‘It appears magical’: does light therapy actually deliver clearer skin, healthier teeth, and more resilient joints?

Light therapy is clearly enjoying a moment. Consumers can purchase glowing gadgets for everything from complexion problems and aging signs as well as aching tissues and gum disease, recently introduced is a dental hygiene device equipped with tiny red LEDs, marketed by the company as “a significant discovery for domestic dental hygiene.” Globally, the market was worth $1bn in 2024 and is projected to grow to $1.8bn by 2035. Options include full-body infrared sauna sessions, that employ light waves rather than traditional heat sources, the thermal energy targets your tissues immediately. As claimed by enthusiasts, it feels similar to a full-body light therapy session, boosting skin collagen, soothing sore muscles, alleviating inflammatory responses and persistent medical issues while protecting against dementia.

Research and Reservations

“It appears somewhat mystical,” says a Durham University professor, who has researched light therapy for two decades. Certainly, some of light’s effects on our bodies are well established. Sunlight enables vitamin D production, needed for bone health, immunity, muscles and more. Natural light synchronizes our biological clocks, as well, triggering the release of neurochemicals and hormones while we are awake, and signaling the body to slow down for nighttime. Sunlight-imitating lamps are a common remedy for people with seasonal affective disorder (Sad) to combat seasonal emotional slumps. Clearly, light energy is essential for optimal functioning.

Various Phototherapy Approaches

Whereas seasonal affective disorder devices typically employ blue-range light, most other light therapy devices deploy red or infrared light. During advanced medical investigations, including research on infrared’s impact on neural cells, finding the right frequency is key. Photons represent electromagnetic waves, which runs the spectrum from the lowest-energy, longest wavelengths (radio waves) to short-wavelength gamma rays. Phototherapy, or light therapy utilizes intermediate light frequencies, with ultraviolet representing the higher energy invisible light, 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 modulates intracellular immune mechanisms, “and suppresses swelling,” notes a skin specialist. “There’s lots of evidence for phototherapy.” UVA reaches deeper skin layers compared to UVB, while the LEDs in consumer devices (which generally deliver red, infrared or blue light) “tend to be a bit more superficial.”

Risk Assessment and Professional Supervision

The side-effects of UVB exposure, including sunburn or skin darkening, are understood but clinical devices employ restricted wavelength ranges – signifying focused frequency bands – that reduces potential hazards. “Therapy is overseen by qualified practitioners, so the dosage is monitored,” says Ho. Most importantly, the lightbulbs are calibrated by medical technicians, “to confirm suitable light frequency output – different from beauty salons, where it’s a bit unregulated, and wavelength accuracy isn’t verified.”

Commercial Products and Research Limitations

Colored light diodes, he explains, “aren’t really used in the medical sense, but they may help with certain conditions.” Red light devices, some suggest, enhance blood flow, oxygen uptake and skin cell regeneration, and stimulate collagen production – an important goal for anti-aging. “Research exists,” says Ho. “But it’s not conclusive.” Regardless, amid the sea of devices now available, “it’s unclear if device outputs match study parameters. Appropriate exposure periods aren’t established, ideal distance from skin surface, if benefits outweigh potential risks. Many uncertainties remain.”

Treatment Areas and Specialist Views

One of the earliest blue-light products targeted Cutibacterium acnes, a microbe associated with acne. The evidence for its efficacy isn’t strong enough for it to be routinely prescribed by doctors – even though, notes the dermatologist, “it’s frequently employed in beauty centers.” Individuals include it in their skincare practices, he mentions, but if they’re buying a device for home use, “we just tell them to try it carefully and to make sure it has been assessed for safety. If it’s not medically certified, the regulation is a bit grey.”

Advanced Research and Cellular Mechanisms

At the same time, in a far-flung field of pioneering medical science, scientists have been studying cerebral tissue, discovering multiple mechanisms for infrared’s cellular benefits. “Virtually all experiments with specific wavelengths showed beneficial and safeguarding effects,” he states. Multiple claimed advantages have created skepticism toward light treatment – that results appear unrealistic. Yet, experimental evidence has transformed his viewpoint.

The scientist mainly develops medications for neurological conditions, however two decades past, a physician creating light-based cold sore therapy requested his biological knowledge. “He developed equipment for cellular and insect experiments,” he says. “I was pretty sceptical. It was an unusual wavelength of about 1070 nanometres, that nobody believed did anything biological.”

Its beneficial characteristic, however, was its ability to transmit through aqueous environments, meaning it could penetrate the body more deeply.

Cellular Energy and Neurological Benefits

Growing data suggested infrared influenced energy-producing organelles. Mitochondria are the powerhouses of cells, producing fuel for biological processes. “Mitochondria exist throughout the body, including the brain,” says Chazot, who prioritized neurological investigations. “Studies demonstrate enhanced cerebral circulation with light treatment, which is always very good.”

With 1070 treatment, energy organelles generate minimal reactive oxygen compounds. At controlled levels these compounds, notes the scientist, “triggers guardian proteins that maintain organelle health, look after your cells and also deal with the unwanted proteins.”

These processes show potential for neurological conditions: antioxidant, swelling control, and waste removal – autophagy being the process the cell uses to clear unwanted damaging proteins.

Ongoing Study Progress and Specialist Evaluations

Upon examining current studies on light therapy for dementia, he reports, approximately 400 participants enrolled in multiple trials, comprising his early research projects