Red Light Therapy 101: What it is and How it Works

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Red Light Therapy 101: What It Is and How It Works

Written by Infralight Team

Published on November 7, 2024

Alright, let's cut to the chase: red light therapy (RLT for short) has been blowing up over the last few years. Everybody and their grandma seems to be talking about using these weird glowing panels for everything from healing sore muscles and recovering from long term injuries to boosting circulation and getting that Instagrammable skin glow. Is it just hype? Turns out there’s some legit science behind it, let's dive deeper.

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So, what is Red Light Therapy Anyway?

Basically, Red Light Therapy is all about blasting your body with special kinds of red and near-infrared light. No, not like some kind of tanning bed situation that fries your skin. The wavelengths from RLT get absorbed by your skin and muscles and basically kickstart your cells into energizer bunny mode. Let’s geek out for a sec. Your cells have these things called mitochondria—basically, tiny power plants. Red and NIR light wake them up so they pump out extra ATP (adenosine triphosphate, the main energy source for cellular processes). More ATP means your body can heal and recover faster, deal with pain better, and pretty much just do its job more efficiently. Here's a quick breakdown:

1. Skin and tissues soak up the specific light wavelengths. Kinda like drinking sunlight, but safer.

2. Cells crank out more energy, cellular processes become turbocharged

3. Circulation/blood flow gets a boost. More oxygen in the blood, and more nutrients.

4. Inflammation is reduced leading to you healing faster, among a bunch of other benefits

Bottom line? Recover quicker, hurt less, look better. Not bad hey?

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The Good Stuff: Benefits People Actually Care About

1. Skin perks (because who doesn’t want to look 10 years younger?)
- Collagen goes up, so wrinkles go down.
- Helps fight acne and allows scars to heal faster.
- Helps fade hyperpigmentation. See you later sunspots (or at least goodbye, eventually).

There's even some research (Wunsch A. & Matuschka K. 2014) confirming it smooths out your skin and makes it plumper.

2. Muscle recovery / if you like lifting, or just existing
- Reduced DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness). Exactly what it sound like: You'll be less sore after a workout.
- Builds muscular/cardiovascular endurance: you might actually run for the bus and not puff out halfway
- Less time away from the gym due to injuries.

A 2017 meta analysis (Vanin AA, Verhagen E, Barboza SD, et al) found that using RLT before a workout can massively boost muscle endurance and strength, typically showing gains of up to 20% in performance measures like time-to-exhaustion and amount of reps.

3. Hopes for those missing their old hairline
- Stimulates hair follicles. More hair, less shedding tears in the shower.
- Blood flow to the scalp = nutrients straight to the roots.

- Works great for both men and women.

Studies in Lasers in Surgery and Medicine (2013, 2014) showed a 35% increase in hair count over 4 months. That's a lot when you count hairs (which, let’s not).

4. Helps boost mood and relieve stress
- Boosts the production of the brain's happy chemicals (dopamine & serotonin).
- Increases quality of sleep.

- Eases depressive symptoms, and helps shoo away seasonal depression.

A 2018 study in Photomedicine and Laser Surgery showed a significant reduction in depressive symptoms in participants.

So How Exactly Do You Use Red Light Therapy?

1. Turn the panel on and direct it towards problem areas (if it's a smaller targeted panel) or relax your entire body in front of it if you've got a larger full body panel.

2. Stand or sit around 6-12 inches/15-30cm away.

3. Aim for 3–5 times a week. More Netflix-and-light-therapy, less Netflix-and-chill.

4. Shoot for around 10–20 minutes per session.

5. Don’t expect instant miracles. Good things take time and consistency (trust us, it's worth it).

Wait, Aren’t There Myths?

- “It’s just another Insta trend.” Nope. There's a whole load of studies. Backed by real doctors. Get with the program.
- “It’s basically just UV tanning.” Nuh uh, No UV here, and no skin damage. Just safe, effective therapeutic wavelengths.
- “You’ll see results overnight!” Wrong again, give it a few weeks. It’s not Photoshop.

So, Should You Try It?

If you want some extra bounce in your step, less nagging pain, or glowier skin... absolutely. Red Light Therapy works: it's good for your skin, helps sore muscles relax and unwind, and people swear by it for pain and general good vibes. Curious? You should be. Check out our wide range of Red Light Therapy devices and panels - whether you want to focus on reducing that nagging pain on a specific body part with a more targeted panel, or feel a whole new level of rejuvenation with a full body panel - see what all the fuss is about. You never know, it might just become your latest self care addiction.

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Note: This blog post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment.

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