Professional LED treatments are given at select spas, sometimes as a stand-alone treatment and sometimes as part of a facial. They are given by an esthetician and can cost anywhere from $75 to $125 a treatment.
The usual protocol is six treatments a week or two apart, followed by a maintenance treatment every month or two. I've done it and it works, giving you plumper, firmer skin and a more youthful look. LED treatments help boost my mood during long, dark winters.
So I was excited to find out that a company called LED Technologies has several affordable home LED machines on the market There is a hand-held model called DPL Nuve for $160. The model with Red LED light targets aging skin; another with blue LED light targets acne.
A larger $350 tabletop unit called DPL Therapy has two panels that can rest on a base for beauty treatments or be removed for direct application to the skin for pain. DPL stands for "deep penetrating light."
I jumped at the chance to try the Tabletop Model. But there is a big difference between the power of more expensive professional models and this affordable consumer unit. DPL units have a relatively small number of Red LEDs, which firm the skin, compared to professional models. They also have invisible infrared LEDs, which generate a warmth that is helpful for pain but not for skin firming.
When I read the instructions for beauty treatments, I was discouraged. For best results it is recommended that you sit with my face 1/4 inch from the LED panels for 17 minutes every day -- for ten weeks. You can break the 17 minutes up over the course of the day, but even so, I just couldn't see myself being that persistent.
So I tried to combine my treatment with a nap by tucking a towel on my forehead and chest to hold up the machine. This was a mistake. The infrared lights generated heat, and because it wasn't escaping through the top my super-sensitive skin turned super-red. I had patches on my cheeks where I thought I had broken some capillaries. Thank goodness, the red patches went away after a while.
Fortunately (or perhaps not), I have a need for its main use -- pain relief. DPL Therapy was approved by the Food and Drug Administration "for the relaxation of muscles and relief of muscle spasms; temporary relief of minor muscle and joint aches, pains, and stiffness; temporary relief of minor pain and stiffness associated with arthritis; and to temporarily increase local blood circulation."
My hip was hurting, so at bedtime I took one of the removable panels off the stand, slipped it next to my skin, and read in bed for 17 minutes. When the treatment was over, the ache was gone. Then I tried it on my right calf. Again, at the end of 17 minutes, it didn't hurt anymore. That was pretty impressive! I used it several nights in a row and it definitely helped. It beeps once a minute, just to let you know how long the treatment as been going, which is a little annoying at first, but then you just tune it out.
You can use one panel or use an elastic strap to put two panels together around a part that hurts, like your knee or your back. Right now I'm working with one panel tucked into my shirt, over my tight shoulders, and they're feeling better. If I were rating it just for relief of minor pain and tension, I would give it five stars. How it would perform with intense, chronic pain, I don't know.
I don't recommend this as a replacement for other modalities, like Right now I'm so busy that seventeen minutes a day for 10 weeks is out of the question for me. So it's not the magic answer for keeping my skin young and glowing at home. If you do have that kind of patience and persistence, I'd be interested to know if it works for you. But I AM very happy to have something at home that I can use to help with muscle pain. That helps cut down on my massage bills, so it's still a money-saving device.
