Red and Infrared Light Therapy
Hi, I’m Liz Moser, a Mayo Clinic and National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach.
Today I want to talk about red and infrared light therapy. A month ago I purchased the RedRush 360 Classic red and near-infrared light therapy lamp from the Red Therapy Company.
According to their website, this lamp is:
“The ultimate personal red therapy body light to help you look better, feel better, and perform at your best.”
This light Includes both the scientifically proven bioavailable light wavelengths of:
660 nm RED light for skin rejuvenation and surface smoothing
And
850 nm of NEAR-INFRARED light for tissues, joints, and muscles
Here are some of the specifics of this lamp:
It’s an FDA Class II Registered Medical Device
It’s 360 Watts with 100-240 Volts. Therefore it works worldwide
It can treat up to 24" x 60" at one time
The company recommends a treatment Time Per Area of 7-10 Minutes
Suggested distance from the light source to achieve the maximum rate at which light energy falls onto a surface or irradiance is:
6" for deep tissue healing
18" for increased energy
36" for improved skin quality
Also,
The electric and magnetic field or EMF output is 0.0 microteslas (ut) at 6".
The light is 10.5” Wide x 16" Tall x 2.5" Thick
It weighs 13lbs
And lastly,
It’s guaranteed for 50,000 Hours.
How does Red Light Therapy or photo bio-modulation work?
It's pretty simple! It helps your cells do their jobs better! It does this by knocking out stuck nitric oxide in the cell's mitochondria so oxygen can get back in there, and boom, you've got increased ATP production or more energy for the cell to do its job.
How do you use your Red Therapy Light?
Simple! Just place the device on a table, chair, or the ground. Position yourself 18" away and expose the desired area of your body to the light for 5-7 mins and then enjoy the benefits.
Or, pull up the handy Red Rush App and choose from one of the two most popular options. Either:
The Overall option for skin, health, and energy - 5 minutes per area at 2 ft away from the light. This option is what I’m currently using.
Or,
Specific Deep Tissue for tissues, joints, and muscles. – the protocol is 10 minutes per area at 6 inches from the light.
Besides the two most popular options, there are also four specialized protocols:
Super Model Skin (I’m not kidding - that's what they call it!)
Quick Energy Boost
Peak Athletic Performance for a pre work out prep
And,
Workout Recovery for post-workout
I use the Overall protocol for (skin, health, and energy) and the app describes the procedure as:
Step 1 - Turn on both the red and infrared lights
Step 2 - Position yourself 24” away from the light, and I tied a string to my light that's 2 feet long, so I know where to position myself!
And,
Step 3 - Then, spend 5 minutes in front of the light. Super easy!
What’s cool with the Red Rush APP is you can see the meter running with how much light is being delivered in joules per square centimeter (j/cm2) as the time in front of the red and infrared light progresses. Pretty neat!
Do you need safety glasses with this light?
According to the Red Therapy Company, you should err on the side of caution. They recommend wearing darkened safety glasses. All of their products come with glasses for free. The RedRush lights are very bright, and if you have any eye issues (or any other health conditions at all), you should always talk to your doctor before using a device like RedRush.
That said, the wavelengths of 660 nanometers & 850 nanometers have been shown in multiple studies to be beneficial for the eyes. They are currently being studied for the treatment of certain eye diseases. However, due to the level of brightness, it’s a good idea to wear darkened safety glasses, turn on the light away from you, and let your eyes adjust before shining on your face or eyes.
I don’t wear the glasses, but I keep my eyes closed when I'm facing the machine.
Can you do too much red light therapy?
Yes. According to the Red Therapy Company, If you do too much, the positive effects go away because you add more stress to the cells. Just stick to less than 15 mins per area per day, and you’ll be on the safe side. More than that, and you'll only be undoing the positive effects.
It’s worth noting that red light therapy is very safe, and there are no known adverse side effects after over 3,000 clinical studies.
How long does it take to feel a difference?
According to the Red Therapy Company, most people feel at least some difference in energy and a nice "glow" to their skin right away. Eight weeks of daily use is the rule of thumb to see more dramatic effects. Why eight weeks? Eight weeks is the length of most skin benefit studies. For other services like muscle soreness and joints, some feel a difference right away, and for others, it can take up to 8 hrs. after use to feel the full effects.
Beyond that, for the more systemic whole-body health benefits (like muscle growth during strength training), it can take several weeks of using once per day to feel a difference. For best results, the Red Therapy Company recommends treating for five days, then taking two days off, then repeating this cycle.
Remember, the way it works is by helping your cells do their job better, so it's still up to your cells to do the work once they've gotten the boost from the RedRush. If you want to boost results, eat well, stay hydrated, and make sure to relieve stress as much as possible.
I’ve been using my red light for four weeks, and I’ve already noticed a reduction in wrinkles under my eyes. And I feel a rush of energy after using it in the morning. But I also spend the 10 minutes saying my affirmations out loud (one of my favorites is: my clients joyfully reach their goals!), so that puts me in a positive, energetic frame of mind, as well!😊
If you want to do a deep dive into the science behind red and infrared light therapy, I highly recommend Ari Whitten’s book:
At 296 pages, it is extremely thorough, with multiple links to research studies on Red Light and Near-Infrared Light Therapy. The book is loaded with specific details, such as Whitten rates different red and infrared light lamps. That’s why I chose the Red Rush 360; however, he recommends several other lamps, as well.
Whitten’s book explains the benefits of Red and Near-Infrared Light Therapy and explores specific research and protocols to:
1 - Reversing Skin Aging and Getting Youthful Skin. I’ve already talked about that.
2 - Slowing Hair Loss and Re-Growing Hair
3 - Speeding Up Wound Healing
4 - Fighting Hashimoto’s Hypothyroidism
5 - Combatting Inflammation (and Potentially Inflammation-Related Diseases.) Since chronic inflammation is now being recognized as a significant contributor to most chronic diseases from heart disease, depression, and cancer, to Alzheimer's and chronic fatigue syndrome, this effect of red-light therapy on inflammation is a huge deal.
6 - Combatting Depression and Anxiety
7 - Improving Cognitive Performance
8 - Helping Tendonitis
9 - Improving Joint Health and Combatting Arthritis
10 - Decreasing Diabetes Symptoms
11 - Decreasing Pain
12 - Improving Immunity. Kind of a big deal right now during the COVID 19 pandemic!
13 - Helping Heal Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Spinal Cord Injury
14 - Falling Asleep Faster and Improving Sleep Quality
15 - Improving Brain Health, and Slowing the Progression of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease
16 - Enhancing Muscle Gain, Strength, Endurance, and Recovery
17 - Increasing Fat Loss (And Burning Off Stubborn Fat)
In conclusion, red and infrared light therapy has been shown in over 3,000 studies to help you look, feel, and perform better. I highly recommend my Red Rush 360 Classic and using the RedRush APP to calculate how far you should be from your lamp and for what length of time. It’s super easy! Or, if you chose to dive into the science and research of red and infrared light therapy, then read the Ari Whitten book I recommended. Either way, red and infrared light therapy is a research-backed, highly useful, extremely beneficial addition to your health and wellness tool kit.
I’m Liz Moser, a Mayo Clinic and National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach. If you have any specific questions about red and infrared light therapy, about health and wellness, or wellness coaching with me, please reach out via my website at lizmosercoaching.com.
Bye for now and be well,
Liz
