Red Light Therapy — Sneak Peek

I’ve been so honored by the support of my community for my book Reversing Alzheimer’s. When I started this project I had the goal of making the best seller lists so that this information could get into the hands of thousands more people than I could ever reach via my summits, my practice, this email or social media. 

In gratitude, I want to give you an advance sneak peek from the book. Here’s a section from Chapter 12: A Glimpse in the Near Future that talks about red-light therapy.

📖 ### 📖

Red light therapy, also known as photobiomodulation (PBM), which I also cover in Chapter 8 as a potential health-boosting activity, uses red or near-infrared light to stimulate healing processes in the body, and has an impressive and growing body of research that demonstrates benefits for brain health. 

This part of the light spectrum approximates the light emitted at sunrise and sunset. From an evolutionary perspective, this part of the light spectrum helps calibrate your circadian rhythm, which plays a role in regulating multiple systems of the body. It also boosts the function of mitochondria, helping them produce more energy in the form of ATP with fewer resources, in part by enhancing function of the cytochrome c oxygenase enzyme, which shuttles electrons into the mitochondria. It increases blood flow to the brain and the removal of waste products through the stimulation of the flow of lymphatic fluid; reduces neuroinflammation and swelling; promotes the formation of new blood vessels and synapses; and raises levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and antioxidants.

Studies have found benefits of PBM in both animal and human experiments on traumatic brain injury, stroke, and dementia. Research out of Harvard Medical School and the University of California at San Francisco has found that wearing a transcranial photobiomodulation device (which looks like a helmet) at home creates a decrease in symptoms of cognitive decline, angry outbursts, and anxiety, and an increase in sleep and cognitive function. 

Although the research is compelling, the reason I decided to invest in red light therapy devices and make their use a priority for Marama residents is because I had patients telling me how much benefit they got out of using these devices. One of the first residents who used the cranial device had very high anxiety, needed a lot of one-on-one care, and would sometimes wake up in the mornings with an impaired ability to speak. After twenty minutes of using the device, she would come back to her baseline. Of course, there are so many variables at play—including diet, exercise, activities, and community—that you can’t isolate just one as being the cause of benefit. But my strong suspicion is that red light helps our residents. It’s also very low risk—the only potential downsides are the cost of the device and the time you spend using them. (See the Resources section for the red light devices we use at Marama.)

UPSIDES: Very low risk, strong body of research, and my clinical experience points to important brain benefits.

DOWNSIDES: Cost of purchasing the device (although you can share red light devices with other people in your household or even a neighboring household, reducing the investment) and time spent using it (it appears to work best with consistent use of about twenty minutes five to six days per week, although you can do other things while using it, like cook, meditate, or read).

YOU’RE A GOOD CANDIDATE IF: Red light therapy has a broad application and benefit, whether you’re actively experiencing cognitive decline or not. As I mentioned, many of our twenty-something staff members at Marama have used our red light devices and report that it

helps them feel less anxious. You do not need to be actively experiencing memory loss to benefit.

📖 ### 📖

I hope you enjoyed this sneak peak. If you want to help me reach as many people as I can with the message that Reversing Alzheimer’s is possible – book presales are critical for hitting those best-seller lists. I’m giving away over $300 in bonuses for all preorders. I encourage you to order one for a friend, a family member, your doctor, your library. If you can purchase 10 or more copies for your community, there are discounts and special opportunities to connect with me personally.

Thank you again for joining me in this mission to create a world without dementia.

Warmly,
Dr. Heather Sandison

P.S. – If you want to try incorporating red light therapies, I often recommend HigherDOSE’s products. They are developed using science-backed therapies including red light, Infrared, and PEMF (Pulsed Electro Magnetic Field Therapy).