Red Light Therapy
Our bodies don’t always heal properly on their own. For this reason, many people choose to engage in alternative forms of medical treatment in order to help with recovery. Many people find themselves wondering “what is red light therapy?” or “does red light therapy work?” For those who aren’t quite sure about it, we’ve got all the info you need to keep in mind.
So, What Is Red Light Therapy?
As the name suggests, red light therapy or RLT involves using infrared light in order to facilitate recovery for different areas of the body. More specifically, it primarily focuses on skin and muscle tissue.
Although infrared light is generally dangerous for the human body, the treatment uses low levels of it to prevent complications. For those who aren’t familiar with what infrared light is, it is simply energy that you can’t typically see but can still feel.
Red light is very similar to this type of energy, but it is visible to the human eye.
How Does RLT Work?
The process involves exposing the patient’s skin to red light from a lamp, laser, or similar device.
Within the human body’s cells, there are components known as mitochondria that are responsible for generating energy.
During RLT, mitochondria absorb the light and use it to increase the overall production of energy. This translates into highly reduced recovery time.
Since the energy level of the light is so low, there is no risk of harm during proper treatment.
What Does RLT Do?
“What is red light therapy good for?” is often another question people ask themselves.
There are a large handful of different conditions RLT can treat. For example, regular red light therapy can help those who have dementia experience fewer emotional outbursts, get better sleep, and have an easier time remembering.
Interestingly, this form of treatment can also help with hair loss. In some cases, those who suffer from androgenetic alopecia may find that their hair grows back thicker than normal after consistently receiving red light treatment.
As previously mentioned, red light therapy also helps with conditions related to muscles or skin. This means that it can be used to treat wrinkles, golfer’s elbow, and similar issues.
Are There Any Risks?
In general, RLT is considered very safe. However, it’s always recommended to have this type of treatment administered by a professional.
As you might guess, using an insufficient amount of light during treatment could prevent you from achieving the results that you desire. Similarly, using too much light could damage your skin tissue.
Be sure to consider this when moving forward.
RLT Could Be a Suitable Treatment Option
So, keep the above answer to “what is red light therapy?” in mind so that you understand how it applies to your situation. From here, you might find that it proves to be a valuable treatment option.