🔗 Share this article

Light-based treatment is certainly having a surge in popularity. Consumers can purchase illuminated devices designed to address dermatological concerns and fine lines to aching tissues and oral inflammation, the newest innovation is a toothbrush equipped with miniature red light sources, described by its makers as “a breakthrough in at-home oral care.” Internationally, the market was worth $1bn in 2024 and is projected to grow to $1.8bn by 2035. There are even infrared saunas available, where instead of hot coals (real or electric) heating the air, the thermal energy targets your tissues immediately. As claimed by enthusiasts, the experience resembles using an LED facial mask, enhancing collagen production, soothing sore muscles, reducing swelling and persistent medical issues and potentially guarding against cognitive decline.

Understanding the Evidence

“It feels almost magical,” says a neuroscience expert, a scientist who has studied phototherapy extensively. Certainly, we know light influences biological functions. Our bodies produce vitamin D through sun exposure, needed for bone health, immunity, muscles and more. Natural light synchronizes our biological clocks, too, activating brain chemicals and hormonal responses in daylight, and preparing the body for rest as darkness falls. Daylight-simulating devices frequently help individuals with seasonal depression to boost low mood in winter. Undoubtedly, light plays a vital role in human health.

Various Phototherapy Approaches

Although mood lamps generally utilize blue-spectrum frequencies, consumer light therapy products mostly feature red and infrared emissions. In serious clinical research, like examinations of infrared influence on cerebral tissue, finding the right frequency is key. Photons represent electromagnetic waves, which runs the spectrum from the lowest-energy, longest wavelengths (radio waves) to the highest-energy (gamma waves). Light-based treatment utilizes intermediate light frequencies, including invisible ultraviolet radiation, then visible light (all the colours we see in a rainbow) and infrared light visible through night vision technology.

Dermatologists have utilized UV therapy for extensive periods for addressing long-term dermatological issues like vitiligo. It affects cellular immune responses, “and dampens down inflammation,” notes a skin specialist. “Considerable data validates phototherapy.” UVA penetrates skin more deeply than UVB, in contrast to LEDs in commercial products (which generally deliver red, infrared or blue light) “typically have shallower penetration.”

Safety Protocols and Medical Guidance

Potential UVB consequences, including sunburn or skin darkening, are understood but clinical devices employ restricted wavelength ranges – indicating limited wavelength spectrum – which minimises the risks. “Treatment is monitored by medical staff, so the dosage is monitored,” says Ho. And crucially, the devices are tuned by qualified personnel, “to ensure that the wavelength that’s being delivered is fit for purpose – unlike in tanning salons, where oversight might be limited, and we don’t really know what wavelengths are being used.”

Commercial Products and Research Limitations

Colored light diodes, he notes, “aren’t really used in the medical sense, though they might benefit some issues.” Red wavelength therapy, proponents claim, help boost blood circulation, oxygen absorption and cell renewal in the skin, and promote collagen synthesis – a key aspiration in anti-ageing effects. “The evidence is there,” comments the expert. “But it’s not conclusive.” Regardless, amid the sea of devices now available, “we’re uncertain whether commercial devices replicate research conditions. We don’t know the duration, ideal distance from skin surface, whether or not that will increase the risk versus the benefit. There are lots of questions.”

Targeted Uses and Expert Opinions

Early blue-light applications focused on skin microbes, bacteria linked to pimples. The evidence for its efficacy isn’t strong enough for it to be routinely prescribed by doctors – even though, says Ho, “it’s frequently employed in beauty centers.” Individuals include it in their skincare practices, he observes, but if they’re buying a device for home use, “we recommend careful testing and security confirmation. Unless it’s a medical device, oversight remains ambiguous.”

Advanced Research and Cellular Mechanisms

At the same time, in advanced research areas, 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 says. The numerous reported benefits have generated doubt regarding phototherapy – that results appear unrealistic. However, scientific investigation has altered his perspective.

The researcher primarily focuses on pharmaceutical solutions for brain disorders, 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.”

Its beneficial characteristic, though, was its ability to transmit through aqueous environments, enabling deeper tissue penetration.

Mitochondrial Impact and Cognitive Support

Additional research indicated infrared affected cellular mitochondria. These organelles generate cellular energy, creating power for cellular operations. “Mitochondria exist throughout the body, particularly in neural cells,” notes the researcher, who prioritized neurological investigations. “Research confirms improved brain blood flow with phototherapy, which is consistently beneficial.”

With 1070 treatment, mitochondria also produce a small amount of a molecule known as reactive oxygen species. At controlled levels these compounds, explains the expert, “activates protective proteins that safeguard mitochondria, protect cellular integrity and manage defective proteins.”

All of these mechanisms appear promising for treating a brain disease: antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, 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 states, several hundred individuals participated in various investigations, including his own initial clinical trials in the US