The Remarkable Benefits of Red Light Therapy for Weight Loss and Fat Reduction

Losing weight and extra fat is a common health goal for almost everyone. For some, all it takes is a clean diet and adequate exercise. But for others, it’s not that simple. Often times, there are deeper health issues that prevent the body’s metabolic rate from working properly. Stress, for example, has a proven negative effect on metabolism.

That’s why working out and dieting becomes a frustrating, never-ending cycle for lots of people. It’s easy to blame yourself when you’re not seeing the results you’d like. Does that sound familiar? If so, don’t lose hope! There’s a new tool that may help your body begin to process fat the way it should.

Just as red and near infrared light is demonstrating promise for a host of health issues, it has shown surprisingly effective results for fat loss as well. Unlike many solutions promoted for weight-loss, such as medications and surgery, red and near infrared light therapy provide a safe, natural and non-invasive option to becoming healthier and more fit.

How Does Light Therapy Work to Reduce Fat?

In a previous article, we discussed how red and near infrared light impacts the human body in a unique way. Our bodies absorb light energy—especially at certain wavelengths —and our cells respond by performing their day-to-day functions at an improved level. Not only does this help with things like skin health and muscle recovery, but it also plays a role in the body’s ability to process fat.

It has been well documented that red light at certain wavelengths stimulates mitochondrial and cellular energy (called adenosine triphosphate, or ATP) production. This happens as part of the cellular respiration process in which cells break down and convert stored energy—releasing waste products along the way.

The full story of exactly how red light therapy provides so many amazing benefits is a little complicated, and deserves its own post—which you’ll find right here. But in short, most researchers agree that light therapy affects adipocytes, which are cells that store fat, causing the lipids to disperse. In other words, light therapy helps the body wash away fat cells.

Light therapy may work in other ways that affect fat and weight loss. For instance, a 2012 study in the International Journal of Endocrinology showed that light can affect hunger, which could help prevent the buildup of extra fat before it even begins. This study found that red light helped control levels of the hunger-related hormones leptin and ghrelin in sleep-deprived participants.

What Does Other Research Say About Light Therapy and Fat Loss?

Besides the obvious health concerns related to obesity and excess fat, one of the primary motivating factors for people trying to lose weight has more to do with what they see in the mirror, not what they read on the scale. The concept of “body contouring” has become a commonly used term to market all sorts of therapies and treatments. Unfortunately, a lot of these either don’t work, or they produce undesirable side effects. Red light therapy, on the other hand, has proven itself be extremely effective when it comes to physically changing the way your body looks.