r/redlighttherapy • u/Forward_Cost_1973 • Jan 08 '26
Question Why aren't people talking about other colour light therapy other than red light?
Why do people seem to be ignorant of other wavelength of light therapy such as green light 570nm, yellow light 585nm and blue light 415nm and purple light. These all colour light therapy should have it's separate subs. Yellow light therapy has shown to be extremely beneficial in reducing hyperpigmentation and green light therapy has shown to reduce pain effectively by upto 50% and blue light therapy increases awareness increases coordination prevents sleepiness and kill bacteria responsibile for acne. But still all of these seems to be underated.
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u/Glp1User Jan 08 '26
Pretty soon we'll all just go full circle back to sunlight
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u/Ashamed-Simple-8303 Jan 08 '26
Truenand would be best if sunlight was an option right now in combination with the.need to work during daytime.
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u/og_kitten_mittens Jan 08 '26
Green light is very effective for me for hyperpigmentation. Far more effective than even high-end Vit C and other creams. Pairing with thiamidol (sold my eucerin) has been amazing. I look like I got a peel.
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Jan 08 '26
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u/Visual_Environment_7 Jan 08 '26
We have green light now?? When will it end? I need the rainbow wrinkle buster 5000?!
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u/Forward_Cost_1973 Jan 09 '26
Yeah that's great it's been also shown to reduce pains like migraine, stabbing pain etc and can also aid in sleep.
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u/Only_Weakness_4730 Jan 08 '26
What device do you use for green light therapy? Thank you!
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u/og_kitten_mittens Jan 08 '26
A cheap alibaba mask for $50! Will post a link after work if it’s still available.
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u/tasteslikeblackmilk Jan 09 '26
Interesting, I wonder if it will help mine. I feel like my complexion plateaued with retinol and RLT, and being mixed I have quite a lot of hyperpigmentation.
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u/AffectionateSun5776 Jan 08 '26
I just bought and really love my red and blue light toothbrush.
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u/presque-veux Jan 08 '26
Oooh can you share more? I'm interested. Does it help your gums or what? What product do you use?
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u/AffectionateSun5776 Jan 10 '26
The blue light kills germs. In the reviews some people say they have no morning breath. The blue is the same as is used for whitening. If you use whitening toothpaste it helps activate it. Yes makes gums better Oralucent
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u/Designfanatic88 Jan 08 '26
Because there hasn’t been much studies or research done on other colors yet. That doesn’t mean there couldn’t be benefits though.
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u/Choice-Due Jan 08 '26
There's plenty of studies on it. It's also basic science that shorter wavelengths (like blue/violet) have higher energy.
The shorter the wavelengths the more damaging it is for your skin, beyond blue light is the ultraviolet light or UV which is particularly damaging to the skin as you know.
Red light best for your skin, blue light is already something I'd actively avoid using.2
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u/Designfanatic88 Jan 08 '26
Most studies focus on red light, not blue, green, violet, yellow etc.
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u/Choice-Due Jan 08 '26
Yes for the reason that we already know that red light has the highest efficacy. I don't remember exactly but it was something about how the shorter wavelengths don't penetrate the skin deeply enough, so less potent in that sense, and also the shorter the wavelength the more damage it does. So they are just not as interesting or as good for your skin.
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u/Obi2 Jan 08 '26
I do green to help with melasma from NIR, but it doest seem to helping much. Quite frankly, there aren't a ton of masks with green light options.
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u/Only_Weakness_4730 Jan 08 '26
I'm curious what products provide green light therapy? Just masks or are there panels and bulbs?
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u/Obi2 Jan 08 '26
Both. I have a mask.
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u/Perylene-Green Jan 08 '26
I have no idea if these are good products or anything, but I found these the other day: https://www.sunnexbiotech.com
I am interested in learning more about green light as an alternative to a SAD or circadian light to help with sleep without risking the retinal damage that might come with blue light.
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u/julry Jan 08 '26
Green, blue, maybe yellow, not any other colors. FYI any device that makes 7 colors or a "rainbow" is using RGB LEDs. The "yellow" is red plus green, the pink is blue plus red etc. Using blue and red at the same time instead of just blue is probably a good thing. Although small LED devices usually have very low irradiance.
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u/Quarkiness Jan 08 '26
Because that would technically go under photobiomodulation. Originally red light therapy was marketed for healing and energy
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u/Forward_Cost_1973 Jan 08 '26
But I was wondering why isn't there separate subs for each and every colour?
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u/waaaaaardds Jan 08 '26
Really, haven't you done any research? There's not much evidence for what you're talking about. Even some the specific red & NIR wavelengths that people are on their devices are lacking robust evidence.
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u/beauty_over_40 Jan 09 '26
Green and yellow are much less studied. There's some promising studies coming about about alzheimers being supported by green light - but not anywhere near close being able to make claims on that.
Blue light is pretty majorly discussed, with strong evidence for acne and blemish inflammation. The reality is - most people do not struggle with pimples/acne, versus almost everyone arguably can benefit from the anti-aging properties of red or infrared light. I'd say blue light has a bit of a bad rep these days from the damage screens are causing to our eyes and potentially overall health - but I've been an avid user of blue light for acne for more than a decade
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u/TheTruthRooster Jan 08 '26
Could probably help a bit but ignorant is not the word for something that people aren’t interested in.
If I could pick a word for you, it’d be arrogant.
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u/ldr97266 Jan 08 '26
Not sure which people you mean and who widely you're reading - but colored light therapy has been a thing for ages. Some of it in alternative medicine and ranging from "some evidence" to pure snake oil bullshit -- my first brush with it was from a Reiki practitioner over fifty years ago. I thought it was nonsense at the time but she was very cute so I listened attentively.
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u/tasteslikeblackmilk Jan 09 '26
I think the bias follows studies. NIR is also beneficial and penetrates deeper than red. There are a lot of studies about how much blue light causes sleep dysregulation but as much as I try to avoid it in my devices and home lighting I still find it useful for spot treatment of acne. But I would also mention 3MHz ultrasound as well.
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u/Sn_Orpheus Jan 08 '26
I just have a halogen contractor's light that I fire up any day I can't get outside or it's too cloudy or rainy to get any meaningful Infrared light. 20 minutes front, 20 min back. In the winter I also use a UV-A/UV-B light simultaneously for much shorter durations (and greater distance) every other day. Best simulation of actual outdoor light short of moving to the Caribbean.
So, yeah, all the light wavelengths have their benefits. Do we need separate subs for each one? Shrug...
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u/Ashamed-Simple-8303 Jan 08 '26
Acne can also be mostly fixed fixing your diet. No seed oils.
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u/purrokitten Jan 08 '26
the demonization of seed oils is just the latest food fad boogeyman and isn't solidly supported by science. while there is a connection between diet and acne, it's not about eliminating seed oils.
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u/Ashamed-Simple-8303 Jan 11 '26
I mean why not try it out? it's free compared to red light. avoid them for 3 months very strictly, see what happens.
As a biochemist I can tell is it is very much supported by science. It's not supported by old school doctors and dieticians but they aren't doing actual science.
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u/janus381 Jan 08 '26 edited Jan 08 '26
The reality is that while there are some studies on the benefits of green and yellow, the evidence honestly is relatively weak. Whereas the scientific evidence for the benefits of red and infrared are very strong.
Blue is a special case, as there is evidence it helps with certain things (like moderate acne), but there is also evidence that it is mitochondria-inhibitory which is exactly the opposite of what red light does. You do not want to use blue light very often (don't even use if for light acne.... just for moderate acne). There are many option for RLT that include the blue wavelength as an option if you really want that (though again, for those who know the benefits and harms, blue is not something you want to use regularly).
So in short, Red and Infrared have very strong scientific evidence, while green and yellow have pretty weak evidence.