Libido is another name for sexual drive or desire, and if you are lacking proper libido and facing problems due to it, you might be looking for proper suggestions that can help you. You will be happy to know that taking bright light therapy can provide you a great deal of help with this problem. According to studies, bright light therapy can increase the testosterone level in men, which can lead to an increase in sexual desire.
What is Light Therapy
In simple words, you just expose yourself to a very strong light source and absorb the light for some time as a substitute for sunlight. For taking the bright light therapy, you just sit down or work near a device called the light therapy box, or lightbox in short. The lightbox radiates a very strong and bright light that can mimic the natural outdoor light, in fact the sunlight. Light therapy is thought to affect important brain chemicals that are linked to your mood, sleep, energy and libido even, as we speak. These red and other colored lights generate light therapy, or phototherapy, that is a technology based on the idea that light can change us on a cellular level.
Different kinds of light, from the visible light spectrum (specially red, blue, yellow) to invisible light spectrum, like the infrared light are used by the lightboxes for light therapy. But don’t go too low down the spectrum, as they stop just before the ultraviolet rays, since they are harmful for the human body. The effects of the red and near infrared light have been most studied amongst all these lights.
The red light is mostly used to treat skin conditions, whereas near infrared light can penetrate much deeper and work its way through skin and bones and into the brain even. Also it can create different cellular reactions by penetrating deeper in your skin, thus impacting cellular transport. And conduct chemical reactions and can help generate or stop generating different hormones. Blue light is thought to be good at treating different infections specially and is often used for acne. The effects of other lights such as green and yellow are less understood yet, but yellow light might reduce photoaging and green light might be used to improve hyperpigmentation.
How Light Therapy Increases Sexual Desire?
As per estimation, up to one quarter of men have a low sex drive or it can be defined as lack of interest in sex. Stress, anxiety, depression and other psychological factors can lead to a low sexual desire in men, along with a reduction in testosterone, which is the male sex hormone. A study has found that early morning exposure to bright light or taking light therapy for 2 weeks has increased testosterone levels in men, enhancing their sexual desire and satisfaction as a result.
It is a known fact that sexual function increases during summer and spring and it is hypothesized that this increase might well have to do something with the exposure to more sunlight or natural light. Also another study says that there’s a relationship between exposure to light therapy and increase in the levels of LH, which is a pituitary hormone called ‘Luteinizing Hormone’ that raises testosterone levels in men.
Sexual Satisfaction can Increase Threefold with Light Therapy
A study was conducted in Vienna, Austria to investigate how bright light exposure can influence men’s testosterone levels, and what impact this can have on sexual desire. For the study, 38 men were recruited who had been diagnosed with either ‘Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder’ (HSDD) or ‘Sexual Arousal Disorder’, both conditions are addressed by low interest in sex.
All the participants were divided into two groups, one group was provided 30 minute exposure to a specially adapted light box every morning for 2 weeks regularly. Whereas the other group, the control group, were exposed to a lightbox that emitted much less strong light.
All these men’s testosterone levels and their interest in sex were assessed before and then again, after the 2-week exposure to light box.
Compared with the control group, the men that were exposed to the active light treatment showed a significant increase in their sexual desire as per the study’s findings. Before treatment, both groups had the average sexual satisfaction score of around 2 out of 10. But after the light therapy treatment, the group exposed to the bright light was scoring sexual satisfaction scores of around 6.3, which is more than a threefold increase in sexual desire.
On the other hand, in comparison, the control group reported an average score of 2.7 even after their 2-week treatment of much less strong light.
Moreover, the researchers found that the men who received the active light therapy experienced an increase in testosterone levels too, which happened over the 2-week period. Their testosterone level went from 2.3 nanograms per milliliter to 3.6 nanograms per milliliter. However, the control group showed no change in testosterone levels.
Final Words
Now you can see, bright light therapy can significantly help to increase your libido or sexual desire. So, if you are facing problems regarding your sexual desire or testosterone level, you can resort to bright light therapy without a second thought. It can solve your problem with almost no side effects.