some of light’s effects on our bodies are well established. Our bodies produce vitamin D through sun exposure, essential for skeletal strength, immune function, and muscular health. Light exposure controls our sleep-wake cycles, additionally, activating brain chemicals and hormonal responses in daylight, and winding down bodily functions for sleep as it fades into night. Daylight-simulating devices frequently help individuals with seasonal depression to combat seasonal emotional slumps. Clearly, light energy is essential for optimal functioning.
Types of Light Therapy
Although mood lamps generally utilize blue-spectrum frequencies, the majority of phototherapy tools use red or near-infrared wavelengths. During advanced medical investigations, like examinations of infrared influence on cerebral tissue, finding the right frequency is key. Light is a form of electromagnetic radiation, extending from long-wavelength radiation to short-wavelength gamma rays. Therapeutic light application utilizes intermediate light frequencies, with ultraviolet representing the higher energy invisible light, followed by visible light encompassing rainbow colors and finally infrared detectable with special equipment.
UV light has been used by medical dermatologists for many years for addressing long-term dermatological issues like vitiligo. It works on the immune system within cells, “and dampens down inflammation,” says a skin specialist. “Substantial research supports light therapy.” UVA goes deeper into the skin than UVB, whereas the LEDs we see on consumer light-therapy devices (which generally deliver red, infrared or blue light) “generally affect surface layers.”
Risk Assessment and Professional Supervision
The side-effects of UVB exposure, such as burning or tanning, are recognized but medical equipment uses controlled narrow-band delivery – indicating limited wavelength spectrum – that reduces potential hazards. “Treatment is monitored by medical staff, meaning intensity is regulated,” notes the specialist. Most importantly, the devices are tuned by qualified personnel, “to ensure that the wavelength that’s being delivered is fit for purpose – as opposed to commercial tanning facilities, where oversight might be limited, and we don’t really know what wavelengths are being used.”
Commercial Products and Research Limitations
Red and blue light sources, he says, “aren’t typically employed clinically, but they may help with certain conditions.” Red wavelength therapy, proponents claim, improve circulatory function, oxygen uptake and cell renewal in the skin, and activate collagen formation – a primary objective in youth preservation. “The evidence is there,” says Ho. “Although it’s not strong.” Nevertheless, with numerous products on the market, “it’s unclear if device outputs match study parameters. We don’t know the duration, how close the lights should be to the skin, if benefits outweigh potential risks. Many uncertainties remain.”
Targeted Uses and Expert Opinions
Initial blue-light devices addressed acne bacteria, bacteria linked to pimples. The evidence for its efficacy isn’t strong enough for it to be routinely prescribed by doctors – although, says Ho, “it’s often seen in medical spas or aesthetics practices.” Certain patients incorporate it into their regimen, he says, though when purchasing home devices, “we advise cautious experimentation and safety verification. If it’s not medically certified, standards are somewhat unclear.”
Cutting-Edge Studies and Biological Processes
Meanwhile, in innovative scientific domains, researchers have been testing neural cells, revealing various pathways for light-enhanced cell function. “Virtually all experiments with specific wavelengths showed beneficial and safeguarding effects,” he reports. The numerous reported benefits have generated doubt regarding phototherapy – that results appear unrealistic. But his research has thoroughly changed his mind in that respect.
Chazot mostly works on developing drug treatments for neurodegenerative diseases, though twenty years earlier, a doctor developing photonic antiviral treatment consulted his scientific background. “He developed equipment for cellular and insect experiments,” he explains. “I remained doubtful. It was an unusual wavelength of about 1070 nanometres, that many assumed was biologically inert.”
The advantage it possessed, however, was its ability to transmit through aqueous environments, allowing substantial bodily penetration.
Mitochondrial Impact and Cognitive Support
Additional research indicated infrared affected cellular mitochondria. Mitochondria are the powerhouses of cells, creating power for cellular operations. “Mitochondria exist throughout the body, even within brain tissue,” explains the neuroscientist, who concentrated on cerebral applications. “Studies demonstrate enhanced cerebral circulation with light treatment, which is consistently beneficial.”
Using 1070nm wavelength, mitochondria also produce a small amount of a molecule known as reactive oxygen species. In limited quantities these molecules, notes the scientist, “triggers guardian proteins that maintain organelle health, preserve cell function and eliminate damaged proteins.”
Such mechanisms indicate hope for cognitive disorders: free radical neutralization, inflammation reduction, and waste removal – autophagy being the process the cell uses to clear unwanted damaging proteins.
Present Investigation Status and Expert Assessments
Upon examining current studies on light therapy for dementia, he says, several hundred individuals participated in various investigations, including his own initial clinical trials in the US
