Your Guide to Red Light Therapy

Red light therapy, also known as photobiomodulation or low-level light therapy, includes both visible red light, which targets more superficial layers of the skin, as well as invisible near-infrared light, which is able to penetrate deeper. When these lights hit the skin at specific wavelengths, the light particles, or photons, penetrate beneath the surface of the skin. There, they are absorbed by a specific protein inside the mitochondria called cytochrome c oxidase. This leads to increased production of ATP (adenosine triphosphate), activation of the body’s antioxidant defenses to reduce oxidative stress, and release of nitric oxide, which improves blood vessel function and tissue repair. With this energy boost, cells can perform their functions more efficiently, including repair and regeneration. At least in the skin, this also improves circulation and reduces inflammation.

Red light therapy can be administered through masks you wear over the face, wearable caps, hand-held wands that can be applied to other body parts, and via panels suitable for larger areas such as legs or arms.

The benefits of red light therapy

• General skin health: Improves skin appearance by reducing wrinkles, boosting collagen, and increasing elasticity.
• Inflammatory skin conditions: Helps manage conditions like acne and psoriasis.
• Wound healing: Accelerates tissue repair, improves circulation, and reduces scar formation, supporting recovery from chronic wounds, burns, and surgical incisions.
• Supportive cancer care: Reduces the severity and incidence of skin and mucosal side effects from cancer treatments, such as radiation dermatitis and mouth ulcers.
• Chronic pain and musculoskeletal conditions: Results are promising for musculoskeletal conditions like arthritis, low back pain, and tendinopathies, with more limited data for fibromyalgia and other chronic pain syndromes.
• Systemic inflammation: Outside of the above conditions, early studies suggest potential to lower systemic inflammation, but the effects are still uncertain.
• Hair loss: Shown to be effective for treating pattern hair loss in both men and women. (We’ll have more on this in a future article!)

How to use red light therapy

Red light therapy follows a Goldilocks principle—you need just the right amount. Too little will have minimal or no benefit, and too much actually decreases the benefit (this is what’s called the "biphasic dose response").

There are three things to consider in an ideal approach, according to Dr. Daniel Angerbauer, a preventive medicine expert at the Atria Health and Research Institute: the power output of your unit; how close you are to it, where closer is stronger; and how much time you spend there.

• Power: Aim for a power level between 20 and 100+ mW/cm²
• Time: Typical sessions should last 5-20 minutes per body area
• Distance: Your device should come with a graphic that tells you at what distance you will get the optimal dose. This is important. For example, a small panel may have a power of ~100mW/cm2 at 6 inches, but at 36 inches, it may be significantly underpowered.

Usage guidelines

• Always follow the manufacturer guidelines.
• Use with bare skin exposed. Even though these wavelengths can slightly penetrate into the body, they need to hit the skin first to do so. So even the lightest fabric will blunt the effects.
• Use eye protection when directly facing the light. When you are not directly facing the light, you don’t need protection as the red light is not coherent—that is, this is not a laser.
• Choose the right distance. In general, this is between 6 and 24 inches from the device. There are exceptions: Some are designed to be worn directly on the face and more powerful ones may be able to be used at longer distances, such as 36”. Know that the further you move away from the light, the greater the treatment area—the downside is that the power is reduced.
• Use red lights for the right amount of time. Clinical trials typically use 5–20 minutes per treatment area. In general, it’s best to start with 5–10 minutes and consider increasing over time. As noted, there is data that longer is not better.
• Use consistently. Dr. Angerbauer generally recommends people use their red light at least 3 days per week. Start with 3-5 days per week and see how your body responds before increasing to daily use. Be aware the benefits will not be immediately apparent, and take consistent use of 2 to 4 weeks.
• Use at the right time of day. This can change from person to person. If you feel energized by red light, it’s best to use the device at least 2 hours prior to bedtime. Other people find it helps them to relax and fall asleep, in which case using it in the evening or before bed can work well.
• One important caveat: Some newer panels include specific wavelengths of blue light as there is some data that this is also helpful specifically for skin, and in particular acne. If your product contains any blue light, you’ll want to use it in the morning or afternoon to avoid circadian rhythm disruption.

How to choose a red light device

Use wavelengths that have been therapeutically studied. In general this means including both visible red light (~620 to 700 nm), which targets more superficial layers, as well as near-infrared light (~800 to ~1000 nm), which is able to penetrate deeper into the tissues.

Use a product that gives you the appropriate coverage area. If you only want this to target a small area at a time, such as the face or one knee, a small panel will do. If you would like full-body effects, use a larger panel or multiple panels.

Red light and sauna

Some people have explored using specialized red light panels inside or on the glass door of their sauna.

• Upon writing, products designed for use inside a sauna are still only able to tolerate temperatures up to around 150°.
• With red-light panels mounted on the outside of a glass sauna door, be aware that you could lose 5-20% of the red light power due to absorption and reflection from the glass.

Safety considerations

Because red light therapy uses a type of light that doesn't break apart molecules and is applied at levels that don't generate heat, it doesn't harm body tissues. This makes it very safe with few negative effects when used correctly.

• Proper eye protection is recommended.
• Based on available data, most panels show no detectable EMFs (electric and magnetic fields) at a distance greater than 6 inches from the panel.
• Prioritize products that are cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

If you’re not sure whether red light therapy is right for you, you should always discuss options with your doctor.

Product recommendations

The following devices have been vetted by Dr. Angerbauer based on their scientific merits and the current evidence about red light therapy:

• Joovv panels
• Platinum LED Therapy Light panels
• Omnilux Contour Face Mask

These are not affiliate links. The Atria Health and Research Institute does not make any money if you decide to purchase a red light device.