Red Light Therapy & Eczema: What the Research Actually Shows
Eczema is exhausting to live with. It's also exhausting to research a treatment for, because the internet is full of confident claims that outrun the actual science. So before we get into red light therapy and eczema, here's our honest starting position: the evidence is genuinely promising, but it's still early, not as mature as the evidence for red light on things like muscle recovery or collagen production. We think you deserve that context up front, not buried at the bottom.
What Eczema Actually Is
Eczema, or atopic dermatitis, is a chronic inflammatory skin condition driven by an overactive immune response. In the skin, this shows up as a damaged barrier, dry and cracked patches, and the itch-scratch cycle that makes flares so hard to break. It's common, affecting a large share of children and a meaningful percentage of adults and it's typically managed with emollients, topical steroids, and, for more severe cases, prescription phototherapy under a dermatologist's supervision.
Where Red and Near-Infrared Light Fit In
Photobiomodulation, the proper term for red and near-infrared light therapy, works by delivering specific wavelengths of light into the skin, where they're absorbed by mitochondria and trigger a cascade of cellular effects: better energy production, improved circulation and modulation of inflammatory signalling. A widely cited 2013 review in Seminars in Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery lays out this mechanism in detail and its relevance to inflammatory skin conditions more broadly (Avci et al., 2013).
The theory for eczema specifically is that red/NIR light calms some of the inflammatory drivers behind flares, without the downsides associated with UV-based phototherapy.
What the Studies Actually Found
This is the part we want to get right, rather than exciting.
The oldest and most-cited human data comes from a series of studies by Morita and colleagues in the early 1990s, using an 830nm diode laser on patients with atopic dermatitis. Across these case series, itching decreased in roughly 70–80% of patients and skin eruptions improved in a similar proportion, with no reported side effects (Morita et al., Keio J Med, 1993).
More recent evidence comes mainly from animal studies. In lab models of atopic dermatitis, 850nm LED light combined with low-dose topical treatment reduced inflammatory skin lesions more effectively than either approach alone (Kim et al., J Dermatol Sci, 2013), and a follow-up study found that pairing low-dose LED therapy with a warm water bath produced further improvement in dermatitis symptoms, positioning it as a possible steroid-sparing adjunct (Kim et al., Photodermatol Photoimmunol Photomed, 2016).
For context, it's worth knowing where the strongest clinical evidence in visible-light dermatology actually sits. A 2018 review of LED therapy in dermatological disease notes that the one properly controlled randomised trial for atopic dermatitis used blue light around 453nm, not red, and found roughly a 30% improvement in symptoms over four weeks (Sorbellini et al., Lasers Med Sci, 2018). This doesn't rule out red/NIR , the mechanisms differ and both may have a role but it's an honest reminder that the highest-quality trial evidence in this specific space isn't for red light and we're not going to pretend otherwise.
Put together: the biological rationale for red/NIR light in eczema is sound, the early human data is encouraging, and the animal data supports it as a plausible adjunct.
A Sensible Way to Try It
- Treat it as a support alongside your existing routine: emollients, trigger avoidance, and any prescribed treatment, not a replacement for it.
- Start with short sessions, around 10 minutes, 3–4 times a week, at a comfortable distance from the panel.
- Apply to clean, product-free skin so light isn't blocked by creams or makeup.
- Avoid areas of broken, weeping, or infected skin, light therapy isn't appropriate there and infected eczema needs medical treatment first.
- Never treat over a suspicious or undiagnosed skin lesion.
- Give it several weeks of consistent use before judging whether it's helping and stop and speak to your GP or dermatologist if things are getting worse, not better.
Who Should Check With a Doctor First
Speak to your GP or dermatologist before starting if you're pregnant, have epilepsy, are on any photosensitising medication, or have a history of skin cancer. If your eczema is moderate to severe or not responding to your current routine, that conversation should happen regardless, red light therapy works best as one part of a plan a professional is already helping you manage, not a substitute for one.
The Bottom Line
Red and near-infrared light have a credible biological reason to help calm eczema related inflammation and the human and animal data we have so far point in a hopeful direction. Used sensibly, as a gentle, low risk addition to a routine your skin already trusts, it's a reasonable thing to try.
References
- Morita H, Kohno J, Hori M, Kitano Y. Clinical application of low reactive level laser therapy (LLLT) for atopic dermatitis. Keio J Med. 1993;42(4):174–176.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7907380/ - 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.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24049929/ - Kim CH, Cheong KA, Lee AY. 850nm light-emitting-diode phototherapy plus low-dose tacrolimus (FK-506) as combination therapy in the treatment of Dermatophagoides farinae-induced atopic dermatitis-like skin lesions in NC/Nga mice. J Dermatol Sci. 2013;72(2):142–148.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23810774/ - Kim CH, Cheong KA, Lim WS, Park HM, Lee AY. Effects of low-dose light-emitting-diode therapy in combination with water bath for atopic dermatitis in NC/Nga mice. Photodermatol Photoimmunol Photomed. 2016;32(1):34–43.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26479265/ - Sorbellini E, Rucco M, Rinaldi F. Photodynamic and photobiological effects of light-emitting diode (LED) therapy in dermatological disease: an update. Lasers Med Sci. 2018;33(7):1431–1439.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30006754/
This article is for general information and does not replace medical advice. If you have moderate to severe eczema, or it isn't responding to your current treatment, please speak to your GP or a dermatologist.
