Although light (Photon) therapy has been documented in medical literature as early as 1500BC, it was the Danish physician Nils Finsen, who is believed to be the father of phototherapy that received a Nobel Prize for his work in 1903. Since then, numerous authors have advocated treatment by phototherapy for many different diseases ranging from acne, vitilago, jaundice in babies, wound healing and rheumatoid arthritis to name only a few.

Throughout the ages, sunlight (as the earliest form of phototherapy) has been known to have both healing and wellness properties. Light is energy, and energy sustains life – it cannot be destroyed, but it can be transformed into other forms.

Photizo Light Therapy harnesses the healing power of red and infrared light at specific wavelengths & frequencies proven to be effective in accelerating natural healing of the body, reducing swelling and inflammation, stimulating the immune system and relieving pain. Cells that are injured can actually be rejuvenated by light.

Light Emitting Diodes (LED’s) have been around for a long time, but have only been introduced as a legitimate therapy option in recent years. LED’s are similar to lasers in that as they can emit the same light but differ in the way that the light energy is delivered. Lasers are focused-beam single-wavelength light emitters that can be intense enough (a ‘hot’ laser) to burn/cut tissue or ‘cold’ enough to only have light therapy effects. LED’s do not deliver enough power to damage the tissue, but they do deliver enough energy to promote natural self-healing and pain relief. With a low peak power output, the LED’s provide a much gentler delivery of the same healing wavelengths of light, as does the laser but without the same risk of accidental eye damage that lasers do.

LED’s are merely convenient devices for producing light at specific wavelengths, and several studies established that it is the light itself at specific wavelengths that is therapeutic in nature. All biological systems have a unique absorption spectrum that determines what wavelengths of radiation will be absorbed to produce a given therapeutic effect. The visible red and invisible infrared portions of the spectrum have been shown to have highly absorbent and unique therapeutic effects in living tissues.

LED’s also allow the light beam to spread out instead of being a pinpoint light beam. The wide-angle diffusion of the LED confers upon it a greater ease of application, since light emissions are thereby able to penetrate a broader surface area, and this results in a faster treatment time for a given area than laser.

Infrared light is one of the safest therapies on the market today. When infrared light is administered, it reduces sensitivity of neural pathways and causes the body to release endorphins that provide a nontoxic, natural form of pain relief. Unlike ultrasound and electrical stimulation, infrared technology is so gentle that patients can use it frequently without causing more damage to injuries or other chronic pathologies.

Light therapy has broad treatment applications. Using these devices, wounds and other injuries can heal faster and chronic conditions can be managed without the over use of pain and anti-inflammatory medications within a few treatments.

People with back problems, nerve damage, muscular diseases, tennis elbow, burns and other ailments have all shown marked signs of improvement using infrared light therapy.

The technology can also offset the long-term costs of surgery, pain medicines and physical therapy visits. We will be seeing infrared light used for all kinds of healing and pain control in the future. There will always be a place for medication and other modalities such as ultrasound and electrical stimulation, but now doctors will also start using light for treatment.

The FDA has approved light therapy for the treatment of head and neck pain, as well as pain associated with CTS (Carpal Tunnel Syndrome). In addition to these conditions, the literature indicates that light therapy may be beneficial in three general areas:

1. Inflammatory conditions (e.g., bursitis, tendonitis, arthritis, etc).

2. Wound care and tissue repair (e.g., diabetic ulcers, venous ulcers, bedsores, mouth ulcer, fractures, tendon ruptures, ligament tears, torn cartilage, etc).

3. Pain control (e.g., low back pain, neck pain, and pain associated with inflammatory conditions—carpal tunnel syndrome, arthritis, tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow, post-herpetic neuralgia, etc).

More about the light wavelengths used in Photizo Light Therapy:

Visible Red Light: Light that lie within the visible spectrum, from 400nm (violet) to 700nm (red). At a wavelength of 660 nanometers (nm – 1 nanometer is equal to one billionth of a meter), penetrates tissue to a depth of about 8-10 mm (about 3/8″). It is very beneficial in treating problems close to the surface such as wounds, cuts, scars, trigger points and acupuncture points, and is particularly effective in treating infections.

Infrared Light: Light in the invisible spectrum (below red), from 700nm to 2,000nm. Infrared Ray is not visible to the eye; it penetrates to a depth of about 30-40 mm (1.2″ to 1.4″), which makes it more effective for bones, joints, deep muscles, bursa, etc. Although both red and infrared wavelengths penetrate to different depths and affect tissues differently, their therapeutic effects are similar.

Benefits of light therapy

1. Photizo ® stimulates the production of ATP in the mitochondria

ATP is the major carrier of energy in the cells and is made by the cell’s power units, the mitochondria. Without ATP, all cellular functions cease, and an increase in ATP allows the cells to accept nutrients faster and to dispose of waste products by increasing the energy levels in the cell. ATP provides the chemical energy that drives the chemical reactions of the cell. ATP production is enhanced by light therapy, as light of a coherent, optimal wavelength energises the cytochrome b structure, allowing it to donate electrons to the electron transport chain at a greater rate to increase ATP production.

2. Photizo® reverses cell death process and ensures cell repair

Following injury, a cell quickly approaches a point of no return, after which cell death is a certainty. Photizo® light therapy, if administered immediately, can reverse most such cell death processes by increasing ATP production.

3. Cellular regeneration

Once a cell has died, the body needs to make new cells to replace the compromised or damaged cells. Light therapy prevents the overproduction of scar tissue and ensures quicker cellular regeneration. This is of major importance for accident victims to regain full functionality. This accelerated ‘replacement’ effect is seen in all cell types. Once cells have been boosted with light therapy they can resume their normal functioning and make new blood vessels, nerve tissue, bone cells, cartilage, etc. Light therapy does not cause cellular overgrowth or cancer – cells are merely recharged to resume their normal functioning.

4. Clearing of inflammation and increased lymphatic activity

Local inflammation, although necessary, chokes a cell. Photizo® lessens inflammation, stops cell ‘choking’ and relieves ischemia (inadequate blood supply to an organ or part of the body), helping the cell to take up nutrients and oxygen from surrounding tissue and blood vessels. Edema has two components: a liquid part, which can be evacuated by the blood system and a proteinaceous component which is comprised of proteins that have to be evacuated by the lymphatic system. Research has shown that the lymph vessel diameter and the flow of the lymphatic system can be doubled with the use of light therapy. The venous and arterial diameters can also be increased. This means that both components of edema can be evacuated faster to reduce swelling.

5. Increased immune system activity

Near-infrared light has been shown to increase immune system functioning. The exact mechanism by which this occurs cannot be explained, but several studies have shown a systemic effect in subjects on whom light therapy was used. This means that local treatment of a wound with Photizo® has a general immune enhancing effect.

6. Photizo® increases blood supply

Increased blood supply to areas occurs by stimulating the formation of new capillaries and blood vessels to replace damaged ones. This speeds up the healing process by providing more oxygen and nutrients needed for healing to the damaged cells. It also accelerates waste and debris removal from the site of injury. Light therapy has a vasodilatory effect.

7. Systemic effect and reduced excitability of nervous tissue

Photizo® assists in reducing the excitability of nerve tissue, thereby relieving pain. There is also a sharp increase in endorphins (natural pain fighters) and serotonin (the happy chemical), providing a further systemic pain-relieving and calming effect. This is of importance in acute and chronic pain relief.

8. Photizo® regulates collagen production

Collagen is the most essential protein building block used to repair damaged tissues, and to replace old tissues. By increasing and regulating collagen production less scar tissue is formed. Photizo® does not result in an overproduction of collagen – rather, it helps the cell produce optimal levels necessary for healing.

9. Promotes healing

Photizo® raises white blood cell counts and improves cell growth and stimulation. It also regulates DNA, RNA synthesis and protein synthesis in cells.

10. Pain relief

The photons of light energy enter the body as negative ions. This calls upon the body to send positive ions like calcium to enter the area being treated. These ions assist in firing the nerves, thereby relieving pain. Light therapy is successfully used in pain therapy, dermatology and rheumatology with excellent therapeutic effects in the treatment of shoulder pain, tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, bursitis, tendonitis (elbow, shoulder or knee), ankle sprain and temporo-mandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction, neck and shoulder pain, arthritis, sciatica, post-herpetic neuralgia, ulcers, fractures, soft tissue injuries, and nerve injuries.

11. Detoxification or clearing toxins from the body

Light therapy stimulates metabolism, promoting the elimination of toxins (poisons, carcinogenic heavy metals, toxic substances from food processing, lactic acid, free fatty acids, and uric acids) that accumulate in cells.

12. Accelerates metabolism

By accelerating metabolism, the aging process is prevented or slowed down. This results in improved skin conditions (including cellulite) and serves as an all-around beauty treatment.