LED Light Therapy (For Spa and Home)

LED and The Energy Currency of Life

Many of our clients were wondering how and why the Light therapy works. How does it benefit the skin? We asked Amy Gardner, Educational Coordinator at LightStim to explain all the science in black and white, and here it is:

“It has been said by some that as time marches on our bodies make less and less of the good stuff, and more and more of the bad stuff.  Although simply phrased, there is some truth to this.  Of the things that the body becomes less efficient at producing, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is one of the most important.  ATP is a complex molecule that is utilized by the body’s cells as an energy source for just about everything we do, from building important proteins and enzymes and synthesizing DNA and RNA, to simple muscle contractions.  It is often referred to as “the energy currency of life.” It has been suggested that the average person utilizes roughly the equivalent of his or her body weight in ATP on a daily basis, and that after the age of 60 our ability to produce  this essential compound diminishes by almost half.

ATP is important to the appearance of the skin in that it supplies energy necessary to produce proteins like collagen for plumping and firming, and elastin for elasticity and spring.  Consequently, treatments that are known to stimulate ATP production are widely used in esthetics.  One of the safest, most effective tools used by skin care professionals for this purpose is LED light therapy.

LED is a non-invasive, soothing treatment that utilizes light based energy to stimulate and support your body’s own natural cellular processes, including the production of ATP. 

In Salon – In addition to ATP production, LED helps promote circulation leaving your skin glowing and hydrated.  It has also been shown to reduce inflammation, and is often used by plastic surgeons and other medical professionals to accelerate healing, and reduce erythema, bruising and swelling. Although you may not be aware of inflammation in your skin, it is virtually unavoidable in modern society.  This condition (often referred to as “inflammaging”) is well established among skin care professionals as an important contributor to the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and laxity. This chronic, silent  inflammation occurs as a result of exposure to pollution, stress, UV, and other ongoing environmental assaults.  Keeping inflammation at bay is believed to help reduce the appearance of aging skin.

Home Care – It is estimated that after the age of 30, we lose approximately 1% of collagen per year.  Of course it takes time to observe the cumulative effects of this continued loss. The same is true of collagen rebuilding triggered by LED light therapy – the best results are achieved over time and with regular use. For this reason, it can be helpful to purchase your own portable device for regular home use.  A small hand-held LED device can be used at home along with serums recommended by your skin care provider to support the services you receive in the treatment room. Since most clients only receive professional services every 4-6 weeks, the importance of customized and targeted home care as recommended by a qualified professional after professional skin analysis cannot be emphasized enough.

Understanding what the skin requires to function at its peak efficiency is critical to maintaining skin health.  A healthy diet, water consumption, stress management and exercise are all vitally important, however, because our bodies become less efficient at metabolizing energy from the foods we eat over time, it is important to enlist supplemental energy sources for optimal cellular and metabolic function.  A simple and effective way to do this is with the use of LED treatments.”

-Amy Gardner
Educational Coordinator

For maximum results it is recommended to receive an LED light Therapy treatment at least one a month in the center and use 3-7 times a week at home device with our serums/oils. 

LED Light benefits for the skin

LED Lights are gaining more and more positive reputation in the beauty industry. How do they work? Are they safe? Can they burn the skin? Can one overuse the LED Light. Can it damage the skin? Those are the usual questions that clients ask once introduced to LED Light Therapy.

LED stands for Light Emitting Diode. LED Light Therapy is a way to utilizing safe light to generate energy needed for the repair and regeneration of human cells. Without light there would be no human or animal life on Earth. Over 15 years ago NASA-sponsored research to develop LED light to generate photosynthesis to grow plants in space. Even more importantly LED Light is used to maintain astronauts health: sustain normal cell growth, prevent bone and muscle loss, to boost body’s ability to heal woulds.  Cells exposed to certain infrared LED light grow and heal up to 200% faster that cells not stimulated by LEDs.

LED lights are used in medical field to reduce pain, for would healing, to heal Radiation-induced dermatitis, for brain and liver cancer, for diabetic retinopathy and neuropathy, actinic keratosis and skin cancers.

Anti-aging benefits were discovered while treating skin cancer. It was noticed that the skin around the treated area got smoother and looked younger.  LED light therapy also is used for skin conditions like: acne, certain types of dermatitis, psoriasis. Different LED light colors target specific skin conditions:

Blue Light-kills acne bacteria;

Amber Light-builds collagen and elastin;

Red Light-reduces inflammation and promotes circulation;

Infrared Light-accelerates healing, reduces inflammation, promotes circulation, and encourages greater product absorption.

LED Lights are safe to use for everyone. They are non-invasive, provide benefits of sunlight without the damaging effects of UV rays. The results are cumulative. The longer you use, the better it gets. LED light cannot burn or anyhow else damage the skin. It can be used daily, anywhere from 3 to 45 minutes.

So how the LED light work? Light is a form of energy called photons. Cells absorb photons and convert them into adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the form of energy that cells use to carry out normal functions. To simplify that, you get the following benefits:

• improved cell metabolism,
• improved cell regeneration,
• restore stability of cells,
• increased collagen and elastin production,
• reduced inflammation,
• accelerated healing,
• increased blood circulation,
• destruction of acne bacteria,
• stimulates oxygenation and hydration,
• minimizes appearance of pores,
• tightens the skin,
• increases skin density,
• helps to prevent environmental damage,
• calms and soothes the skin after waxing,
• promotes skin glow,
• promotes better product absorption,
• reduces the appearance or lines and wrinkles.

LED Light treatments can be successfully used as a stand alone facial treatment or incorporated in a facial to multiply the benefits. LED Light treatments can be added to any facial, except I would not recommend adding it after Peel.