It’s easy to take light for granted, but do you realize how important light is to your overall health and well being? Light affects our mood, our emotions, and has even been shown to potentially help with certain diseases and bodily healing. So what is light therapy?
We’ll be exploring benefits and treatment tools to answer the questions “what is light therapy” and “how does light therapy work?” Keep reading and see how light therapy may help you, too!
What is Light Therapy?
Light therapy is an umbrella term that includes phototherapy, UV light therapy, infrared therapy, and chromotherapy. So then what is light therapy really? In short, light therapy is the exposure to light in order to help treat a variety of conditions such as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), promote detoxification, elevate your mood, and increase your metabolism.
When using a light therapy box or other tool like a luxury massage chair with light therapy features, a unit of measurement called lux measures the amount of light in the treatment. Different light therapy routines may use different levels of exposure typically ranging from 2500 to 10,000 lux. Your primary care physician can help you determine the best level for you to experience the best light therapy results.
What are the Benefits of Light Therapy?
We’ve evolved to need light for our physical and mental health. When we don’t have enough light exposure, we can become more susceptible to depression, slower healing, and lacking energy.
Traditional light therapy is most commonly used to supplement sunlight exposure for SAD though may even help regulate sleep disorders and your body’s natural circadian rhythm. UV light therapy can have benefits for skin improvement and is often associated with dermatological care. Infrared light therapy may help the body heal faster while the different color light therapy of chromotherapy is used to help boost the body’s performance and improve mental health.
So Then How Does Light Therapy Work?
Now how does light therapy work? The theory behind light therapy is that it affects the production of serotonin. Serotonin is a natural hormone in your body that aids in a variety of different aspects of your body from mood to movement.
Light therapy exposure may help boost serotonin production within your body, which may be lacking if you’re not experiencing enough sunlight. While the benefits of light therapy can be experienced at any time, it’s often used during the winter months to help beat the winter blues.
Still unsure about how does light therapy works? A few ways light therapy works may be to:
- Speed up bodily healing
- Increase your metabolism with better digestion
- Boost energy levels
- Reduce depression and anxiety
- Treat Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
While light therapy may not cure seasonal depression or anxiety, it may be an effective way to treat symptoms and help you feel better. Before beginning any form of light therapy treatment, however, it’s important to speak with your healthcare professional regarding any symptoms of depression or anxiety you may be experiencing.
Using Light Therapy Devices At Home
So we’ve explored the questions “what is light therapy?” and “how does light therapy work?” so now let’s talk about how to experience it! Integrating light therapy at home into your daily life is easy if you have the right tools. There are several tools you can use for light therapy at home including:
- Traditional light therapy box
- Massage chairs with light therapy features
- Light therapy lamps for the floor or tabletop
- Tablets for light therapy
With so many options for light therapy tools, it’s easy to choose one that fits your needs and lifestyle. For example, you could use a tabletop lamp or light therapy tablet while enjoying your morning coffee, talking on the phone, or preparing dinner.
One of our personal favorites is using a massage chair with light therapy features. When you think about using a massage chair chances are some of the first things that come to mind are heated massage chair benefits for back pain or stretching out sore muscles but they protect your mental well being, too! Massage chairs with chromotherapy lighting help to enhance massage chair benefits for health like better sleep improvement, stress management, increased digestion, and faster bodily healing.
So when you’re researching how to choose a massage chair that’s right for you make sure you pick a massage chair with chromotherapy or light therapy features to get the most from your new addition.
Light is absolutely essential to our well being. We may take it for granted but a lack of light exposure can lead to increased anxiety, symptoms of depression, low energy, and slower healing. Choosing a massage chair that offers light therapy may help treat any of these health ailments you experience and help you get back to feeling your best. Before starting any form of health treatment, however, be sure to speak to your primary care physician for guidance.
Wanting to take your light therapy home treatments a step further? Check out our guide on how to create a spa at home for the ultimate self care experience!
