How Is Red Light Therapy Used?

Red light has been used for a variety of reasons, including in the treatment of skin, dental, and inflammatory conditions.

Skin Conditions and General Skin Health

Red light therapy is a popular option for treating redness, scars, acne, and wrinkles. This may be due to the light’s effect on collagen production and blood circulation in skin tissue. Red light therapy may help in the following ways:

• Antiaging: Red light therapy is used to enhance the appearance of skin that has been damaged or aged by sunlight. It may stimulate the rapid production of cells that secrete collagen proteins. This helps lift and tighten lax skin, reducing wrinkles. 
• Acne: Cold laser therapy could be an effective treatment for acne vulgaris, but evidence is scarce. The light might decrease inflammation, irritation, and sebum production in the skin.
• Hair growth: Low-level laser light therapy may help treat pattern hair loss in women and men, but more research is needed.⁶
• Wound healing: Red light therapy has the potential to help heal chronic wounds. The technique might also encourage new skin growth and help new blood vessel networks form.⁷

Dental Pain

Dental professionals turn to red light therapy to help relieve a variety of oral problems. The treatment can reduce pain, inflammation, and ulcers. It also helps keep unhealthy oral microbes in check. The following treatments make use of red light therapy:

• Temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD): TMD causes discomfort and clicking in the jaw, as well as limited jaw movement. Red light therapy can relieve pain, increase range of motion, and improve muscle activity in people with this condition.
• Periodontitis: Red light therapy can help treat periodontitis, a chronic buildup of dental plaque bacteria. Along with photodynamic therapy, this procedure may help reduce the bacteria associated with this type of buildup. 
• Burning mouth syndrome: Low light laser therapy has helped decrease painful symptoms in postmenopausal women with burning sensations in the mouth.¹⁰ 
• Stomatitis: Minor recurrent aphthous stomatitis (MiRAS) is marked by painful lesions on the lips, soft palate, and the lining of the cheeks. In a 2020 study of children aged 5–12 years old, red light therapy reduced pain and the size of MiRAS ulcers within two weeks.

Inflammation

Red or near infrared light spurs cells to speed up the production of antioxidants and lower inflammatory markers. Soft laser therapy can increase circulation to help relieve inflammatory conditions without drugs or surgery, including:¹²

• Osteoarthritis: Several studies have found that red light therapy can reduce pain and disability in individuals with knee osteoarthritis. The benefits even extended up to 12 weeks after the end of treatment.
• Tendinitis: Pre-exercise red light therapy might improve sports performance and speed recovery from muscle strain. This may be due to the treatment’s potential to combat oxidative stress caused by exercise.
• Psoriasis: Cold laser therapy is a common treatment for mild to moderate psoriasis, an autoimmune inflammatory skin condition. However, each type of this disease needs different light sources to be effective and avoid skin burning or other adverse effects.
• Carpal tunnel syndrome: In one study, low-level laser therapy helped reduce carpal tunnel syndrome pain in the hands significantly. It also enhanced electrical activity in the median nerve.¹⁶

Other Conditions

Red light therapy helps support the body’s natural healing process. Cold sores, dementia, and mood disorders also respond to this treatment, as follows:

• Herpes cold sores prevention: Red light therapy may successfully prevent and treat recurrent cold sores, a common infection caused by the herpes simplex virus. However, more studies are needed to confirm this.
• Alzheimer’s disease: Formaldehyde concentrations in the brain are associated with oxidative stress and memory loss. Research suggests that red light therapy can break down formaldehyde to improve cognitive function in adults with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease, a progressive brain disorder.
• Anxiety: In a 2019 study, brain stimulation with red light helped improve anxiety symptoms in individuals with generalized anxiety disorder. The participants were also able to sleep better after treatment.