Mountain View News May 30, 2026 
1212 
Mountain View News May 30, 2026 
1212 
Michele Silence, M.A. is a 37-year certified fitness 
professional who offers semi-private/virtual fit-
ness classes. Contact Michele at michele@kid-fit. 
com. Visit her Facebook page at: michelesfitness 
Visit her Facebook page at: michelesfitness. 


RED LIGHT THERAPY? 

Walk into almost any gym, wellness center, chiropractor’s 
office, or beauty spa today and you are likely to see 
glowing red panels or masks being promoted as the 
newest health breakthrough. Social media influencers 
claim red light therapy can help people lose weight, 
recover faster, reduce wrinkles, build muscle, ease pain, 
and even slow aging. 

With all the hype, it can be difficult to separate science 
from marketing. The good news is that red light therapyis not completely made up. There is real science behind 
it. But there is also a lot of exaggeration. 

Red light therapy is also called photobiomodulation. 
It uses specific wavelengths of red and near-infrared 
light that penetrate the skin and interact with cells. 
Researchers believe the light affects structures inside 
cells called mitochondria, which help produce energyfor the body. 

The idea is that healthier, more energized cells may 
repair themselves more efficiently. That is why red light 
therapy is being studied for healing, recovery, pain relief, and inflammation. 

One reason the topic has become so popular is because athletes and fitness influencers have 
embraced it. Professional sports teams, trainers, and recovery clinics often use red light 
devices after workouts or injuries. Some studies suggest it may help reduce muscle soreness 
and support recovery after exercise (Looney et al., Canadian Veterinary Journal, 2018). 

Researchers are also studying whether it can help reduce inflammation and improve 
circulation. Some evidence suggests it may support tissue healing and decrease pain in 
certain conditions (Alves et al., American Journal of Veterinary Research, 2022). 

But red light therapy is not magic. Many online claims go far beyond what research 
currently supports. There is little strong evidence that red light therapy produces dramatic 
weight loss, major muscle growth, huge testosterone increases, or reverses aging. Experts 
continue to warn that many companies are making claims that science has not fully proven 
(Wall Street Journal, February 24, 2025). 

Another thing most people do not realize is that not all devices are equal. The wavelengths 
matter. Most studies use specific ranges of red and near-infrared light. Some cheaper devices 
sold online may not provide the same wavelengths or enough power to match research 
studies. More is also not always better. Researchers sometimes describe a “Goldilocks 
effect,” meaning the dose has to be about right. Too little may do nothing, while too much 
may reduce the benefits. 

One reason red light therapy has gained credibility is because it is now being used in 
veterinary medicine. Many veterinarians use photobiomodulation to help dogs and cats 
recover from surgery, reduce pain, improve wound healing, and assist with arthritis or soft 
tissue injuries (Bunch, Veterinary Clinics of North America: Small Animal Practice, 2023). 

Studies in dogs have shown possible benefits for joint pain, wound healing, inflammation, 
and recovery after certain procedures. Veterinary rehabilitation clinics often use red light 
therapy as part of treatment programs for mobility problems and pain management (Millis 
et al., systematic review, 2023). 

Researchers say the therapy appears most effective when the correct wavelength, dose, 
and treatment schedule are used. Some veterinary studies report improved mobility and 
reduced pain medication use in dogs with arthritis, although researchers also caution that 
more high-quality studies are still needed (Hochman, Veterinary Clinics of North America: 
Small Animal Practice, 2018). 

That balance is important to understand. The science behind red light therapy is real, but it 
is still developing. Some areas show promising evidence, while other claims remain mostly 
marketing. 

One interesting fact many people do not know is that NASA helped spark early interest in 
light therapy research years ago while studying wound healing and plant growth in space. 
Since then, research has expanded into sports medicine, rehabilitation, dermatology, and 
veterinary medicine. 

Safety is generally considered good when devices are used properly. Unlike tanning beds, 
red light therapy does not use ultraviolet light. However, experts still recommend caution 
with the eyes and warn consumers not to assume every product on the market is effective 
just because it glows red. 

What makes this topic so fascinating is that it sits right in the middle between promising 
science and modern wellness hype. There is enough evidence to take it seriously, especiallyfor recovery, pain, and tissue healing. At the same time, there is not enough evidence to 
support many of the dramatic claims being advertised online. 

For readers, the practical message is simple. Red light therapy may become a useful tool 
for recovery and healing, but it should probably be viewed as a support tool, not a miracle 
cure. Exercise, sleep, good nutrition, and regular movement still do far more for long-term 
health than any glowing panel on the wall. 

UNLOCK YOUR LIFE 
WHAT ARE YOU CARRYING? 


I am going back to the Camino. 

Not because I didn't finish. Not because I left something behind, 
or rather, not in the way you might think. I'm going back because 
walking still has more to teach me. And I’m curious about what else 
is there. 

The Camino de Santiago is an ancient pilgrimage route across 
northern Spain. Inspired by the teachings of the Apostle James, people have walked it for over 
a thousand years, through mountains, vineyards, and small stone villages where the bread 
is fresh, but the wifi might not be. Hundreds of thousands of people walk some portion of 
it every year, from every country, every faith tradition, every life circum-stance. Some are 
grieving. Some are celebrating. Some couldn't tell you why they came, only that some-thing 
called them. 

What unites everyone: at some point, the walk stops being about the walk. A pilgrimage is an 
outward journey for an inward transformation. It’s a commitment to an inner dialogue. 

The Pilgrim's Real Question 

Before one steps on the Camino, there is a practical reckoning. Your pack can only hold so 
much. Every experienced pilgrim will tell you that you start with too much and shed it along 
the way. Things you were certain you needed will become weight you cannot justify carrying. 
You will leave them, mail them home, or simply let them go. This is not a metaphor. This is a 
typical Tuesday. I haven’t left yet, and I’m already anticipating leaving things behind. 

But of course, it is also everything else. Because the Camino has a way of making the outer 
journey a mirror for the inner one. As you learn to release what is unnecessary in your pack, 
you begin to notice what you are carrying in less visible places. The grudge you've been holding. 
The version of yourself you've been performing. The story you repeat about who you are and 
what is possible for you. 

Henry David Thoreau, who knew something about stripping life to its essentials, said it plainly: 
Simplify, simplify, simplify. The Camino will force you to practice this with your body before 
it asks you to practice it with your soul. 

Everyone Is Walking Their Own 

On my first walk, I was surprised to learn: even when you are surrounded by hundreds of other 
pilgrims, you are alone with yourself. You may walk alongside someone for hours. You may 
share a meal, a blister remedy, or the perfect Kodak moment of breathtaking landscape. And 
then the road shifts, and you are back inside your own interior. 

This is by design. The Camino does not let you outsource the journey. 

You can walk in a group and still be walking your own Camino. There is no shortcut, no one 
who can car-ry the miles for you, no pace that belongs to anyone but you. The person rushing 
ahead is walking their Camino. The person weeping at a roadside cross is walking theirs. You 
are walking yours. I saw people on bicycles, horseback, with babies in strollers and dogs in tow. 
I even saw people in wheelchairs. 

Which means the most important question on the road is: Who are you being as you walk?
What Are You Bringing? 

I have thought a great deal about what I am carrying into this second walk. Not what's in my 
pack, I know to pack lighter now. I mean, what am I bringing that’s less visible? I tend toward 
introspection. The awareness that comes from pilgrimage is this: we are always bringing 
something. Into every relationship, every room, every conversation, every new chapter of our 
lives. Most of the time, we’re not conscious of it. We are simply moving through our days, 
carrying what we've always carried, wondering why we keep arriving at the same destinations.
The Camino makes you conscious. It slows you down enough, strips you bare enough, that you 
can final-ly see what you've been hauling. 

And then it asks the harder question: What are you willing to leave behind? 

Not just what is heavy. Sometimes what we must release is something we have carried so long 
we no longer recognize it as a burden. A belief about what we deserve. A role we stepped into 
so long ago, we forgot we chose it. A story about a person, a wound, a closed door.
You can always release more. Even when it isn't apparent. 

The Invitation 

You do not need the Camino to ask these questions. The road is a teacher, but the curriculum 
is available everywhere. What are you carrying right now, in your relationships, your work, 
your sense of what's possible, that has become weight without you noticing? What would 
simplifying actually look like in your one precious life? 

There is nothing to rush toward. The destination will be there. The question is who you are 
becoming on the way.
Buen Camino. 

Lori A. Harris is an Integrative Change Coach and Life Mastery Consultant. Her column, Unlock 
Your Life, appears weekly in Mountain Views News. This fall, Lori hosts Discovering Black Walden, 
an intimate cultural wellness retreat rooted in the transcendentalist and abolitionist history of 
Concord, Massachusetts, September 24-27, 2026. Learn more at discoveringblackwalden.com. 

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