It’s our main mission to give you the skinny on all things beauty and wellness. So when we see a popular trend rising, of course we have to do a deep dive.
Lately, red light therapy has been all anyone’s talking about, and for so many reasons. We’ve been using our LED face masks (get yours here) as micro-red light therapy devices for signs of aging, scars, and acne for AGES now, and they’ve been doing an amazing job.
Here’s the thing about red light therapy, it’s a beauty treatment, sure, but it’s not just a beauty treatment. The potential benefits of red and near infrared light therapy go beyond just looking good to truly feeling your best.
So here you go: The DL on RLT.
Incredible Benefits of Full Body Red Light Therapy
It’s easy to dismiss a therapy you’ve never tried as too good to be true and some things definitely are. But we’ve looked into this one, and we think if you take the time to learn about it, you’ll be impressed at what it can do.
What Is Full Body Red Light Therapy?
Full body red light therapy is a gentle, non-invasive treatment that uses red or near-infrared light to stimulate the cells. Our skin absorbs the light through photosensitive molecules. This activates the mitochondria, boosting cell efficiency.
What Does Full Body Red Light Therapy Do?
Full body red light therapy basically gives your body a little boost, like this AM shower trick for more energy, except better (and easier to get yourself to do) There’s a lot of things it can accomplish, so let’s get into it.
8 Full Body Red Light Therapy Benefits
Improve your mood.
The effects of red light therapy can improve your mood through multiple methods.
+ Red light therapy boosts the mitochondria’s production of ATP, which is the fuel for your energy and mood.
+ Red light therapy can reduce inflammation, which can be the underlying cause behind mood swings.
+ Red light therapy may influence the production of our favorite neurotransmitters the ones that make us feel good.
This study shows that red light therapy may even be an effective treatment for seasonally-induced depression. And this one found a reduction in anxiety for patients with generalized anxiety disorder.
So if you feel like you’re constantly ‘going through it,’ red light therapy might be for you.
Regulate your sleep cycle.
We all know how important beauty sleep is. Lauryn is so invested in the best sleep ever that she created a product to make your beauty sleep even more beautiful (IYKYK, and if you don’t, here’s our best-selling MOUTH TAPE).
If your sleep schedule is all out of whack, red light therapy can help you get into a regular rhythm and buff up the quality of your sleep.
Red light is less likely to suppress melatonin in the ways that white and blue light do. Additionally, it has been shown to improve the level of quality in your sleep, letting you wake up rested and ready to go.
If you have trouble sleeping, be sure to read about how to recover from a bad night’s sleep.
Contour your body.
Red light therapy works to contour your body in two ways. The first way is through shrinking fat cells (or “reducing the mass of adipose tissue” if you wanna get technical with it).
The other way it can help is through regulating hormones related to appetite: leptin and ghrelin. Leptin is basically responsible for controlling your appetite, regulating energy, and maintaining body weight. Ghrelin is the “hungry hormone,” so it encourages you to eat and also stimulates the release of growth hormones.
This study found that red light therapy can boost the production of leptin and curb the production of ghrelin, helping you maintain that contour.
Don’t get it twisted: ghrelin is GOOD for you. You need it to live. But, if you’ve been encouraged to lose weight by your doctor and you’re struggling, using red light therapy can help curb the overproduction of ghrelin.
(Did you know a lack of sleep can cause high ghrelin production? The body is losing energy from sleep, so it needs to get it somewhere. The next best thing? FOOD. All the more reason to get a good night’s sleep and eat nutritious foods that will boost your energy.)
Increase blood flow.
If you haven’t noticed, so many skincare treatments are about supporting your circulation. Why? Better blood flow leads to better oxygenation leads to more energy, healthier and stronger cells, a pretty natural flush, you name it.
Red light therapy stimulates the cells, increasing blood flow and oxygenation.
Enhance your extracellular matrix production.
You might be wondering why your extracellular matrix is.
Your extracellular matrix (ECM) is the HUGE network of proteins and other molecules that give cells and tissues the support they need to do what they do. The ECM helps cells attach and talk to each other, while also supporting cell growth, movement, and functions.
There are three components of your ECM that red light therapy can enhance. Let’s get into it.
First up, collagen. Red light therapy can do you one better than supplementing with collagen: it can naturally stimulate collagen production in your body.
Plus, it can increase your body’s production of elastin and hyaluronic acid as well both key in giving you gorgeous, bouncy skin.
HOT TIP: Double up your collagen gains by getting regular red light therapy AND supplementing with TSC’s Wrinkle Blaster Smoothie. It’s full of antioxidants and natural goodness.
Smooth your skin.
Did you know we can actually measure skin’s roughness? Scientists use something called a profilometer to measure a surface’s profile and roughness.
This study found that subjects treated with red light therapy had significantly improved skin texture when assessed with profilometry. How cool is that?
Repair muscle tissue.
Full body red light therapy is STRIKINGLY impressive when it comes to the benefits to our muscles. So impressive that this study actually questions whether or not sports commissions should allow athletes to use it in competition.
Why? Let us tell you all the things it can do for your muscles. It can aid in the prevention of muscle damage after working out, increase the capacity for muscle workload, improve functional and athletic activity, decrease fatigue resistance, and quicken recovery after your workout.
Talk about a quadruple threat, right? And that’s JUST FOR MUSCLES. Getting in some red light therapy is worth it for your strength alone.
Reduce inflammation and oxidative stress.
Red light therapy has been shown to reduce inflammation and oxidative stress, both of which are important in helping you look and feel your best.
Inflammation can cause pain, discomfort, swelling or puffiness, redness, health conditions, acne, skin irritation, and more. Oxidative stress is an imbalance of free radicals and antioxidants that leads to cell damage. We’re telling you, these two are a pain to deal with so anything you can do to reduce their impact is worth your time.
Treat a number of health conditions.
Studies show that there are benefits to using red light therapy for multiple health conditions. Some of these conditions include hair loss due to androgenic alopecia, tendinopathy, arthritis, pain, etc.
How Often Should You Do Full Body Red Light Therapy?
2-3 times a week should be good, and if you want to learn more, be sure to listen to the founders Joov on The HIM & HER Show.
Red light therapy is a healthy boost for your whole body.
There are lots of ways to get into red light therapy. You could find a spa in your area, invest in at-home panels or get hand held devices that can cover small areas of the body. Lauryn and Michael love Joovv, but we’ve also heard great things about Kala and Bon Charge.
Hope you love your new red light therapy routines. The benefits are endless.
x, The Skinny Confidential team
+ More wellness benefits of red light therapy here.
++ Bryony Deery’s wellness practices that make all the difference.
RED LIGHT THERAPY:
