Optimizing Health with Light: Sunlight, Blue Light & Red Light | Huberman Lab Podcast #68

Light can be used to optimize health by targeting specific locations in cells, organelles, and organs, making it a precise tool for modulating biology, with sunlight exposure having positive effects on hormones, immune function, and desire to mate, while red light therapy can improve skin conditions and vision, and flickering lights have potential to reduce age-related cognitive decline 

Questions to inspire discussion 

• How can light be used to optimize health?

  —Light can be used to target specific locations in cells, organelles, and organs, making it a precise tool for modulating biology and improving health.

• What are the positive effects of sunlight exposure?

  —Sunlight exposure has positive effects on hormones, immune function, and desire to mate.

• How can red light therapy improve skin conditions?

  —Red light therapy can improve skin conditions such as acne, wound healing, and pigmentation by increasing ATP energy production and reducing reactive oxygen species.

• Can flickering lights reduce age-related cognitive decline?

  —Flickering lights have the potential to reduce age-related cognitive decline by triggering molecular pathways that enhance neuronal function and reduce cognitive decline in Alzheimer's.

• What are the potential benefits of UVB light exposure?

  —UVB light exposure can increase hormone output, enhance immune function, promote wound healing, and improve skin health.  

Key Insights 

Light and its impact on biology

• 💡 Light energy can impact our body and organs, and even repair them, depending on the wavelengths of light, including ultraviolet light which can positively impact us and reduce pain.
• 💡 Different wavelengths of light can penetrate tissues to different depths, which can change the way that the cells and organs of your body work.
• 🌞 The different types of photoreceptors in our eyes absorb and process different wavelengths of light, which can affect our vision and overall health.
• 🌞 Light is a transducer that communicates what's going on in the environment around us, impacting our cells and organs for better or for worse.
• 🧬 Circannual rhythms are an example of slow integrating effects of light on our biology, which can have a significant impact on our health and well-being.
• 💡 Using long wavelength light, such as red or amber-colored light, can help bypass the inhibitory effects of light on melatonin and not reduce melatonin production at all.
• 🤯 Your skin is actually an endocrine organ, meaning it is a hormone-producing and hormone-influencing organ, which can forever change the way you think about your skin and light.
• 🧬 The study's use of both mice and humans to establish a protocol for UVB light exposure is impressive and provides valuable insights for those interested in optimizing their health.
• 🌞 Exposure to UVB light can increase the release of endogenous opioids, acting as a natural painkiller in the body.
• 💡 Light can impact our biology at the endocrine level, neuronal level, immune level, mood, etc. through both illumination of the eyes and the skin and other tissues as well.

Sunlight exposure and hormone pathways

• 💤 Melatonin is a transducer that communicates how much light is in our physical environment, and its natural production and release is based on where we are in the journey around the sun.
• ☀️ Getting the proper amount of sunlight each day, appropriate for the time of year, is one of the best things we can do for our health.
• ☀️ Getting outside for about 30 minutes, two or three times a week in a minimum of clothing, and yet still wearing enough clothing that is culturally appropriate can lead to significant increases in hormones like beta-estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone in both men and women.
• 🧠 The first systematic exploration of sex steroid hormones in humans as a function of time of year and sunlight exposure can provide valuable insights into optimizing health.
• ☀️ Sunlight exposure to our skin can directly trigger hormone pathways and desire to mate, and getting UVB sunlight exposure onto our skin is important to activate the p53 pathway in keratinocytes and the testosterone and estrogen increases that are downstream of that p53 pathway.
• ☀️ Getting outside and getting exposure to UVB light can be beneficial for mood, hormone pathways, and pain reduction, even for people who are blind.

Red light therapy and vision health

• 🧬 Red light therapy can offset age-related vision loss by replenishing the mechanisms by which cells create energy, and just a few minutes of exposure a few times per week can be effective.

#MentalHealth #AndrewHuberman

Clips

• 00:00 🔦 Light can be used to optimize health by targeting specific locations in cells, organelles, and organs, making it a precise tool for modulating biology.
  • In this episode, Andrew Huberman discusses the science behind the use of light for optimizing health, including specific protocols and mechanisms, and emphasizes the importance of using evidence-based phototherapies.
  • Huberman is hosting two live events in May in Seattle and Portland as part of a lecture series on science-based tools for mental health, physical health, and performance, and he thanks Athletic Greens for sponsoring the podcast and offers a special offer for listeners to try their product.
  • Thesis creates custom nootropics tailored to specific brain-body states, while LMNT provides a properly balanced electrolyte drink that can improve cognitive function and energy levels.
  • Light is electromagnetic energy that travels in waves of different wavelengths, including those that are not visible to humans, and can impact the body and environment in various ways.
  • Different wavelengths of light penetrate tissues to different depths, with longer wavelengths like red and near-infrared light having the ability to penetrate deeper into the body and impact cells and organs in unique ways.
  • Light can be used to stimulate the function of particular organelles within particular cells, within particular organs of the body, making it the sharpest and most precise tool to modulate biology due to its ability to target particular locations in cells, organelles, and organs.
• 21:34 🌞 Light impacts our biology in both rapid and slow ways, with circannual rhythms using melatonin to create a calendar system within the body that affects bone mass, gonad maturation, and immune system activation.
  • Photoreceptors in the back of our eyes, rods and cones, absorb light of different wavelengths to create the perception of color and vision.
  • Melanocytes in the skin absorb UV light to create changes in skin pigmentation.
  • Light can impact the biology of our cells and organs either directly or indirectly through signals that start with light of particular wavelengths being absorbed by particular pigments or properties of the surfaces that those light waves land on, and even though we can't see those wavelengths of light, they are getting into us all the time and can impact our biology in very fast, moderately fast, and slow ways.
  • Light has both rapid and slow effects on our biology, with the slow integrating effects being powerful and primarily seen in circannual rhythms.
  • Circannual rhythms use melatonin to communicate the amount of light in the environment, creating a calendar system within the body that changes the duration of melatonin release throughout the year.
  • Melatonin has regulatory effects on bone mass and gonad maturation, and protective effects as a potent antioxidant and immune system activator, but its levels should not be artificially increased for anti-cancer purposes.
• 38:44 🌞 Spend time outdoors during spring and summer, avoid bright light at night, and exposure to certain wavelengths of light can increase desire to mate.
  • Get the appropriate amount of sunlight each day, spend more time outdoors during summer and spring, and use minimum light required in the middle of the night to avoid destroying melatonin levels.
  • Avoid bright light exposure to your eyes in the middle of the night to prevent disruption of the fundamental signal that communicates information about where your brain and body should be in time.
  • To bypass the inhibitory effects of light on melatonin, dimming the lights or using long wavelength light such as red or amber-colored light is recommended, and caution should be exercised when supplementing melatonin due to its impact on normal rhythms.
  • Melatonin, available over the counter, suppresses testosterone and estrogen output from the gonads, and as light inhibits melatonin, longer days of spring and summer lead to more seeking out of mates and mating behavior in both humans and animals.
  • Exposure of skin to particular wavelengths of light can trigger increases in testosterone and estrogen, leading to increased desire to mate, as skin is an endocrine organ that produces and influences hormones.
  • Exposure to UVB light increases testosterone and estrogen levels, enhances female attractiveness, and increases receptiveness to mate in both mice and humans.
• 54:16 🌞 Getting sunlight exposure, particularly UVB light, can increase hormones such as testosterone and estrogen, as well as passion and desire to mate, but avoid sunburn and bright light sources.
  • Getting outside for about 30 minutes, two or three times a week in a minimum of clothing, and yet still wearing enough clothing that is culturally appropriate can increase hormones such as beta-estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone in both men and women.
  • Sunlight exposure and vitamin D3 synthesis affect testosterone levels, with paler-skinned individuals and those with less UVB light exposure having greater increases in testosterone, and testosterone levels being lowest in winter months and highest in summer months.
  • Sunlight exposure, particularly UVB light, can increase levels of testosterone and estrogen, as well as passion and desire to mate, by activating the p53 pathway in keratinocytes in the skin.
  • Getting sunlight exposure onto our skin during the winter months and still getting sunlight exposure onto our skin in the summer months is important for our health, but we should prioritize the avoidance of sunburn on our skin, and UVB light has impressive effects on our tolerance for pain.
  • Exposure to UVB light increases the release of endogenous opioids, acting as a pain killer, and landing on the eyes triggers anti-pain or pain-relieving pathways, reducing the total amount of pain experienced in response to any painful stimuli.
  • Get more UVB exposure from sunlight, even on cloudy days, but avoid looking directly at any light source that is too bright, and consider skin exposure and clothing choices, while also taking into account individual circumstances and potential use of SAD lamps or LED lighting panels during winter months.
• 01:17:27 🌞 Getting UVB light exposure from the sun can enhance immune function, combat infections, and promote skin health, but consult with a doctor if you have certain eye or skin conditions.
  • Getting outside and exposing yourself to UVB light from the sun is beneficial for most people, but those with certain eye or skin conditions should consult with a doctor before increasing their exposure.
  • UVB light exposure activates neurons in the sympathetic nervous system, which in turn activates the immune system, leading to enhanced immune function and combat against infections.
  • Accessing UVB light during winter months can enhance spleen function and activate the sympathetic nervous system to combat infections better, while also promoting faster wound healing, hair growth, and skin turnover.
  • UVB exposure and red light are potent forms of increasing wound healing and skin health, but systemic activation across broad swaths of skin and the eyes is more effective than local application.
  • Avoid exposure to UVB light from artificial sources between 10:00 pm and 4:00 am to prevent activation of the eye to perihabenular pathway that can turn on depression, while getting UVB light in the morning and throughout the day can elevate and maintain elevated mood.
  • Sleeping in a dimly lit environment with even just 100 lux of light can disrupt the autonomic nervous system, alter cardiometabolic function, and increase insulin resistance, according to a recent study.
• 01:39:01 🔴 Red light therapy can improve skin conditions and vision by activating mitochondria and increasing ATP energy production.
  • Low level light therapies, particularly with red and near-infrared light, have been shown to be effective for treating acne and other skin lesions by changing the metabolic function of cells in the deeper layers of the skin.
  • Red light therapy can improve skin conditions such as acne, wound healing, and pigmentation by triggering biological pathways within cells and accessing organelles like mitochondria to increase ATP energy production.
  • Red light therapy activates mitochondria, increases ATP, and reduces reactive oxygen species, leading to improved skin quality and neuronal function.
  • Red and near-infrared light can improve visual function by increasing ATP and reducing reactive oxygen species, which disrupts normal pathways associated with aging, according to studies conducted by the Jeffery Lab.
  • Exposure to low-intensity red light of about 670 nanometers for 2-3 minutes per day for 12 weeks resulted in a 22% improvement in visual acuity in individuals aged 40 or older.
  • Red light and near-infrared light therapy can reverse age-related vision loss and improve neuronal function, but caution should be taken to ensure safe distance and wavelength of light.
• 02:05:24 🔦 Light can be used to positively impact our biology, with studies showing the potential of flickering lights to entrain brain rhythms and reduce age-related cognitive decline.
  • Red light, if sufficiently dim, can be beneficial for shift workers or those who need to be awake at night as it does not inhibit melatonin production or increase cortisol levels, and can stimulate alertness.
  • Changing the activity of neurons in the brain can be done through pharmacology, but it is often indirect and carries side effects.
  • Recent studies have found that gamma activity, a particular pattern of brain activity, can be restorative for certain aspects of learning and memory and can help reduce age-related cognitive decline.
  • Gamma oscillations induced by a pattern of flashing light delivered to the eyes can trigger molecular pathways that reduce age-related cognitive decline in Alzheimer's and enhance neuronal function.
  • Non-invasive phototherapy is being explored to trigger activation of biological pathways in the brain, with studies showing the power of flickering lights to entrain brain rhythms, but specific protocols are still being developed.
  • Light can be used to change the activities of cells, organelles, and entire organs, impacting our biology at the endocrine, neuronal, immune, and mood levels through illumination of the eyes and skin, with exciting potential for using UVB on the skin to increase hormone output.
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