In brief
- With LED therapy, soft light shines on your skin. There is no UV in it: you don't tan from it and you can't burn.
- You lie under a panel with your eyes covered for twenty to thirty minutes. At most it feels gently warm.
- At Moons you book it as the finish of a treatment, to settle your skin after a stimulus, or as a thirty-minute session on its own.
- Online a lot is promised, from fewer wrinkles to curing acne. We don't make those promises.
- As an add-on it costs €20.00, a session on its own €40.00. More under LED therapy.
Written by Nilay, owner and beauty therapist at Moons BeautyUpdated on
What is LED therapy?
LED therapy is a treatment with light. A panel of small lights shines on your skin for a while, in one colour or in a few colours one after the other. It is also called light therapy or LED light therapy.
The light contains no UV. That is the difference from the sun and from a sunbed: your skin doesn't tan from it and can't burn. At most you feel a gentle warmth.
In a salon it is usually the end of a treatment. After a peel or microneedling your skin is recovering, and that is the moment the light is used most often.
What do the colours mean?
Manufacturers link each colour to a purpose. This is the breakdown you come across most often. What you notice of it depends on the device, its strength and your skin.
Red light
The colour you see most often. Manufacturers link it to recovery and to skin that looks firmer.
Near-infrared
Light you can't see. It often sits in a panel together with red, with the same purpose.
Blue light
This colour is linked to blemish-prone skin.
Yellow or amber light
This colour is linked to skin that reddens quickly.
Does LED therapy work, or is it nonsense?
Online a lot is promised about light therapy, from fewer wrinkles to curing acne. We don't make those promises.
What we see in the salon is more modest. After a peel or microneedling the redness usually subsides faster, and your skin feels calmer the next day. That's what we use it for.
So see LED as a complement. For lines, pigmentation or blemishes there are treatments that are actually meant for that.
Is LED therapy dangerous?
There is no UV in the light. Your skin doesn't burn or tan from it, and your eyes are covered. In a few situations it isn't possible, or you check first.
- Medication that makes you sensitive to light. Let us know, then we skip the LED
- Epilepsy or sensitivity to light. Then we don't do it
- A skin condition you're being treated for. Check with your doctor first
- Pregnancy or breastfeeding. Mention it when you book, then we adapt the treatment
With which treatment do you get LED?
| Topic | How | Price at Moons |
|---|---|---|
| Acne treatment | Included | €75.00 |
| Redness treatment | Included | €75.00 |
| Anti-ageing treatments | Included | From €75.00 |
| Peels | Twenty minutes, as an add-on | The peel plus €20.00 |
| Microneedling | As an add-on, or as a set combination with PDRN | €119.00 for the combination |
| Connective tissue massage | As a fifty-minute combination | €79.00 |
| Session on its own | Thirty minutes, without a treatment alongside | €40.00 |
The panel is the Precision Photonic System by Skin Complete.
How often, and how long?
As an add-on it takes twenty minutes at Moons, a session on its own thirty. You lie still, with your eyes covered.
How often you have it follows from the treatment it belongs to. If you're doing a series of peels or microneedling, the recovery between appointments counts too. Then it makes sense to add LED every time.
Is an LED mask for home use worth it?
LED masks for home use come in every price range. A mask is something different from a panel in a salon. It is smaller and less powerful, and it is made to be used often and briefly.
When choosing one, look at a few things: which colours it has, whether the manufacturer states the strength, how long and how often you need to wear it, and whether your eyes are protected. The brand of our panel, Skin Complete, also makes masks for home use.
Expect no more miracles from it than from a session in the salon. If you take medication that makes you sensitive to light or you have epilepsy, check with your doctor first.
What to look for when choosing a salon?
These are the signs of a place that is level-headed about light.
They don't promise what isn't possible
Light doesn't replace a treatment for lines or blemishes.
They ask about medication
Some medications make your skin sensitive to light.
Your eyes are covered
That's part of every session.
You know which device it is
Then you can look up what it does. Ours is by Skin Complete.
It suits your treatment
The light is used most often after a peel or microneedling.
You can see real work
Photos of their own clients and what others write. Ours are on the results page and under reviews.
Rosacea, acne or eczema: see a doctor first.
If you have a skin condition, such as rosacea, eczema or severe acne, your GP or dermatologist is the first step. If you're being treated for it, check with your doctor whether light can be added. If your skin stays red, warm or painful after a session, call your GP.
Frequently asked questions about LED therapy
What is LED therapy?
A treatment with soft light in one or more colours. You lie under a panel for a while, with your eyes covered. There is no UV in the light.
What does LED therapy do to your face?
At Moons we use it to settle your skin after a peel or microneedling. The redness usually subsides faster, and your skin feels calmer the next day.
Does LED therapy really work?
As a calm finish after a treatment, we see that people get something out of it. We don't make the big promises you read online, about wrinkles and acne.
Is LED therapy dangerous?
There is no UV in the light, so you don't burn from it. With epilepsy, sensitivity to light or medication that makes you sensitive to light, we don't do it.
Which LED colour is for what?
Manufacturers link red to recovery and firmness, blue to blemish-prone skin and yellow to skin that reddens quickly. What you notice of it differs per device and per skin.
Does LED therapy tan your skin?
No. There is no UV in it, so your skin doesn't tan from it. It's something completely different from a sunbed.
Do you feel anything during LED therapy?
At most a gentle warmth. Afterwards you simply carry on with your day.
How long does an LED therapy session take?
At Moons twenty minutes as an add-on to a treatment, and thirty minutes as a session on its own.
How often should you have LED therapy?
It follows the rhythm of the treatment it belongs to. In a series of peels or microneedling you usually add it every time.
Can you book LED therapy on its own?
Yes, at Moons you can. A session on its own takes thirty minutes and costs €40.00.
Does LED therapy help with acne?
We don't make claims about that. In the Acne treatment, LED is included as a calming step after the extractions.
Does LED therapy help with rosacea?
Rosacea is a skin condition. Have it assessed by your GP or dermatologist first, and check with them whether light can be added.
Does LED therapy help against wrinkles?
We don't make claims about that. For more firmness there is microneedling.
Can you have LED therapy when you're pregnant?
Mention it when you book. Then we adapt the treatment to it.
Is an LED mask for home use as strong as a panel in the salon?
No. A mask for home use is smaller and less powerful, and meant to be used often and briefly. It's something different from a session under a panel.
Do you need to protect your eyes during LED therapy?
In the salon your eyes are covered. With a mask for home use, follow the manufacturer's instructions.
What does LED therapy cost?
At Moons in Enschede it costs €20.00 as an add-on to a peel or microneedling, and €40.00 as a thirty-minute session on its own. In the Acne treatment, the Redness treatment and the anti-ageing treatments it's already included in the price.
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