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Light therapy is clearly enjoying a wave of attention. Consumers can purchase light-emitting tools targeting issues like skin conditions and wrinkles as well as muscle pain and periodontal issues, recently introduced is an oral care tool enhanced with tiny red LEDs, described by its makers as “a breakthrough in at-home oral care.” Worldwide, the industry reached $1 billion in 2024 and is forecast to expand to $1.8 billion by 2035. You can even go and sit in an infrared sauna, which use infrared light to warm the body directly, the infrared radiation heats your body itself. According to its devotees, the experience resembles using an LED facial mask, stimulating skin elasticity, easing muscle tension, relieving inflammation and chronic health conditions and potentially guarding against cognitive decline.

Understanding the Evidence

“It appears somewhat mystical,” says a neuroscience expert, professor in neuroscience at Durham University and a convert to the value of light therapy. Of course, some of light’s effects on our bodies are well established. Sunlight helps us make vitamin D, needed for bone health, immunity, muscles and more. Sunlight regulates our circadian rhythms, additionally, stimulating neurotransmitter and hormone production during daytime, and preparing the body for rest as darkness falls. Daylight-simulating devices are standard treatment for winter mood disorders to elevate spirits during colder months. So there’s no doubt we need light energy to function well.

Various Phototherapy Approaches

Although mood lamps generally utilize blue-spectrum frequencies, consumer light therapy products mostly feature red and infrared emissions. During advanced medical investigations, like examinations of infrared influence on cerebral tissue, determining the precise frequency is essential. Light is a form of electromagnetic radiation, spanning from low-energy radio waves to short-wavelength gamma rays. Light-based treatment employs mid-spectrum wavelengths, the highest energy of those being invisible ultraviolet, then the visible spectrum we perceive as colors and then infrared (which we can see with night-vision goggles).

Ultraviolet treatment has been employed by skin specialists for decades to manage persistent skin disorders including eczema and psoriasis. It works on the immune system within cells, “and reduces inflammatory processes,” says a skin specialist. “Substantial research supports light therapy.” UVA goes deeper into the skin than UVB, in contrast to LEDs in commercial products (typically emitting red, infrared or blue wavelengths) “generally affect surface layers.”

Safety Considerations and Medical Oversight

Potential UVB consequences, like erythema or pigmentation, are well known but in medical devices the light is delivered in a “narrow-band” form – meaning smaller wavelengths – which decreases danger. “Treatment is monitored by medical staff, meaning intensity is regulated,” says Ho. Essentially, the devices are tuned by qualified personnel, “to guarantee appropriate wavelength emission – as opposed to commercial tanning facilities, where oversight might be limited, and wavelength accuracy isn’t verified.”

Commercial Products and Research Limitations

Red and blue light sources, he says, “aren’t typically employed clinically, but could assist with specific concerns.” Red wavelength therapy, proponents claim, help boost blood circulation, oxygen absorption and dermal rejuvenation, and promote collagen synthesis – a key aspiration in anti-ageing effects. “Studies are available,” says Ho. “However, it’s limited.” In any case, with numerous products on the market, “we don’t know whether or not the lights emitted are reflective of the research that has been done. Appropriate exposure periods aren’t established, proper positioning requirements, if benefits outweigh potential risks. Numerous concerns persist.”

Treatment Areas and Specialist Views

Early blue-light applications focused on skin microbes, bacteria linked to pimples. Research support isn’t sufficient for standard medical recommendation – although, notes the dermatologist, “it’s often seen in medical spas or aesthetics practices.” Certain patients incorporate it into their regimen, he mentions, though when purchasing home devices, “we advise cautious experimentation and safety verification. Without proper medical classification, the regulation is a bit grey.”

Innovative Investigations and Molecular Effects

Meanwhile, in innovative scientific domains, scientists have been studying cerebral tissue, revealing various pathways for light-enhanced cell function. “Nearly every test with precise light frequencies demonstrated advantageous outcomes,” he says. The numerous reported benefits have generated doubt regarding phototherapy – that it’s too good to be true. But his research has thoroughly changed his mind in that respect.

Chazot mostly works on developing drug treatments for neurodegenerative diseases, but over 20 years ago, a physician creating light-based cold sore therapy requested his biological knowledge. “He designed tools for biological testing,” he recalls. “I remained doubtful. This particular frequency was around 1070 nanometers, which most thought had no biological effect.”

The advantage it possessed, nevertheless, was its ability to transmit through aqueous environments, meaning it could penetrate the body more deeply.

Mitochondrial Impact and Cognitive Support

More evidence was emerging at the time that infrared light targeted the mitochondria in cells. Mitochondria are the powerhouses of cells, generating energy for them to function. “Mitochondria exist throughout the body, even within brain tissue,” explains the neuroscientist, who prioritized neurological investigations. “Studies demonstrate enhanced cerebral circulation with light treatment, which is generally advantageous.”

Using 1070nm wavelength, energy organelles generate minimal reactive oxygen compounds. In limited quantities these molecules, notes the scientist, “stimulates so-called chaperone proteins which look after your mitochondria, preserve cell function and eliminate damaged proteins.”

These processes show potential for neurological conditions: antioxidant, inflammation reduction, and pro-autophagy – autophagy representing cellular waste disposal.

Current Research Status and Professional Opinions

Upon examining current studies on light therapy for dementia, he says, about 400 people were taking part in four studies, including his own initial clinical trials in the US