If you search Google for “Does red light therapy work with weight loss, you’ll read plenty of posts that tell you it does, but focus on Low-Level Laser Therapy (LLLT).
So, let’s set this one fact straight before telling you how red light therapy helps with weight loss.
The abbreviation LLLT stands for both Low-Level Laser Therapy and Low-Level Light Therapy. Although both are photobiomodulation therapies for stimulating light healing, the two therapies are different. Basically:
● Low-level light therapy (red light therapy) uses light-emitting diodes (LEDs.
● Low-level laser therapy uses Class IV lasers.
Our focus is on how low-level red light therapy helps with weight loss, and that can’t be answered by studies that have used Low-Level Laser Therapy.
Back to our question. Can red light therapy help with weight loss?
Yes. Research shows it can. Below are 3 ways red light therapy helps with weight loss.
Abdominal fat is considered a big contributor to weight gain. Reversing abdominal fat accumulation does not just reduce weight but also improves body contouring.
RLT has shown it can deliver positive results in reducing abdominal fat and in a safe, non-invasive procedure.
In a
study, 90 women with normal to overweight Body Mass Index (BMI) and skin folds measuring 1.5cm and above were distributed into three groups. The first was a control group with no treatment, the second a test group with only LED red and infrared light, and the third a trial group with LED with red and infrared light plus derma cosmetic treatment.
Red light therapy devices with 660 and 850 nanometers were used twice weekly for 5 weeks (10 sessions overall).
The results showed a significant decrease in body fat layer, also demonstrated by a decreased umbilical perimetry for participants in the two test groups. No significant change was noticed in the control group.
In a second
clinical trial, 55 participants with a BMI of 23 Kg/m2 and above were assigned to a test or control group. The 28 participants in the test group wore an LED device emitting 660nm red and 840nm near-infrared light wavelengths for 30 minutes, 3 times a week for 4 weeks. The control group participants wore a sham device.
The 30-minute therapy was followed by 30 minutes of aerobic exercise for both groups.
The results showed that, although the difference between the control and the test groups was not statistically significant, the waist circumference of the test group reduced by an average of 0.07cm compared to 0.02cm for the control group. Some participants in the test group recorded up to 4.5cm waist circumference reduction.
Strangely, the weight of participants in the trial group increased by an average of 0.13kg while that of the control group participants decreased by 0.04kg.
There seems to be a chain of relationships between sleep deprivation, hunger, and weight gain.
Sleep deprivation messes up the hunger hormones leptin and ghrelin. The first is for satiety, and the second hunger.
Sleep restrictions cause ghrelin to increase and leptin to reduce. It also causes an imbalance in body weight because when you mess up the light/dark patterns, your biological clock does not regulate metabolism properly.
As such, your circadian clock has a key role in body weight, as it influences the function of hunger hormones.
Red light therapy has been shown to help regulate leptin and ghrelin levels.
A
study that exposed participants to 633nm red, 532nm green, and 475nm blue found that all three wavelengths helped increase the leptin hormone. The red and green wavelengths also helped decrease ghrelin.
This outcome suggests that RLT can help control appetite and contribute to weight loss.
A whole range of microbial populations controls the human body, including those in the mouth and gut. These are known as the microbiome.
It is an established fact that the health and composition of the gut microbiome control diseases and conditions related to metabolism. These include cardiovascular diseases, brain disorders, autoimmunity, and weight-related conditions like obesity.
Research has shown that people with an unhealthy gut microbiome characterized by less diversity and imbalance are prone to weight gain and obesity. This is due to poor nutrient absorption, poor hunger hormone regulation, and metabolic disorders like gut inflammation.
A vast review of studies on whether photobiomodulation can alter the microbiome, which has been named photobiomics, returned positive findings.
Reviewed
research done with both mice and humans revealed that red and near-infrared (NIR) light irradiation to the abdomen can positively alter the gut microbiome. That implies enhanced gut health and controlled weight gain.
From the above, we can confirm that red and NIR light therapy can help with weight loss when applied alone or alongside derma cosmetic treatment or exercise.
But are these the only benefits we can reap from red light therapy for weight loss?
