16 Jul Studies in Red Light Therapy show remarkable benefits!

Last year, during a Continuing Education class for my Massage Therapy License, I was introduced to the benefits of red light therapy. Naturally, I was intrigued and decided to do some research, looking for medical studies that have explored the efficacy of this treatment. Wanting to also have some hands on experience with red light therapy, I purchased a LightStim red therapy wand and decided to start using it first on myself and then on specific clients who might benefit from it.

Here are just a few of the benefits that have been researched about red light therapy:

Pain management

Inflammation reduction

Wound healing

Arthritis management

Muscle recovery and performance

Traumatic brain injury

Spinal cord injury

Autoimmune diseases (specifically MS)

Abdominal fat

Achilles tendinopathy

Alopecia areata (hair loss)

Acne

Wrinkles

Take a look at this article from the National Library of Medicine specifically about red light therapy. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5523874/

Let me share results that two dear clients have enjoyed from red light therapy.

The first client (I’ll call her Brook) was dealing with intense nerve pain from a confirmed diagnosis of Morton’s Neuroma. If you’re not familiar with this particular diagnosis, let me explain what Brook was experiencing. Morton’s Neuroma occurs when the bones of toes (usually the second and third toes) compress the nerve in between those bones. The nerve becomes inflamed and irritated to the point that Brook was feeling constant, burning pain that made standing, walking and even just wearing shoes simply unbearable. This was accompanied by numbness especially on the bottom of her foot. Her sleep was interrupted and everyday activities had to be seriously curtailed in order to manage the pain and numbness. Brook’s doctor told her that there were a few self care steps that she could take at home (wearing wide toe shoes, spreading the bones of the toes apart with toes spreaders, etc), but that the only thing the medical field could offer would be surgical removal of the inflamed nerve. She obviously wanted to avoid surgery at all costs, so we decided to try a combination of red light therapy, micro-current point stimulation and massage. We have completed three treatment sessions so far and Brook has enjoyed a significant reduction in pain and numbness to the point that she was able to play pickle ball while on vacation last week. This was unthinkable just a few weeks ago. The progress has helped Brook feel that surgery will not be necessary.

The second client (I will call her Michelle) has been experiencing excruciating TMJ pain that has begun radiating up into her left ear. We’ve been treating the TMJ dysfunction and pain with massage therapy and have had good results with that modality. However, the pain would quickly return after a massage session. Michelle began physical therapy for the TMJ as well, but was not noticing any improvement and her frustration was mounting. It impacted her sleep and her everyday activities. After reading an study that indicated that TMJ dysfunction and pain was improved with the red light therapy, I asked Michelle if she’d like to give it a try during her next session. After just one hour long session in which we alternated red light therapy and massage on both TMJs, Michelle has experienced a significant reduction of pain that has lasted four days at this point. We are thrilled with these results after just one session and will continue to treat Michelle’s TMJ symptoms with a combination approach, which we hope provides longer lasting and even more significant relief. Here is a study published by the National Library of Medicine which focused entirely on the use of red light therapy in the treatment of TMD (temporomandibular disorder) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6530159/

Red light therapy is a promising treatment for such a wide variety of conditions that it could seem almost “too good to be true”, but from the results I’ve seen with a limited number of clients, I think it is a modality that should be explored.

If you think red light therapy may be beneficial for you regarding a condition you are managing, please reach out and let’s chat about how we can explore your options.