Can we use light therapy to help with fat loss?
The simple answer is yes. Red light is proven to assist in significant fat loss without the use of needles, incisions or surgery. Red light is an easy and efficient way to enhance fat loss.
First of all can we acknowledge that the phrase here is fat loss and not weight loss. Because we know that weight loss is relatively easily achieved by cutting calories. However, you lose both fat and fat free mass during this time, your metabolism slows and therefore the lost weight is hard to keep off.
Once we have lost this weight, we often go back to eating the way we did before the “diet” and this leads to regain of the weight and often more than the starting weight. In an ideal world we would lose fat and not the lean muscle mass in order to keep our health as optimum as possible.
HOW DOES RED LIGHT THERAPY CONTRIBUTE TO WEIGHT LOSS?
Red light therapy effects fat cell, obesity control, hormones, cellulite and even body shape. This non-invasive option allows you to become healthier, fitter and more energetic from the comfort of your own home. It is safe and has none of the side effects of many of the surgeries and pills promoted for weight loss currently.
The three main areas in which red light therapy primarily work to help with fat loss are bioenergetics, hormone control and blood flow.
Hunger and Hormones -
We all know that one of the major issues with dieting is HUNGER!
Red light has been shown (Here) to help reduce these craving to eat as much as before and increase to prevalent hormones in weight stability – Leptin and Ghrelin. A 2012 study in the International Journal of Endocrinology showed that light can affect hunger levels. This finding could actually help reduce the buildup of extra fat or help prevent the regaining of fat after significant weightloss. This study found that red light helped control levels of the hunger-related hormones leptin and ghrelin in sleep-deprived participants.
Reduced body fat
Reduced body fat: A well-constructed triple-blind, placebo-controlled trial (here) assessed red light therapy’s effects on people doing endurance training. It was established that pre-treatment with red light helped reduce body fat: “decrease the body fat in healthy volunteers when compared to placebo.”
This review study (here) further underlines the ability of red/NIR light the assist in any fat loss program. “The studies as of today suggest that LLLT has a potential to be used in fat and cellulite reduction as well as in improvement of blood lipid profile without any significant side effects.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3769994/figure/F2/?report=objectonly
Cosmetic
Many people attempting to lose weight do so, at least impart, for cosmetic reasons. There is nothing wrong in having cosmetic reasons to lose fat or change your appearance. One of the great things about red light therapy is the positives are both cosmetic and health promoting. Whether that be from reductions in inflammation, improved energy, more efficient mitochondria and a lot more. Try to use the cosmetic reasons perhaps as an additional benefit.
Cellulite
A study posted in 2011 in the journal of cosmetic laser therapy found significant reductions in cellulite in females 25-55 when combined with treadmill exercise. The researchers demonstrated their finds with with thermographic images and identified that red light therapy combined with exercise was markedly better than exercise alone in reducing cellulite. The study соnсludеd that trеаdmіll еxеrсіѕе and rеd-lіght thеrару when combined can іmрrоvе the appearance of cellulite.
Bоdу Contouring
Some people go to extreme measures, to get the curves in all the “right places”. We have all been there and looked in the mirror and thought we could do with “a bit there and little less there”. A wіdе vаrіеtу оf trеаtmеntѕ tend to focus оn fаt and to іmрrоvе рhуѕісаl арреаrаnсе without looking at the underlying cause of caring about the health of the individual. With red light, you know you are benefiting your health at the same time. Red light therapy is proven effective in changing the way your body looks and performs.
Smaller Waistline, Less Girth:
In the Journal of Obesity Surgery in 2011, a well constructed double blind study used light waves 635-680nm (OptiBio range has both peak 630 and 670nm wavelengths) to try and reduce waistline size in 40 healthy men and women. For four weeks participants underwent treatment twice a week. . At the end of the study, the participant achieve a significant reduction in waistline measurements
Targeted Fat Loss
A similar study published 2009 in Lasers in Surgery Medicine, showed similar results. 67 participants who received light therapy showed a significant reduction in circumference in as little as 2 weeks, including numerous parts of the body.
“Test group participants demonstrated a reduction of -0.98 in. (P < 0.0001) across the waist, -1.05 in. (P < 0.01) across the hip, and -0.85 in. (P < 0.01) and -0.65 in. (P < 0.01) across the right and left thighs from baseline to 2 weeks (end of treatment)”
My problem area – hips and thighs
A 2013 study in Lasers in Surgery Medicine found significant benefits from red light at 635 nm for contouring the hips, thighs, and waist. Having been in the coaching and training industry for over 10 years, I can say the specific areas women have consistently asked for my help in – are hips, thighs and waist.
The research took 86 women and treated them every other day.E ach treatment consisted of 20 minutes of anterior and posterior treatment. Patients received concurrent treatment of the waist, hips, and bilateral thighs.
Researchers reported a mean loss of 2.99 inches (7.59 cm) in overall body size compared to the starting point. Separately, the thigh, waist, and hip areas all showed a reduction too. Researchers concluded that red light therapy at this wavelength was safe and clinically effective
Weight and Obesity Control:
We have discussed some elements of obesity and hunger control with the use of red lights effecting hormones and also helping reduce fat when combined with other modalities and alone.
Another study echoed a combination approach to red light therapy. This time using exercise and red light therapy vs an exercise only group. Researchers demonstrated that when comibined with red light, exercise became more effective at reducing fat mass, and strangely, they also recorded an increase in muscle mass:
“Our results demonstrated for the first time that light therapy enhances the physical exercise effects in obese women undergoing weight loss treatment promoting significant changes in inflexibility metabolic profile.”
A recent study published in 2018 also evaluated obese young women and found similar results. Some followed an exercise regimen + red light therapy, while the control group just did the exercise. The women who did exercise and red light therapy saw more significant changes in fat mass and insulin variables.
Muscle mass loss during weight loss
As mentioned earlier, one of the negative effects of weight loss is that you lose muscle as well as the fat. With red light therapy, you can prevent that muscle loss as well. This further demonstrates the benefits of red light therapy for fat loss and health, as well as maintaining muscle mass:
“ The studies as of today suggest that LLLT has a potential to be used in fat and cellulite reduction as well as in improvement of blood lipid profile without any significant side effects”
“Light-emitting diode therapy can be useful to reduce muscle damage, pain, and atrophy, as well as to increase muscle mass, recovery, and athletic performance in rehabilitation programs and sports medicine.”
Conclusion:
If you are someone who has struggled with their weight, red light has been proven to be effective in helping reduce fat content in a wide range of people. From obese individuals, to endurance runners, red light has shown to be an effective, non-invasive method to positively effect your health and fat mass.