Red light therapy treatments overload cells with the natural light they need to produce more energy from central ATP (adenosine triphosphate). This helps your body work more efficiently, heal faster, and has shown excellent results in producing more natural melatonin and improving sleep disorders such as insomnia. Red light therapy is a great tool to supplement daily light exposure and help the brain regulate sleep cycles. In other words, the red color and warm temperature of the light indicate to the brain that bedtime is near and allows it to begin secreting melatonin and lower cortisol levels.
It's important to note that some phototherapy boxes are designed for insomnia and sleep disorders, while others are designed to treat skin disorders such as psoriasis. Therefore, the purpose of our study was to determine the effect of red light on sleep quality and endurance performance of Chinese female basketball players. Due to its shorter wavelength, red light penetrates deep into the skin, producing effects at the cellular level. Artificial blue light from phones, computers, and other screens is extremely bright and can imbalance your circadian rhythm.
Placebo participants also lay supine under the red light device, but did not receive any light illumination. Studies have shown that even exposure to bright room light before bedtime can delay the onset and duration of melatonin. At night, it is important to choose light sources very carefully, especially if you suffer from any type of chronic sleep disorder. A difference was found between pre-intervention and post-intervention in the red light treatment group (t18 %3D 3.54, p %3D).
To completely avoid blue light, you'll want to opt for red LEDs, which emit light at a single specific wavelength (as opposed to the white light of incandescent or fluorescent, which contain all colors). When used with red light therapy, the body gains a wider range of benefits, such as better functioning of deep internal organs, such as the kidney or even the brain. Some doctors who treat patients with mental health disorders have said that red light therapy improves mood and helps people with depression sleep better. Light therapy tends to be most effective when practiced every day in the morning, as many people who experience circadian-related sleep problems or depression are what researchers refer to as “phase delay.” It's important to note that most colored bulbs are simply coated with a translucent paint or film, so some blue light will still penetrate.
