Red light therapy is a type of photobiomodulation (various forms of light therapies). Red light therapy functions as a result of our bodies reacting to certain wavelengths of light; red and near-red wavelengths between 600-1100nanometers.

Light is a wave, but also a sum of photons – small portions of electromagnetic charge. When  a red light therapy device is placed on skin, it showers body with these photons.

Once these photons come into contact with mitochondria, they generate more energy in the cell, which further triggers a wide variety of amazing processes from the cellular level, to every organ in the body.

The proven benefits of red light therapy and how it can improve everyday life,  feel and live better.

A powerful red light therapy device can help thw body work at an optimal level by doing the following:

• reviving circulation
• reducing inflammation
• providing pain relief
• repairing tissue
• regaining performance

Let’s translate these benefits of red light therapy into everyday issues for all those who are wondering if red light therapy is real.

Here is a list of the most amazing red light therapy benefits. When you’re using the correct red light therapy dose, it can:

Reduce Blood Pressure

Hypertension or elevated blood pressure can have many different causes. One of them can be the poor quality and elasticity of your blood vessels. This makes them less open for blood flow, increasing the pressure within them.

Nitric Oxide (NO) release is our body’s response to red light hitting the mitochondria. NO dilates the blood vessels, making it easier for the blood to flow through them. This boosts the blood flow and decreases blood pressure

Manage Asthma

Asthmatics have sensitive airways that are prone to inflammation. Inflamed airways tighten and produce extra mucus, making breathing difficult or impossible. Red light therapy successfully triggers the body’s inner anti-inflammatory defense that keeps asthma symptoms at bay.

Regulate Fibromyalgia

This condition causes chronic pain in the musculoskeletal system. It is not entirely clear what causes fibromyalgia and how it works, but scientists suspect it has something to do with the brain’s ability to sense and process pain.

The fact that it usually goes hand in hand with irritable bowel syndrome and migraines, means that it is possible that inflammation triggers fibromyalgia.

Another way red and near infrared light therapy help patients with fibromyalgia is through increasing their levels of dopamineand serotonin, which helps to soothe the pain. There are studies showing that red light therapy have great success in the field of pain relief.

Manage Rheumatic Conditions

Rheumatic conditions are also a form of inflammation. While they mostly affect muscles, bones, and tendons, they sometimes affect other organs in your body as well. Besides helping the body boost its anti-inflammatory defense, red light therapy may increase fibroblast proliferation. This results in better collagen production that heavily influences the quality of bones, muscles, and tendons.

Help with Sinusitis

This is another condition that is caused by inflammation. Normally, there’s only air in your sinuses. However, when there is any kind of fluid in them, it creates fertile ground for the growth of bacteria and other germs.

By reducing inflammation, the immune system is free to fight off germs. The lymphatic system lushes away toxic matter, thus red light therapy may help easing the symptoms of sinusitis.

Ease the Symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Colitis

Help with Muscle Sprains

Red light therapy may cause macrophage cells to inhabit the injury zone. In that way, the pain is soothed fairly quickly. These types of cells reduce the hypersensitivity to pain and even improve sensorimotor function. There have been cases when photobiomodulation introduced immediate pain relief to muscle sprains, but we’re still waiting for an extensive and conclusive study.

Promote Wound Healing

For a wound to heal it is necessary for the red blood cells to produce collagen that creates the new tissue. So, for the wound to heal faster, it is necessary for the collagen to be produced faster.

Red light therapy may boost both collagen production and blood circulation. Therefore, not only will the collagen be produced faster, but the red blood cells will reach the injury site in a much more efficient way, thus speeding up wound healing. Here are some studies on the topic:

• Effect of NASA light-emitting diode irradiation on wound healing
• Low-level laser (light) therapy (LLLT) in skin: stimulating, healing, restoring
• Low-level laser irradiation promotes the proliferation and maturation of keratinocytes during epithelial wound repair

Help Manage Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

A carpal tunnel is a pretty narrow passage between the bones and ligaments at the base of your hand. This is where the median nerve comes through, coming all the way from your forearm. This nerve shares this tunnel with the tendons of our hand. Both of these are responsible for your hand functionality.

The carpal tunnel can get too tight, cramping the tenons and damaging the nerve. As a result, you can experience pain, inability to control your hands and fingers completely, weak grip, and more.

Since one of the possible red light therapy benefits includes nerve regeneration, medical scientists wanted to explore its effectiveness on patients with carpal tunnel syndrome. A meta-analysis of these studies showed that red light therapy has amazing potential and significant results in treating carpal tunnel syndrome. There are more studies on this topic:

• The effects of low level laser in clinical outcome and neurophysiological results of carpal tunnel syndrome
• Photobiomodulation of pain in carpal tunnel syndrome: review of seven laser therapy studies

Assist Weight Loss 

There are several studies today that explore red light therapy for weight loss. They are based on comparing the results of red light therapy before and after.

In most cases, the subjects were already using diet and exercise to lose weight. They used red light therapy devices in addition to their efforts. In most cases, the red light therapy weight loss before and after results showed:

• Reduce fat
• Body contouring by spot fat reduction (study)
• Cellulite reduction (study)
• Improved muscle building effects

The last one is important even if you are hoping to lose fat only. Bigger and stronger muscles burn more fat cells and speed up losing weight, by increasing the fat loss.

Rejuvenate Your Skin

Red light therapy for skin may work on the principle of boosting collagen production by promoting fibroblasts. Fibroblasts are among the skin cells, essential for collagen production. Collagen is what makes our skin look young, healthy, and radiant.

It protects your skin from sun damage and helps it recover. Sun damage causes your skin to age faster.

Does red light therapy help tighten the skin? More studies are necessary, but there are many amazing success stories about anti-aging light therapy that includes red or infrared lights.

The signs of aging also include fine lines and wrinkles that a light treatment can help you with. By boosting collagen and elastin, red light therapy may help iron them out by tightening the skin and repairing the damage.

Besides rejuvenation and general skincare, there are also excellent effects of red light therapy for acne.

Kill Acne Causing Bacteria

Many types of acne are caused by bacteria. Light treatment of acne is not a new thing. Before, dermatologists used UV light for these types of treatments, but this has stopped due to skin cancer risks. Red light therapy is a much safer alternative, especially because it comes with almost no side effects.

Sometimes, it can be a bit slow and it may get you to wonder – does red light therapy really work? Be patient, because red and infrared light may have deep, systemic effects on your acne-prone skin. Besides killing off the bacteria, red light therapy for skin also may reduce inflammation, repairs scars caused by acne, and boost local immune response to prevent future infections.

Hair Loss Prevention

Hair loss can happen due to genetics, hormonal disbalance, medical conditions, and as one of the signs of aging. For one reason or another, follicles stop forming and growing hair. Due to some of the causes, it is because they don’t get enough blood supply or they suffer from slow cell proliferation.

Two of the red light therapy benefits may include promoting blood flow and boosting cell proliferation. That is why some manufacturers create red light therapy devices designed to improve circulation and cell rejuvenation of the scalp. In that way, red light therapy may be a good option to treat hair loss.

Muscle Building

Red light may help you better exercise results. To build and tone your muscles, you need to be careful to exercise them and rest them at a good rate. When exercising your muscles, you are actually causing small tears in their fibers, which then continue to merge together and form bigger and stronger muscle mass. For this to happen, you need to allow enough time for such tiny muscle tears to heal.

Red light therapy may help you with this process by getting your muscles to heal faster. Reducing the down-time, red and infrared light may make your muscle-building exercises more effective.

Besides these effects, there are studiesshowing red light therapy boosting results of the strength exercises.

Improve Sleep Quality

Red light is the wavelength you are exposed to during sunrise and sunset. The red light of the morning sun triggers a series of hormonal changes, including the production of melatonin, which is necessary for good sleep.

Sunlight gives your body enough time over the day to create the melatonin needed for your night sleep. In that way, red light therapy may help you get nights of deep, restoring sleep by syncing your circadian rhythm.

All of these benefits are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to RLT. While RLT is not a new thing, extensive medical research is still in progress. It is yet to be discovered just how powerful and amazing this budding branch of medicine really is.