RED LIGHT THERAPY: what is it?

Red light therapy is a treatment that uses low-level red or near-infrared light to help improve healing and reduce pain. It works by shining light onto your skin, which is absorbed by your cells. This energy helps stimulate the cells to repair and regenerate, promoting healing, reducing inflammation, and easing pain. 

Red light therapy, also known as photobiomodulation (PBM), offers a non-invasive approach to support children with special needs, including autism. Here's how :

Light Application: PBM directs red and near-infrared light from lasers or LEDs onto specific body areas, including the brain. This light penetrates deeply into tissues, promoting cellular healing.

Cellular Energy Boost: The emitted light energy is absorbed by cells, stimulating the production of ATP, which provides energy to cells, enabling them to repair and regenerate.

Neurotransmitter Regulation: PBM may help regulate neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine, which are crucial for mood, behavior, and emotional regulation.  

In recent years, new uses for red light therapy are being explored to enhance pediatric speech and occupational therapies. Its benefits are being integrated into treatment plans to support children with a range of developmental challenges, helping to improve motor skills, sensory processing, emotional regulation, focus, and communication abilities.  As research continues, red light therapy shows promise as a complementary approach to traditional therapies, offering new ways to support children’s overall development and well-being.

When administered by trained professionals, red light therapy is considered safe for children with special needs, including those with autism. This non-invasive treatment can help reduce symptoms such as irritability, lethargy, pain, inflammation, stress, and anxiety. With ongoing research showing promising results, early findings suggest that red light therapy may offer a gentle and effective approach to supporting emotional regulation, enhancing cognitive function, improving mood and sensory processing, improving sleep patterns, improving focus and attention, enhancing muscle strength and function, and improved range of motion.

Red light therapy (RLT) is generally considered safe and well-tolerated, but like any treatment, there can be potential side effects, especially if used improperly or excessively. The side effects of RLT are typically mild and rare, but it’s important to be aware of them.  They include: eye sensitivity, skin irritation, headache, and heat sensitivity. To minimize any risk, it’s essential to use red light therapy under the guidance of a trained professional, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for the device, and start with shorter sessions to monitor how your body responds. 

Red light therapy is generally not recommended for individuals with certain medical conditions, such as photosensitivity disorders (e.g., lupus), or for those taking photosensitive medications. Always consult a healthcare professional before starting treatment if you have any underlying health conditions.

At Carolina Premier Therapy, we can incorporate Red Light Therapy (RLT) as a supportive tool in our occupational and speech therapy sessions. RLT has been scientifically shown to stimulate cellular repair, enhance mitochondrial function, and promote neuroplasticity, which are key factors in supporting developmental progress.

For children with speech and language delays, RLT can facilitate improvements in oral motor coordination, increase circulation to the brain, and reduce neuroinflammation, which can enhance cognitive function and communication skills.  Red light therapy may also help by enhancing muscle function in the mouth, tongue, and throat, making articulation exercises more effective. Additionally, it may help improve cognitive function, making it easier for your child to process language and follow directions.  In occupational therapy, RLT can aid in muscle recovery, improve joint mobility, and regulate the autonomic nervous system, benefiting children with sensory processing challenges, motor delays, and conditions like cerebral palsy or autism spectrum disorder. Additionally, RLT has been shown to support immune function, reduce oxidative stress, and accelerate wound healing, making it a valuable tool in holistic pediatric care.

By integrating RLT into our comprehensive therapy approach, we strive to optimize each child's neurological, motor, and sensory development for lasting progress and well-being.

Incorporating red light therapy into a speech or occupational therapy session can provide a holistic approach by supporting both the physical and neurological aspects of your child’s development. RLT sessions are tailored to individual needs and administered by trained professionals, ensuring safety and optimal effectiveness for each child’s unique condition.  They can be incorporated into the sessions, or used before or after the session, depending on the individual's goal.  Here are some examples of how RLT can be used with speech or occupational therapy: 

Starting with Red Light Therapy (~5-10 minutes):
At the beginning of the session, your child would receive a brief, targeted red light therapy session. This can be done while your child is seated or laying comfortably, and the therapist will apply red light (via a device) to specific areas of the body, depending on the focus of the therapy. This energy helps stimulate the cells to repair and regenerate, promoting healing, reducing inflammation, and easing pain.  After the red light therapy, your child will move on to the main part of the session, whether it’s speech or occupational therapy. With the benefits of reduced inflammation, improved mood or focus, and/or increased energy from the red light therapy, the child may find it easier to engage in activities like speaking, practicing articulation, or completing physical tasks like building blocks, using scissors, or dressing. Starting a session with RLT can help reduce symptoms such as irritability, lethargy, pain, inflammation, stress, and anxiety, which can help students who experience these symptoms achieve a more successful therapy session.

Physical, Neurological and Cellular Support during a Session:
The red light therapy helps to improve cellular energy (ATP production), which supports brain function, enhances mood, and improves focus. This is especially helpful for children who may have difficulty staying engaged or regulating emotions during therapy.  RLT can also aid in muscle recovery, improve joint mobility, and regulate the autonomic nervous system, benefiting children with motor impairments or sensory processing challenges.  For example, if your child struggles with focus during speech therapy, or joint pain during OT, a brief red light therapy session can be incorporated during their therapy time to help improve these symptoms.

Lasting Benefits after the RLT Session:
After the session, the energy from the red light therapy continues to work at the cellular level, helping to repair and regenerate tissues. This process boosts the body's healing capacity, promoting faster recovery from any injuries or physical stress, reduced inflammation, and improving overall tissue health over time.   Red light therapy helps regulate neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine, which influence mood, behavior, and emotional stability. After the session, these neurotransmitter levels remain balanced for some time, promoting a more stable mood and improved emotional regulation.  Red light therapy can have lasting cognitive benefits. By stimulating the brain and improving circulation, it can help increase focus, attention, and mental clarity. These benefits can persist beyond the therapy session, making it easier for your child to stay engaged in tasks, follow instructions, and participate in other activities.  Red light therapy can also support better sleep patterns by helping regulate circadian rhythms. After a session, your child may experience improved sleep quality, which in turn helps their overall recovery, emotional balance, and ability to engage in therapy or other activities the following day. 

Holistic Impact:
Overall, red light therapy works synergistically with speech and occupational therapy. It helps regulate emotions, reduce stress, enhance cognitive focus, and improve physical function, all of which are key components in your child’s development. The therapy is non-invasive, safe, and gentle, making it a valuable addition to their treatment plan to support holistic growth and well-being.

By integrating red light therapy in a 30-minute session, your child benefits from both the immediate physical and emotional support of the light therapy, followed by targeted therapy goals, ultimately enhancing the effectiveness of the entire session.   Over time, with regular sessions, the cumulative effects of red light therapy can lead to more significant improvements in physical, cognitive, and emotional well-being. This means that each session builds on the last, providing long-term support for your child’s progress in speech therapy, occupational therapy, or other developmental areas. 

Positive Outcomes: Many parents have reported improvements in their children's mood, energy levels, communication, and social interactions after regular RLT sessions. These effects are often seen in combination with other therapies.

Through its cellular and neurological effects, red light therapy offers a promising avenue to enhance the well-being of children with special needs. As with any treatment, it’s important to consult with healthcare professionals for personalized guidance and to ensure the therapy complements other interventions. Please contact us for more information!