Blue Light LED (450 Nanometers) May Lower Blood Pressure

If you have high blood pressure, then you likely already know that it's the leading cause of stroke, and a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. So, besides things like medication, diet changes, weight loss and exercise, what can be done to reduce it? Well, it turns out that exposure to blue light may help.n a randomized study recently conducted at Britain's University of Surrey, 14 healthy male volunteers received full-body exposure to visible blue light for 30 minutes on one day, followed by 30 minutes of exposure to a control light on a subsequent day. The blue light had a wavelength of about 450 nanometers, which is similar to that of the visible blue light contained within sunlight. 

Besides blood pressure lowering effects, it was also uncovered that exposure to blue light improved other cardiovascular risk markers including reduction of arterial stiffness and increasing blood vessel relaxation.  This further supports that light could be used to prevent cardiovascular disease, which kills over 150,000 people in the UK every year. Researchers also found that exposure to blue light increased levels of nitric oxide which is an important signalling molecular that protects the cardiovascular system. It is believed that blue light releases from the skin into the blood stream where it relaxes the blood vessels, increasing blood flow and decreasing blood pressure.  Christian Heiss, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Surrey and NHS consultant, said: “Exposure to blue light provides an innovative method to precisely control blood pressure without drugs. Wearable blue light sources could make continued exposure to light possible and practical. This would be particularly helpful to those whose blood pressure is not easily controlled by medication, such as older people.”   

For the University of Surrey Study click here