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Hormesis & stressors

Photobiomodulation (red light therapy)

DEPhotobiomodulation (Rotlichttherapie)

Photobiomodulation, often called red light therapy, shines low-level red and near-infrared light on tissue. Most clinical devices use about 600 to 900 nm. Some research extends toward 1100 nm. The mechanism probably involves several pathways at once. Light is absorbed by an enzyme in your mitochondria (cytochrome c oxidase). It also shifts nitric-oxide signaling. And it tunes the mitochondria's redox state. Together those influence your ATP production and your free radicals. The clinical evidence supports modest benefits for some skin and joint conditions. But the broader claims (anti-aging, brain, metabolic) rest on small or preliminary trials. They are not established yet.

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Sources

  1. Hamblin MR. (2017). Mechanisms and applications of the anti-inflammatory effects of photobiomodulation. *AIMS Biophysics*doi:10.3934/biophy.2017.3.337