How LED Face Masks and Red Light Therapy Work to Reverse Wrinkles (2024)

Topical retinoids, similar over-the-counter retinol and medicine tretinoin, tin besides treat wrinkles and texture by slowing the breakdown of collagen and expanding tegument compartment turnover. Both retinol and LEDs typically instrumentality respective months to spot results, but retinoids travel with much side effects, specified arsenic accrued breakouts and sometimes flaky, burning skin.

Unfortunately, not everyone volition spot results from reddish oregon bluish airy therapy—and this mightiness lend to the suspicion astir these devices and whether they work. You won't cognize until you try, though you should speech to a dermatologist to spot what they urge based connected your tegument type. Waldman says there's nary crushed to judge reddish airy could beryllium harmful if you're large oregon breastfeeding, but arsenic determination isn't overmuch probe involving large women, you should consult your doc first. We besides urge making definite the instrumentality you're considering is FDA-cleared.

Wavelengths Explained

Light therapy devices are often rather costly, but there's bully reason: You can't get the aforesaid effect with conscionable immoderate reddish LED from the hardware store. If the wavelength isn't beardown enough, it won't penetrate your skin—sorry to the 1 TikTokker sitting successful beforehand of a heated chickenhearted lamp.

These are the emblematic wavelengths, measured successful nanometers, to look for:

• Red airy therapy commonly uses wavelengths successful the 630 to 660 nanometer range, with the lowest effectual wavelength astir 600 nanometers.
• Near-infrared reddish lights are commonly 800 to 1,400 nanometers. These penetrate deeper into the tegument and are utilized mostly for healing and reducing inflammation.
• Blue light is typically 405 to 420 nanometers to termination acne-causing bacteria.

How to Use Red Light Therapy and LED Face Masks

LED airy therapy doesn't enactment for everyone, but consistency is important if you privation to effort it. If you don't deliberation you'll retrieve to usage a airy therapy disguise aggregate times a week, you won't spot results, and it won't beryllium worthy the money.

Follow the directions for the circumstantial instrumentality you're using, but successful wide you'll privation to wash and adust your face and use the disguise earlier applying immoderate skin-care products. Devices should person a acceptable league time, usually betwixt 3 and 10 minutes. Use it for the afloat clip unless it feels uncomfortable. Apply your tegument attraction aft arsenic normal, focusing connected hydrating serums oregon moisturizers, particularly if you're prone to dryness. Do not usage these masks longer than indicated successful their directions.

While you tin usage reddish airy therapy and retinoids successful your routine, Waldman doesn't urge utilizing them simultaneously, arsenic it tin summation the accidental of irritation.

Take immoderate photos earlier you commencement utilizing a disguise truthful you tin way progress. You whitethorn not spot melodramatic results immediately, but with photos you tin astatine slightest archer whether thing is happening.

Our Testing and Recommendations

I tried the Omnilux Contour LED mask, which is among the astir fashionable LED look masks. The reddish airy wavelengths are 633 nanometers, and near-infrared are 830 nanometers. It has preprogrammed 10-minute sessions, and the institution says to usage it 3 to 5 times a week for 4 to six weeks. Then you'll privation to support up the results by utilizing the instrumentality occasionally aft that.

Six weeks was not agelong capable for maine to spot results—I ended up utilizing it for 3 months straight. Sadly, I didn't announcement overmuch of a quality successful my wrinkles. Some radical whitethorn spot results sooner, but Waldman says that 3 months is typically the earliest magnitude of clip that you'd spot results. “You didn’t get wrinkles overnight, and they’re not going to spell distant overnight. Consistency and patience are key,” she says.