Article-Video: Red Light Therapy and Sleep / Joovv Offered at RejuvCryo Encinitas and Carlsbad
What is Red Light Therapy?
Red light therapy is a simple, non-invasive treatment that delivers concentrated natural light to your skin and cells. Clinical research is showing that red light therapy can improve sleep quality and duration, and help people produce more of their own melatonin. [1]
Light plays a major role in your sleep cycle. The body’s circadian clock interprets light as a sign of when to sleep and when to be awake. [2] Artificial blue light from phones, computers, and other screens is extremely bright and can knock your circadian rhythm out of whack. Red light has the opposite effect: it’s ideal for evenings because it has a low color temperature—far lower than blue light and much closer to the natural sunset. [3]
Red light therapy treatments are quick and simple: you just sit or stand in natural light for 5 to 15 minutes, ideally every day. This stimulates your mitochondria and gives your cells the natural light they need to make energy.
Find everything you need to know about red light therapy treatments here.
A Roadmap to Rejuvenating Sleep
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Bright Blue Light Versus Natural Light
Poor sleep is an epidemic in America and Europe, and light intake is a big part of the problem. Over 65% of adults say they don’t get enough good sleep every week. [4] Most people also don’t get nearly enough natural light for optimal health: the average American spends over 90% of their time indoors. [5]
In addition to not getting enough natural light, people today are surrounded by artificial blue light from screens and overhead lighting. An overload of artificial blue light can cause headaches and make it harder to get to sleep and stay asleep. [6] When we take in all that bright blue light from laptops, TVs, and phones—especially before we go to bed—our bodies get the signal that it's time to be awake, even if we're tired.
Red light therapy is natural light. It’s much less bright than blue light, with a lower color temperature than daytime sun, as the image above shows. [3] Research has shown that red light doesn’t upset your sleep cycle like bright blue light. [7] And red light therapy is showing great clinical results for people with insomnia and sleep disorders.
Learn more about the consequences of getting too much blue light here.
How Does Red Light Therapy Help You Sleep?
Natural light is a key ingredient for a healthy circadian rhythm and restful sleep. If you struggle to sleep, your light intake could be a big factor. Red light therapy delivers natural light like you’d get from the sun, but without UV rays, excess heat, or the need for sunny weather. This makes a device like a Joovv ideal for supplementing low natural light intake.
Red light therapy treatments supercharge your cells with the natural light they need to make more core ATP (adenosine triphosphate) energy. This helps your body run more efficiently, heal faster, and has shown great results for producing more natural melatonin and improving sleep disorders like insomnia. [1]
See the full details on how red light therapy works here.
Red light therapy also produces a natural anti-inflammatory effect, and has been shown to increase blood circulation. [8]
Read more about red light therapy for inflammation, healing, and pain relief here.
Restful Sleep with Red Light Therapy
Red light therapy treatments have shown great sleep results in a range of peer-reviewed clinical studies. One study on the sleep of pro basketball players showed that a 2-week course of red light therapy in the evening improved players’ sleep quality in the short term. Based on the results, the researchers suggested red light therapy would be a good non-invasive, drug-free solution to sleep struggles. [9]
Overcoming Sleep Disorders with Red Light Therapy
Joovv’s light therapy products are registered with the FDA as class II medical devices for the treatment of pain, strain, and inflammation. While the existing clinical research has been very positive for red light therapy and sleep, keep in mind that Joovv’s devices are not cleared with the FDA for the treatment of various sleep disorders or melatonin.
Recent research on sleep disorders among people with migraine headaches has shown that red light therapy both decreased headache frequency, and was the only treatment that improved patients’ sleep disorders. [10]
A 2014 study on cognitive function and traumatic brain injury (TBI) recorded that participants had significantly decreased episodes of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and improved sleep. [11]
Analyzing patients’ electrical brain activity, a 2013 sleep study concluded that red light therapy was especially effective at helping people with sleep disorders fall asleep. [12]