Light Therapy For Acne - Can It Really Work?

If acne is a problem for you then you probably just want a solution that will work quickly and effectively. Light therapy for acne is not a new solution, in the years before we wised up about the damage that sunlight can do to the skin many doctors would advise acne sufferers to let the sun dry up their acne problem. Of course that is not a sensible solution as it could potentially replaces the acne with much more serious and even life threatening conditions.

Fortunately modern acne light therapy lamps have solved that problem by providing light that is strong enough to treat acne but is not damaging to the skin. Acne light therapy lamps can offer a very real alternative to the creams and lotions that can be messy to apply and over time can lose their effectiveness.

How does Light therapy work on acne? The most effective treatments use a combination of blue and red light. Each particular wavelength works in its own way and together they can effectively clear up acne and make sure it does not come back.

Blue light kills the bacteria that can lead to skin inflammation and the redness that is a classic symptom of acne. We naturally carry bacteria over the whole surface of the skin. Most of the time this causes no problems at all. But if the bacteria increase in levels the skin can become irritated and start to become inflamed. Blue light kills bacteria and is a useful tool for keeping it under control.

Red light encourages your body to generate new skin cells. This means that skin damaged by spots heals more quickly. Red light can even improve the appearance of skin damaged by acne scarring.

Once of the great things about using acne light therapy is the ease of treatment. Lotions can be very messy, they can stain clothing and sometimes skin can be irritated by the very treatments that are supposed to heal.

Using an acne lamp means simply exposing the affected skin to light for around 15 minute sessions. The light can be directed onto small areas to intensively treat outbreaks, or you can use the light to treat a wider area. Light therapy is a particularly effective treatment for back acne where a thorough cleansing routine is more difficult.

The biggest obstacle to using light therapy to treat acne is the initial cost. An acne lamp can cost from $100 - $200. But you need to remember that once you have made the purchase that is the end of your outlay. There is no need for additional lotions and the lamp will treat your acne for many years. Over time the acne lamp could be a more cost affective treatment.

If you have tried to control acne and not had a great deal of success with traditional medication then light therapy for acne is something you may wish to consider. You will not get instant results but if you use the light regularly you should notice an improvement in a fairly short time, significant results have been reported in clinical tests after four weeks of daily treatment. Once your acne is under control you will probably need to treat with light 3 times each week to maintain healthy, clear skin.