How Near Infrared Light Therapy is Improving Mental Health
keywords: infrared light therapy, psychology light therapy
What is Near Infrared Light Therapy Work?
Near Infrared light therapy is a type of phototherapy that uses infrared light to stimulate the cells in the body. As the name suggests, the wavelength of light used in this form of light therapy for improving mental health is in the borderline or near-infrared range, i.e., 800–2,000 nm. This is why infrared light therapy is sometimes called low-level light therapy.
Near Infrared light therapy has been used to support recovery from many diseases and it has seen increasing research in neurological and psychiatric conditions. It can be applied to the brain in following ways — transcranial, intranasal, intra-aural and intra-oral. LLLT.
In transcranial LLLT, infrared light is irradiated via a helmet-like device on the head. This type of therapy has been found to increase blood flow in the brain and may help with depression, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and other neurological disorders. There is research available on benefits of LLLT for Neurodegenerative disorders, Traumatic/ischemic brain injury, Neuropsychiatric disorders and insomnia.
Intranasal LLLT is a new treatment that uses infrared light to stimulate nerve cells in the nose that are connected to different parts of the brain. The stimulation from this method can help with migraines and many other conditions as presented in the research review article above.
Infrared light therapy as a treatment for brain disorders involves shining infrared light into the brain. It is also called low-level laser therapy or LLLT.
LLLT is a form of phototherapy that uses low-intensity lasers to stimulate cells in the body.
What are the Benefits of Near Infrared Light Therapy for the Brain?
Low-level light or Infrared light therapy has been around for a long time, but it wasn’t until recently that it has been used to treat brain disorders. LLLT is also is used for treating pain, inflammation, depression and anxiety, wound healing, skin conditions and more. It is a noninvasive treatment that can be done at home or in the doctor’s office.
Near Infrared light therapy can be administered to the brain via different methods. The most common are transcranial LLLT (low-level laser light therapy) and intranasal LLLT (low-level light therapy).
The benefits of this therapy are not only limited to physical health, but it also has some good effects on mental health. Near Infrared Light Therapy is a type of therapy that is used to improve brain function. It has been studied extensively and has shown promising results in improving mood and energy levels, reduce pain, heal wounds faster, cognitive function, and sleep quality.
Is Infrared Light Therapy Safe, Are there any Contraindications?
There are a few contraindications for use of low-level light therapy.
Before using LLLT on the brain, the patient should be assessed clinically and protocol of healing should established by an experienced light therapist so that side effects can be avoided.
Never point lasers to the eyes. It is advisable therefore, that the correct eye protection glasses should always be used, even if there is a slight risk of accidental direct illumination of the eye during treatment times. It is advisable that eye protection goggles should be worn by operator and patient as a matter of routine. When treating animals, a small cloth covering their eyes can work during treatment.
Pregnancy:
Treating pregnant patients is not a contraindication. Treating pregnant women, for both mother and child, is completely harmless. Direct treatment over or against the undeveloped fetus or pointing the laser at an embryo should be avoided as light may inadvertently damage the baby’s undeveloped eyes. Should there be any unintended incidents or complications associated with the laser treatment or soon after, it is easy to blame the laser therapy and the therapist is subsequently burdened with the burden of proof.
Pacemakers, metal implant prosthesis, and internal fixation screws:
For patients with pacemakers, implants or screws, laser therapy is not contraindicated. Pacemakers are electronic and encapsulated in metal and therefore cannot be affected by light. Laser light does not induce ultra-sonic vibration which causes metal to heat up, laser light simply gets reflect by such metal objects.
Epilepsy:
Epileptic seizures can be induced by certain types of light effects (pulsed visible light in the range 5–10 Hz). One must therefore take care whilst using medical instruments that produce visible flashing lights. There is however nothing noted in the literature that indicates that invisible pulsating light induces epileptic seizures.
Thyroid gland:
It has not been officially reported that LLLT/PBM causes irreversible damage because the thyroid is sensitive to light. Over-stimulation of the Thyroid gland by laser light is best avoided, since it may induce the Thyroid gland to produce an excess of Thyroxine (natural hormone).
Children:
The dose should be adjusted to the weight of the child, but there is no indication in the literature that children, including babies, should not benefit from laser therapy.
Cancer:
People with cancer, or suspected cancer, should only be treated by a specialist in their field. As a adjunct treatment, LLLT can act as both an analgesic and a stimulant, it’s therefore therapeutic.
Light sensitivity is often listed as a contraindication for LLLT/PBM.
Conclusion and Where to go Next
The research on LLLT for mental health is there and it is encouraging. Today one can find economical Near-infrared LLLT PBMT helmet devices that can easily be used for brain stimulation.
