The positive effects of photobiomodulation (PBM) on a variety of conditions or illnesses are often reported. Most of these studies focus on local effects: tissue that is directly exposed to red or near-infrared (NIR) light benefits. Our work takes the PBM effect a step further: a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study on a group (n=56) of generally healthy people shows significant (p<0.05) positive effects on health and well-being. These systemic (i.e. whole body) effects resulted from only partial exposure of their body (participants were exposed to NIR light with their face and neck only). Different doses were tested to find an optimum in terms of both effectiveness and energy usage, and the study was done in both summer and winter to verify the effect of season. In a world where most people are deprived of natural NIR light, our study shows the importance of NIR light integration in the indoor environment to enhance the health and well-being of people.
The effects of visible light on our health and well-being are widely known and have led to the emergence of circadian-friendly or ‘human-centric’ lighting. The effects of far-red or near-infrared (NIR) light on our bodies are less known (in the lighting community). These effects, called ‘photobiomodulation’ are mostly employed in specialty or therapeutic devices for wound healing or pain relief. However, a double-blind and placebo-controlled clinical study now shows that photobiomodulation is not only a local effect: generally healthy people that are exposed to NIR light benefit from improved health and well-being. Unfortunately, indoors we are deprived of NIR light as LED-based lamps only emit in the visible spectrum, and most windows block all wavelengths beyond the visible. Consequently, there is a need for NIR light sources that provide people indoors with the right dose of NIR light in an energy-efficient way to improve their health and well-being.
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