What is the difference between red light therapy, an infrared sauna and PEMF?
They work in different ways. Red light therapy shines specific wavelengths onto skin, where cells absorb them. An infrared sauna heats your body and makes you sweat. PEMF sends pulsed magnetic fields through tissue. Red light has the most skin trials, saunas have the most heart-health data, and PEMF has modest, mixed results.
Five things worth knowing
- Three tools, three mechanisms. Light, heat and magnetic fields are not versions of the same thing.
- "Infrared" means two things. In a sauna it means heat. In a light mask, near-infrared is a wavelength of light delivered at a set dose.
- The evidence is uneven. Red light has controlled skin trials. Sauna has large long-term studies. PEMF has small trials with mixed results.
- Most sauna research is on traditional Finnish saunas. Infrared saunas have far less of their own.
- Hydration sits underneath all three. It does its own job. It does not boost any device.
The three, side by side
| Red light therapy | Infrared sauna | PEMF | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What reaches you | Red and near-infrared light | Heat | Pulsed magnetic fields |
| What it acts on | Skin cells that absorb the light | The whole body: you heat up and sweat | Studied mainly in joints, bone and muscle |
| Best evidence | Controlled trials on wrinkles, roughness and collagen density | Long-term cohort and reviews, mostly traditional sauna | Meta-analyses in osteoarthritis |
| Evidence level | Moderate, for skin | Good for association, thinner for infrared | Modest and mixed |
| Typical home device | LED mask or panel | Sauna cabin or blanket | Mat or pad |
Red light therapy: light the skin absorbs
Red and near-infrared light is absorbed by structures in skin cells' mitochondria, according to a review of low-level light therapy in dermatology. Modeling work shows longer wavelengths reach deeper, so near-infrared travels further into skin than red.
The skin trials:
- 136 volunteers, 30 sessions. Twice-weekly red or broader-spectrum light improved skin complexion, roughness and collagen density against controls. The broader spectrum showed no advantage over red alone.
- 76 patients, four weeks. 830 nm, 633 nm, or both, twice a week, against a sham light. Wrinkles fell by up to 36% and elasticity rose by up to 19% from baseline in the treated groups.
- 60 adults, 16 weeks. A home mask with 630 nm and 850 nm light improved crow's feet scores against a sham mask at 8, 12 and 16 weeks.
Go deeper: Red light masks · Red light vs near-infrared · Red light therapy before and after · Red light vs blue light therapy
Infrared sauna: heat and sweat
An infrared sauna delivers far-infrared radiation to the body. The effect you feel is heat, and the response is sweat.
Most of the health evidence comes from traditional Finnish saunas:
- Heart health. In 2,315 middle-aged Finnish men followed for about 20 years, more frequent sauna bathing was associated with lower risk of fatal cardiovascular disease and death from any cause. That is an association, not proof of cause. A later review of Finnish sauna research describes links to lower blood pressure and cardiovascular risk.
- Overall. A systematic review of 40 dry sauna studies found most reported benefits, but only 13 were randomized and most were small.
- Skin. In 41 healthy volunteers, regular Finnish sauna users had a more stable skin barrier and higher water content in the outer skin layer than non-users.
One caution: a review of infrared radiation and heat on skin found both can break down the skin's structural proteins and add to premature aging. That review was framed around sunlight, not saunas, but it is a reason not to assume more heat is better for skin.
Go deeper: Infrared vs traditional sauna · Sauna blankets · Infrared sauna for skin · Contrast therapy: sauna and cold plunge
PEMF: pulsed magnetic fields
PEMF has been studied for joints and bones, not skin.
- A 2020 meta-analysis of placebo-controlled osteoarthritis trials found benefits for pain, stiffness and function, short term.
- A 2019 meta-analysis of 8 knee osteoarthritis trials with 421 patients found better physical function but no advantage for pain or stiffness.
- A Cochrane review of 4 trials and 125 people with fractures that were slow to heal or had not healed found the evidence inconclusive. Three of the four trials tested PEMF.
Go deeper: What is PEMF therapy, and does it work?
Is an infrared sauna the same as red light therapy?
No. Red light therapy delivers specific wavelengths of light. In the skin trials these were red at about 630 to 633 nm and near-infrared at 830 to 850 nm. An infrared sauna uses far-infrared to heat you, and the heat and sweat are the point. One product can include both, but they are separate effects.
PEMF vs red light therapy: which is better?
They are not competing for the same job. Red light acts on skin, and its trials measured wrinkles, roughness and collagen density. PEMF has been studied for joints, bones and sore muscles, with modest and mixed results. For skin, the evidence points to red light. PEMF has no skin trials in the research reviewed here.
Can you use an infrared sauna and red light therapy together?
Nothing in the research reviewed here tested them together, so there is no evidence that combining them adds anything, and none that it causes harm. They can sit in the same routine. Treat each as doing its own job.
Step 0: where hydration fits underneath
Step 0 is what is inside your skin before anything goes on it or shines on it. Here is what hydration legitimately does.
- It replaces what you sweat. A sauna is a sweat session. A sports-science review found that restoring fluid balance after sweating takes more fluid than you lost, plus electrolytes, particularly sodium. See What to drink after a sauna.
- It supports the skin's own water. A systematic review of six studies found a slight rise in skin hydration with extra water intake, mainly in people who drank little, and rated the evidence weak. In a 12-week placebo-controlled trial of 40 adults, 120 mg a day of oral hyaluronic acid improved the water content of the outer skin layer, water loss through the skin and elasticity.
When we say hydrated skin performs better, we mean the skin's own measurable condition: its water content, barrier and elasticity.
What hydration does not do:
- It does not boost the devices. No study reviewed here shows that drinking more makes a mask, sauna or mat work better.
- It does not make light go deeper. In a lab study on mouse skin, imaging reached deeper tissue after a clearing agent was applied. The authors name water being drawn out of the skin as the most likely reason. That is the opposite of what a hydration claim would need.
- It does not make sweat a detox. A review of sweat physiology found sweat plays a minor role in clearing waste compared with the kidneys and gut.
If your goal is X, start with Y
| If your goal is | Start with | Why | Read next |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fine lines and skin texture | Red light | The only one of the three with controlled skin trials on wrinkles | Red light masks |
| A heat habit you enjoy, with long-term heart data behind it | Sauna | Long-term cohort data; mostly traditional sauna | Infrared vs traditional sauna |
| Sore muscles after training | Cold or contrast water | Meta-analyses show less soreness than resting | Contrast therapy |
| Stiff joints | Your doctor first | PEMF has modest, mixed osteoarthritis evidence | PEMF therapy |
| Dry, tight skin | Step 0 and a moisturizer | Skin water content and barrier come first | Step 0 |
| Recovering after a sauna | Fluid and sodium | You need more fluid than you lost | What to drink after a sauna |
What the Glow Protocol does not do
- It does not rank the three tools. They do different things.
- It does not treat acne, rosacea, arthritis or any condition. See a dermatologist or doctor for those.
- It does not claim that stacking tools multiplies results. Combinations are untested here.
Make it a Glow Protocol
- Before. Drink normally through the day so you arrive hydrated.
- During. Follow the maker's guidance for the device you are using.
- After. If the session made you sweat, replace the fluid and sodium. After light, go back to moisturizer and daytime sunscreen.
- Daily. Skin hydration is built every day, not only on session days. That daily layer is Step 0.
H2Glow is Step 0: the hydration layer underneath the routine. It does not make any device work better.
Where H2Glow fits
H2Glow is the Step 0 part and nothing else. One stick has 17 actives, including 250 mg sodium hyaluronate, 40 mg rice phytoceramides, 300 mg sodium, 200 mg potassium and 150 mg magnesium. The hyaluronic acid trial above used 120 mg; no study cited here tested H2Glow itself. It replaces what a sauna takes out and supports the skin's own water. It does not change what the light, the heat or the mat does.
Frequently asked questions
Is infrared sauna or red light therapy better for skin?
Red light has the direct skin trials, on wrinkles, roughness and collagen density. Sauna skin evidence is one controlled study of 41 people using a traditional Finnish sauna.
Is red light the same as infrared?
No. Red light is visible; near-infrared is just beyond it and reaches deeper in modeling studies. Far-infrared, used in saunas, is felt as heat.
Is PEMF better than red light therapy?
They have been studied for different things. PEMF trials cover joints, bones and muscle soreness; red light trials cover skin.
Can I do red light therapy and infrared sauna on the same day?
No study reviewed here tested the combination, for benefit or harm. There is no evidence that order or timing matters.
Does drinking water make red light therapy work better?
No. There is no evidence for that, and lab optics point the other way: drawing water out of tissue increased light penetration in a mouse study.
Do infrared saunas detox your body?
Sweat plays only a minor role in clearing waste and toxicants compared with the kidneys and gut, according to a review of sweat physiology.
What should I drink after an infrared sauna?
More fluid than you sweated out, with sodium. See What to drink after a sauna.
Further reading
- Why water isn't enough
- Electrolytes for skin: do they help?
- Does oral hyaluronic acid actually work?
- Skin barrier repair
- Hydration vs moisturization (winter set)
- Clinical research
- Why is my skin so dry in winter?
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. These statements are based on clinical research on individual ingredients. Results may vary.