Can Red Light Therapy Help with Rosacea?

Can Red Light Therapy Help With Rosacea?

Red light therapy is proven to work behind the scenes to fight off redness and irritation. It helps to calm down skin inflammation, increase collagen and promote a healthier overall appearance of your skin.

The book “Light Years Ahead” has collected many studies showing that visible red light (in the range of 630 nm to 700nm) can boost the skin’s healing rate by 200%.

Red light therapy involves exposing your skin to strong sources of visible red light (610-700 nm), usually through LED light therapy.

(The same light wavelength was also proven to accelerate diabetic wound healing by up to 170%!)

Red Light Therapy Benefits for Rosacea

Here are the proven benefits of phototherapy for your skin:

1. Low-Level Laser Therapy was repeatedly proven times to naturally reduce inflammation and pain.

When you control inflammation, it reduces swelling, redness, itching, and pain.

2. It is proven to boost skin healing.

3. It prevents the worsening of existent rosacea symptoms

4. It is safe and generally side-effects-free for daily use – for people of all ages

5. It is easy and simple to use at home and requires little time and effort

6. It is painless and non-invasive

7. It does not lose effectiveness over time

👉 In a Hurry? jump to the best LED light therapy devices for rosacea

The 4 Best Red Light Therapy Devices for Rosacea

There are a few important questions to answer before you decide:

1. Do you need a handheld device or a large 2-panel device?

A large red light therapy system can cover your entire face in one treatment, but if your Rosacea is located only around your cheeks, you may not need it.

If you need to travel with your device, you’ll need a handheld device.

2. How much will you be able to spend?

Red light home treatment for Rosacea depends a lot on your patience and consistency.

You’ll have to treat yourself every day for at least a few minutes to see results and keep them.

Red light therapy panels require no effort but are more expensive, while handheld devices require manual effort (to move them around the affected areas) – but are less expensive.

👉 See all the best Red LED light therapy home devices – for every need and budget!

1. Lightstim for Rosacea

The Lightstim for Acne is a handheld and lightweight LED light therapy device that combines red and blue light therapy – proven to kill acne-causing bacteria, which can be hiding deep underneath rosacea outbreaks.

Using Lightstim can make your skin more resilient to “bacteria attacks” and less sensitive.

The red light works to heal the skin and prevent scars.

It’s very easy to use – you just place it over the affected area and hold it there for 3 minutes – then move on to the next area. Do not overuse and go over the recommended treatment time.

Revive Light Therapy also offers an excellent LED light therapy panel – the dpl IIa. You can see my full reviews in my Revive Light Therapy reviews post.

2. LED Light Therapy Face Mask

The Aduro LED mask is our #1 pick for 2024 and is a perfect fit for rosacea treatment at home:

It has 8 different colors, can be pre-programmed (11 programs), and has an automatic shut-off when treatment is done.

The greatest advantages of using a mask is the no-effort factor, and the direct contact of the red light therapy with the skin – without heating it. It also covers the entire facial skin in one treatment.

It is powerful yet gentle enough to treat rosacea redness and pain – without causing more irritation or swelling.

👉 See my full review of the Aduro LED mask.

3. Red LED Light Therapy 38 LED Bulb

The lowest cost option is the red LED light therapy bulb, emitting the right wavelengths for rosacea treatment – 650 nm.

The one in the image below also emits a deep penetrating near-infrared wavelength at 850 nm.

The bulb is equipped with a 60-degree glass lens and an additional super-large optical lens.

These lenses improve the concentration of the light, allowing it to be more focused on your skin.

This means that the therapy light will have a higher intensity (measured as Irradiance) of more than 141mW/cm2.

The higher the intensity, the better the light can reach your skin and provide the desired effects.

It fits into a standard E26/E27 socket, just like any regular light bulb.

You can set it up in any suitable lamp or fixture at your home.

However, keep a safe distance of at least 12 inches away from it, to avoid heating your skin.

Remember:

One of the Rosacea triggers is too much heat, so I recommend a powerful yet not too powerful device, as this woman testifies in the Essential day spa forum:

“Heat was my biggest concern with the Quasar SP, it did make my rosacea flare up so I switched back to baby Q (Baby Quasar). It seems to make my Rosacea calm and more even toned.”

How Does Red Light Therapy for Rosacea Work?

Visible red light from a high-quality LED light therapy device can penetrate your skin to a depth of about 8-10 mm.

When the red light wavelength reaches your skin affected by Rosacea, the skin cells absorb it and it results in increased microcirculation, which accelerates the healing and rebuilding ability of the cells.

The result?

The flushing, swelling, bumps, pain, and sensitivity to triggers – are noticeably relieved – without medication and topical creams (which only trigger more flare-ups).

If you’d like a scientific explanation, here it is:

The photons (light units) are absorbed by mitochondrial chromophores in skin cells, resulting in electron transport, ATP nitric oxide release, increased blood flow, increased oxygen, and activation of diverse signaling pathways.

👉 See all the proven red light therapy skin benefits

Can Red Light Therapy Help with Broken Capillaries?

Red light therapy is very effective for broken capillaries around the nose and on the cheeks as well.

Here’s one woman’s testimonial from the Essential Day Spa forum:

“Kandy, I had a fresh, single spider vein on my cheek, and it just dawned on me that it is now barely visible after three weeks of using the RLS (Rosacea LightStim)!”

Which Color Light Therapy is Best for Rosacea?

For treating Rosacea symptoms, the absolute optimal spectrum ranges are 610-625nm & 660-690nm.

The absolute optimal single wavelengths are 660 nm and 680 nm.

According to Dr. David J. Goldberg’s interview on the Rosacea Support Group website:

Basic rule is yellow LED for mild redness, red LED for more inflamed rosacea, a combination of red and near-infrared for inflammation and swelling”.

Most home red light therapy devices (advertised for acne) will have these exact light waves.

How Long Until I See Results?

Results will be seen depending on your skin’s reaction to red light therapy and the severity of your symptoms.

Some people feel immediate relief from pain, itching, redness (erythema), and inflammation. For others, it can take longer.

Two weeks seems to be the average, but only if the LED home treatment is consistent (once every day or every couple of days).

After 4 weeks, you can expect a noticeable improvement in Rosacea symptoms.

Here’s a testimonial from the Essential Day Spa forum:

“I’ve been using my Rosacea LightStim for three weeks now. I do it every night for five minutes per area. Started using the Purple Emu Rosacea treatment shortly after I began with the LightStim. While I didn’t have any significant breakouts, my skin was really red and reactive all of the time. I’ve seen a significant reduction in the redness… I’ve also had friends comment that my face is less red than usual. So far, I’m really pleased.”

Can Red Light Therapy Make Rosacea Worse?

Based on scientific findings, it does not appear that red light therapy makes rosacea worse. In fact, it is effective in treating rosacea and reducing symptoms.

In fact, according to the American Academy of Dermatology Association, red light therapy can be used to reduce visible blood vessels and thickening skin caused by rosacea.

However, it is important to note that individual responses to treatments may vary, and sometimes redness can get a little worse before it gets better.

Here’s a testimonial about that from someone who uses Lightstim Rosacea:

“…My skin did indeed adjust just fine to the warmth. In the first week, I could feel the heat radiating over my face, even making my ears warm! After about five days, though, my skin seemed to adjust, and it was no longer a problem.”

Red LED light therapy can be safely used along with the majority of medications.

As for topical treatments for Rosacea:

Some topical medications can cause light sensitivity (for example Metrocream/Metrogel).

That’s why you have to use light therapy on clean skin. Apply your topical treatment only after the red light treatment.

What’s The Best Rosacea Cream to Use with Red Light Therapy?

After finishing your home red light rosacea treatment, we recommend using this cream to help speed up your results.

The Puriya all-natural cream for rosacea, psoriasis, eczema, and rashes (with the powerful Amaranth oil) can provide instant relief from itching and pain and is perfect for after red light treatment.

Conclusion

Even though Rosacea is claimed to be an incurable disease, I certainly hope that you don’t give up the battle.

Red light therapy home treatments are proven safe and effective, though the effect is different for each person.

The only way to know is to try.

I’ve shown you how exactly to use LLLT as a natural treatment for Rosacea, including the best home devices for it.

I sincerely hope that this information helps you and other people.

See more about the proven skin benefits of red light therapy.

If you have any questions or comments, please share them with us in the comments below.

To your health and happiness,

Meital

Studies

Bjordal, Jan et al. (2010). The anti-inflammatory mechanism of low level laser therapy and its relevance for clinical use in physiotherapy. Physical Therapy Reviews. 15. 286-293. 10.1179/1743288X10Y.0000000001.

Avci P, Gupta A, Sadasivam M, et al. Low-level laser (light) therapy (LLLT) in skin: stimulating, healing, restoring. Semin Cutan Med Surg. 2013;32(1):41–52.

Ablon G. Phototherapy with Light Emitting Diodes: Treating a Broad Range of Medical and Aesthetic Conditions in Dermatology. J Clin Aesthet Dermatol. 2018;11(2):21–27.

Diogo MLG, Campos TM, Fonseca ESR, Pavani C, Horliana ACRT, Fernandes KPS, Bussadori SK, Fantin FGMM, Leite DPV, Yamamoto ÂTA, Navarro RS, Motta LJ. Effect of Blue Light on Acne Vulgaris: A Systematic Review. Sensors (Basel). 2021 Oct 19;21(20):6943. doi: 10.3390/s21206943. PMID: 34696155; PMCID: PMC8537635.