{"id":99196,"date":"2025-10-26T16:36:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-26T16:36:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/99196\/"},"modified":"2025-10-26T16:36:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-26T16:36:07","slug":"it-sounds-like-witchcraft-can-light-therapy-really-give-you-better-skin-cleaner-teeth-stronger-joints-skincare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/99196\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018It sounds like witchcraft\u2019: can light therapy really give you better skin, cleaner teeth, stronger joints? | Skincare"},"content":{"rendered":"

Light therapy is certainly having a moment. You can now buy glowing gadgets for everything from skin conditions and wrinkles<\/a> to sore muscles<\/a> and gum disease, the latest being a toothbrush<\/a> enhanced with tiny red LEDs, described by its makers as \u201ca breakthrough in at-home oral care\u201d. Globally, the market was worth $1bn in 2024 and is projected to grow to $1.8bn by 2035<\/a>. You can even go and sit in an infrared sauna, where instead of hot coals (real or electric) heating the air, your body is warmed directly by infrared light. According to its devotees, it\u2019s like bathing in one of those LED-lit beauty masks, boosting skin collagen, relaxing muscles, relieving inflammation and chronic health conditions while protecting against dementia.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt sounds a bit like witchcraft,\u201d says Paul Chazot, professor in neuroscience at Durham University and a convert to the value of light therapy following 20 years of research in the field. Of course, some of light\u2019s 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, too, triggering the release of neurochemicals and hormones while we are awake, and winding down bodily functions for sleep as it fades into night. Sunlight-imitating lamps<\/a> are a common remedy for people with seasonal affective disorder (Sad) to boost low mood in winter. So there\u2019s no doubt we need light energy to function well.<\/p>\n

While Sad lamps tend to use a mixture of light frequencies from the blue end of the spectrum, most other light therapy devices deploy red or infrared light. In serious clinical research, such as Chazot\u2019s investigations into the effects of infrared on brain cells (more on which, later), finding the right frequency is key. Light is a form of electromagnetic radiation, which runs the spectrum from the lowest-energy, longest wavelengths (radio waves) to the highest-energy (gamma waves). Phototherapy, or light therapy, uses wavelengths around the middle of this spectrum, the highest energy of those being invisible ultraviolet, then visible light (all the colours we see in a rainbow) and then infrared (which we can see with night-vision goggles).<\/p>\n

UV light has been used by medical dermatologists for many years to treat chronic skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis and vitiligo. It works on the immune system within cells, \u201cand dampens down inflammation,\u201d says Dr Bernard Ho at the British Association of Dermatologists. \u201cThere\u2019s lots of evidence for phototherapy.\u201d 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) \u201ctend to be a bit more superficial\u201d.<\/p>\n

An infrared light-therapy bed. Photograph: O2O Creative\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

The side-effects of UVB exposure, such as burning or tanning, are well known but in medical devices the light is delivered in a \u201cnarrow-band\u201d form \u2013 meaning smaller wavelengths \u2013 which minimises the risks. \u201cIt\u2019s supervised by a healthcare professional, so the dosage is monitored,\u201d says Ho. And crucially, the lightbulbs are calibrated by medical technicians, \u201cto ensure that the wavelength that\u2019s being delivered is fit for purpose \u2013 unlike in tanning salons, where it\u2019s a bit unregulated, and we don\u2019t really know what wavelengths are being used\u201d.<\/p>\n

Red and blue LEDs, he says, \u201caren\u2019t really used in the medical sense, but they may help with certain conditions\u201d. Red LEDs, it is proposed, help boost blood circulation, oxygen uptake and cell renewal in the skin, and stimulate collagen production \u2013 a key aspiration in anti-ageing effects. \u201cThe evidence is there,\u201d says Ho. \u201cAlthough it\u2019s not strong.\u201d In any case, amid the sea of devices now available, \u201cwe don\u2019t know whether or not the lights emitted are reflective of the research that has been done. We don\u2019t know the duration, how close the lights should be to the skin, whether or not that will increase the risk versus the benefit. There are lots of questions.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the earliest blue-light products targeted Cutibacterium acnes, a microbe associated with acne. The evidence for its efficacy isn\u2019t strong enough for it to be routinely prescribed by doctors \u2013 although, says Ho, \u201cit\u2019s often seen in medical spas or aesthetics practices\u201d. Some of his patients use it as part of their routine, he says, but if they\u2019re buying a device for home use, \u201cwe just tell them to try it carefully and to make sure it has been assessed for safety. Unless it\u2019s a medical device, the regulation is a bit grey.\u201d<\/p>\n

An LED light anti-ageing mask. Photograph: Alamy<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, in a far-flung field of pioneering medical science, Chazot has been experimenting with brain cells, identifying a number of ways in which infrared can boost cellular health. \u201cPretty much everything I did with the light at that particular wavelength was positive and protective,\u201d he says. It is partly these many and varied positive effects on cellular health that have driven scepticism about light therapy \u2013 that it\u2019s too good to be true. But his research has thoroughly changed his mind in that respect.<\/p>\n

Chazot mostly works on developing drug treatments for neurodegenerative diseases, but over 20 years ago, a GP who was developing an antiviral light treatment for cold sores sought his expertise as a biologist. \u201cHe created some devices so that we could work with them with cells and with fruit flies,\u201d he says. \u201cI was pretty sceptical. It was an unusual wavelength of about 1070 nanometres, that nobody believed did anything biological.\u201d<\/p>\n

What it did have going for it, though, was that it travelled through water easily, meaning it could penetrate the body more deeply.<\/p>\n

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. \u201cEvery cell in your body has mitochondria, including the brain,\u201d says Chazot, who, as a neuroscientist, decided to focus the research on brain cells. \u201cIt has been shown that in humans this light therapy increases blood flow into the brain, which is always very good.\u201d<\/p>\n

With 1070 treatment, mitochondria also produce a small amount of a molecule known as reactive oxygen species. In low doses this substance, says Chazot, \u201cstimulates so-called chaperone proteins which look after your mitochondria, look after your cells and also deal with the unwanted proteins\u201d.<\/p>\n

All of these mechanisms appear promising for treating a brain disease: antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and pro-autophagy \u2013 autophagy being the process the cell uses to clear unwanted damaging proteins.<\/p>\n

A beauty therapist administering blue-light therapy on a teenage boy. Photograph: Constantinis\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

The last time Chazot checked the literature on using the 1070 wavelength on human dementia patients, he says, about 400 people were taking part in four studies, including his own initial clinical trials<\/a> in the US.<\/p>\n

Alzheimer\u2019s Society describes research into light therapy as \u201cpromising\u201d<\/a>. However, it adds: \u201cThe research is still in its infancy and there is now not enough evidence to recommend using light therapy as an intervention in dementia.\u201d<\/p>\n

One area where professionals have largely ditched light therapy is physiotherapy, according to Lucy Macdonald, a physiotherapist working in Surrey<\/a>. Not that this stops high-end gyms and consumer devices offering red-light and laser therapy to aid muscle recovery and reduce musculoskeletal aches and pains.<\/p>\n

Special red and infrared lasers, it has been claimed, could cause micro-injuries deep into cartilage and help it regrow. \u201cIt was considered that lower frequency levels would penetrate deeper,\u201d says Macdonald. \u201cEven when I first qualified, about 25 years ago, it was still being used. But no one uses it now for deep tissues like cartilage. It can be helpful and is still used for superficial lesions, wound healing and that sort of thing, hence where you get the overlap with the beauty industry. But for deep applications, there\u2019s no evidence to show that it works.\u201d<\/p>\n

The studies behind the claims that it can heal deep tissue are not randomised control trials, she says. \u201cThey\u2019ll take two subject groups, and they\u2019ll do a different type of laser on both of them, and then they\u2019ll look at the outcomes of those two, but they\u2019re not controlling it against no treatment. And obviously the body has an innate healing ability.\u201d<\/p>\n

A few decades ago, she recalls, \u201cpeople would go to the physio, be strapped up to a machine, press the button and off you go\u201d. The placebo effect should never be underestimated, she says: \u201cDuring that laser session, you\u2019ve been talking to a physio, the problem\u2019s been validated. You\u2019ve got reduced fear levels. You feel more nurtured, and you\u2019re ready to then go and be more active and move more and all the things that we know actually do help with cartilage issues \u2013 but it\u2019s not the laser. Because when they control for the laser, it\u2019s not shown to be effective.\u201d<\/p>\n

She says that if she or anyone in her family had cartilage issues, she wouldn\u2019t waft a laser over it. \u201cNowadays there\u2019s so many other highly effective treatments with decent evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n

What about the full-body beds studded with red LEDs now available in swanky gyms, and the expensive body mats for sale online, promising to aid muscle recovery? Macdonald can\u2019t find any clinical studies to support their claims. \u201cThe best thing people can do to aid muscle recovery,\u201d she says, \u201cis keep moving because this maintains good circulation, eat healthily so that you\u2019ve got all the building blocks for repair, and sleep.\u201d Healing peaks during sleep.<\/p>\n

Similarly, Ho wouldn\u2019t necessarily recommend LED products for the skin, although he suspects the risks are minimal if used as directed. \u201cWhat overdoing it would probably mean is exerting too much heat on the skin, which can induce either pigmentation or even more inflammation in the skin. So there\u2019s some concerns around the use of these products.\u201d<\/p>\n

A man using an LED therapy mask at home. Photograph: Westend61 GmbH\/Alamy<\/p>\n

But even Ho has been tempted to try one. \u201cIt is kind of fun to use. I used it for a bit of brightening, a bit of anti-pigmentation. Mine has different modes to it, but I have to remind myself that it\u2019s not a medical treatment. I think if you go in with the mindset that it\u2019s a splurge, a fun treat to yourself \u2026 but I would avoid overuse, and use as it\u2019s directed.\u201d If you can afford it, you may, he says, \u201cin theory have some nice-looking effects, even if it\u2019s short-lived. If it gives you a little boost, or if it makes you feel a bit better, why not? But don\u2019t rely on it as a holy grail.\u201d<\/p>\n

In aesthetic dermatology practises, says Ho, LEDs are used to reduce some of the side-effects from other treatments that can cause inflammation, such as peels or injections. \u201cThe idea is the LED light will help reduce some of that downtime.\u201d Professional or medical-grade equipment should have a CE marking, denoting higher standards of testing than with over-the-counter versions. Still, he says, \u201cthe evidence on exactly how much to use it, and at what frequency, is still slightly guesswork. Even if you\u2019re using a medical device, it will depend on the device itself and what the manufacturers\u2019 recommendations are based on their testing.\u201d We also don\u2019t know which, if any, beauty products might reduce or enhance their efficacy, and whether treatment should be before or after applying them.<\/p>\n

The jury also remains out for the new red-light toothbrush, or the myriad other glowing devices you can buy to fix gum disease. The British Dental Association says this is such a young field its experts aren\u2019t yet in a position to assist. As with so many other consumer light-therapy products, while they could theoretically help reduce inflammation and boost cellular health, in terms of their efficacy and safety we remain largely in the dark.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Light therapy is certainly having a moment. You can now buy glowing gadgets for everything from skin conditions…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":99197,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[163,85,46,482],"class_list":{"0":"post-99196","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-il","10":"tag-israel","11":"tag-medication"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99196"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99196\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/99197"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}