How is infrared light used in therapy?
Infrared sauna
"Infrared therapy" uses infrared heaters to emit infrared light experienced as radiant heat which is absorbed by the surface of the skin. Saunas heat the body primarily by conduction and convection from the heated air and by radiation of the heated surfaces in the sauna room. Because of this, infrared therapy is not considered a sauna by Finnish sauna societies. Nevertheless, "Infrared Sauna" and "Infrared Therapy" are respectively a methodology and a terminology in the application of the infrared electromagnetic field spectrum to the human body. There are claims of detoxification which lack scientific evidence. There are at least 48 scientific or medical articles on "Infrared Sauna", 327 on "Far Infrared Therapy" and over twenty one thousand on "Infrared Therapy" some of which investigate health benefits, such as prophylactic physiotherapeutic treatment schemes, appetite loss and depression, cardio vascular system improvements, and Photothermal Therapy.
Radio frequency
RF diathermy is a medical treatment that uses RF induced heat as a form of physical therapy and in surgical procedures. It is commonly used for muscle relaxation. It is also a method of heating tissue electromagnetically for therapeutic purposes in medicine. Diathermy is used in physical therapy to deliver moderate heat directly to pathologic lesions in the deeper tissues of the body. Surgically, the extreme heat that can be produced by diathermy may be used to destroy neoplasms, warts, and infected tissues, and to cauterize blood vessels to prevent excessive bleeding. The technique is particularly valuable in neurosurgery and surgery of the eye. Diathermy equipment typically operates in the short-wave radio frequency (range 1–100 MHz) or microwave energy (range 434–915 MHz).