Light or LED (light-emitting diode) therapy for body healing got its start accidentally in the 1960s when Russians and Czechs attempted to standardize colors by isolating them for use in color therapy experiments. They used light to separate the colors and found that the isolated light frequencies could heal damaged cells and tissue. Since then, the technique has been refined and has been used to heal wounds in a variety of settings.
What Is Light Therapy?
LED therapy is sometimes called "red light" therapy since red is the color frequency that most closely matches the resonant frequency of body tissue. According to the Consumer Health Organization of Canada, LED therapy stimulates acupressure points as well as enters the bloodstream. Placing the light at the belly button will cause it to get to all parts of the body, since every drop of blood passes by that point within 20 minutes. A treatment consists of spending varying amounts of time under large banks of lights or with a small machine that is moved over the body or directed onto the wound. Some practitioners use pulsating light and some do not. Pulsating light allows cells to do more of their own work in healing.
How It Heals Wounds
Light therapy works to heal wounds by helping the body's own processes. The light boosts energy and speeds cell regeneration, which causes the wound to heal more quickly. When the affected person places the wounded area in front of the light, he may feel warmth or nothing at all. The actual light is cool to touch. While pulsating light allows cells to do more of their own work in healing, constant light may cause the cell membrane to relax, decreasing inflammation. On the other hand, pulsating light causes the cells to produce higher than normal levels of protein, which is effective in wound healing.
Litght Therapy in Use Now
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has used LED for body healing in space. Minor wounds are more serious in space due to the lack of gravity and previously did not begin to heal until a wounded astronaut was back on Earth. LED has been used successfully to manage wounds in space that would not have healed otherwise. The Food and Drug Administration approved a hand-held device for Navy SEALs, and forces in Iraq have used LED for wound healing with dramatic effects. Wounds may eventually heal on their own, but LED helps them heal much faster by increasing blood flow and cell energy.
Tags: pulsating light, allows cells, allows cells more, been used, body healing