LED Facial Treatments

LED, or light emitting diodes, have become popular because they are able to provide a great deal of light by using considerably less energy than incandescent or fluorescent lights. LED bulbs last longer than other types of bulbs, and the bulbs do not give off much heat. NASA first invented LED lighting as a means of growing plants on space expeditions, but many more uses have developed. Most surprisingly are the uses for LED lighting on facial and body skin.

Anti-Aging Treatment

• Researchers at the University of Ulm in Germany discovered that exposing facial skin to multiple LED treatments over a period of several weeks caused significant changes for their study participants. The participants reported improved skin texture and resilience. The researchers theorize that the LED lighting enables chemical changes that restore elastin to its more flexible state, thus relaxing facial wrinkles in the process.

Acne Treatment

• LED lighting has been tested by several clinics as a treatment against acne and its subsequent scarring. Researchers at the Mayumi Clinic in California found that patients reported improvement in their acne after approximately five treatments. Further improvement did require multiple treatments, but both scarring and inflamed acne improved. Participants with oily skin reported a reduction in oil production overall.

Wound Healing

• Dr. Harry Whelan of the Medical College of Wisconsin reports that LED lighting helps to heal treatment-resistant wounds. Skin ulcers caused by diabetic complications, radiation and chemotherapy wounds and painful burns have all been improved by exposure to LED lighting. The theory behind the treatment is that the LED lights are able to increase the amount of energy that cells are able to access to heal themselves and thus heal faster.