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Social media influencers claim red light therapy can deliver everything from younger-looking skin to more hair growth, better sleep and even a boost to longevity. But how much can colored light really accomplish? NPR’s Maria Godoy investigated for our ongoing series “Healthy or Hype?”
Scientists have known of red light's therapeutic potential since the 1960s, when a Hungarian researcher exposed mice to red light to see if it caused cancer. "It turns out they didn't grow cancer, but they grew hair," says Dr. Zakia Rahman, a dermatologist and professor at Stanford School of Medicine.
There’s real science behind red light therapy, says Rahman. Both red and infrared light stimulate energy production inside mitochondria, improving cell function. Results take time – months of regular exposure to see improvements in skin and hair, experts say.
How red light can help
Red light therapy has been applied for all sorts of reasons, with varying degrees of scientific evidence.
It’s been shown to help treat pattern hair loss — the most common cause of hair loss in both men and women. But, warns Dr. David Ozog, a researcher and chair of dermatology at Henry Ford Health in Detroit, "it's not going to take you from being bald to being a Chia pet and having abundant hair.”
There’s also evidence that red light therapy can help improve fine lines and wrinkles, and reduce acne. Effects are less dramatic than laser treatments, or even topical therapies like retin A, according to experts NPR spoke with.
Where to get it
There are lots of red light devices on the market right now, and “it’s a little bit like the Wild West,” Ozog says. And just because a device has received a safety clearance from the FDA doesn’t mean it’s effective.
"I'd look for independent safety certification from a recognized lab such as Intertek or UL, plus separate third-party optical testing for wavelength and irradiance," Ozog advises.
And you don’t have to put on a red light to catch these waves, Ozog says. You also can go outside in the morning or early evening, when there’s more natural ruddy hues in the sky.
Check out the full story for more red en-light-enment, plus safety concerns.
And: Can collagen supplements improve your skin? Here's what the research shows
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If you got a painful injury today, what do you think the next few days would be like? Maybe you're picturing yourself in a recliner with the hurt appendage elevated, a bandage wrapped tightly around the injury, rotating ice packs and getting lots of sleep.
That image is in keeping with a long-standing protocol for injury recovery, known by the acronym RICE: rest, ice, compress, elevate. All these things reduce inflammation.
Yet recent research suggests that in the long term, people who use the RICE protocol may be more likely to develop chronic pain. These days, if you’re injured, a pain doctor might recommend you try to move around, get a hands-on treatment like a massage and avoid anti-inflammatory medications. So says neurosurgeon and journalist Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
“It's almost like if you allow the body to do its job, if you allow those inflammatory molecules to rush to the scene and do their job, they do a pretty good job," Gupta told NPR’s Marielle Segarra. “And you're less likely to have chronic pain if you do that early mobilization and don't focus as much on decreasing inflammation.”
That’s one important takeaway from Gupta’s 2025 book It Doesn't Have to Hurt: Your Smart Guide to a Pain-Free Life. Here’s more of what we learned from Gupta about the changing science of pain:
🧠 The brain is the center of any pain experience
Pain can exist even in the absence of injury or tissue damage. It can also linger well after an injury has healed. And researchers say your surroundings and your emotions can affect our pain levels, and we can feel pain when our body perceives danger, even if there isn't any.
“If the brain doesn’t decide you have pain, then you don’t have pain,” Gupta says. To illustrate this, Gupta recalls a story of two female patients who both had the same medical problem and shared a similar age and medical history. Gupta operated on both of them the same day. The day after the surgeries, one appeared relaxed and was discharged shortly. The other was miserable.
🧘♂️ Mindfulness can help
One method that’s shown encouraging results is called MORE, which stands for Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement. With MORE, you start by focusing on your pain without judgement, noticing different types of sensation. Then you toggle your focus to a much more pleasant experience, like flowers, a sunset or time with family. Gupta says MORE and related therapies are especially effective for people’s pain that doesn’t have an anatomical origin.
💉 Non-opioid pain treatments are available and being used more frequently in medical settings
Even for excruciating pain in an emergency setting, doctors are turning to options other than opioids. Gupta shares a story of an 80-year-old man who showed up at the ER with a broken hip. Instead of narcotics, the patient was given a nerve block injection. “He got faster pain relief in terms of how quick the nerve block kicked in than he would have if he had been given opioids,” Gupta says.
You might be able to get a trigger point injection, which is when your doctor injects a local anesthetic and sometimes a steroid directly into your muscle to treat painful knots. And some doctors treat their patients with low doses of ketamine, which can provide rapid pain relief and be helpful when chronic pain flares.
Still, there's a lot science doesn't know. “Pain is mysterious,” Gupta says, and that’s why it's so important that doctors listen to their patients and take each person's personal experience of pain seriously.
Read more excerpts from the interview or listen to the podcast episode from NPR’s Life Kit.
Also: How does acetaminophen work? Over-the-counter painkillers 101 |
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The psychology behind why you dread small talk
Middle East conflict causes a fluoride shortage for US drinking water
Listen: Plastic is everywhere. Big Oil wants to make even more.
Why scientists are nervous about drug-resistant fungi |
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We hope you enjoyed these stories. Find more of NPR's health journalism online.
All best,
Andrea Muraskin and your NPR Health editors |
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