Hi, I’m Aastha, and welcome to Live Longer World, where I interview scientists researching the frontiers of longevity science and write about health & longevity practices.
We’re only just waking up to the benefits of sunlight and red light for mitochondrial health, lowering blood glucose, and potentially treating Parkinson’s disease and cancer.
Dr. Glen Jeffery, my guest today, is at the leading edge of this research. We discuss:
Health benefits of sunlight and red light
Harmful effects of blue light & LEDs
In the 2nd half of the podcast, I ask him rapid fire practical questions that everyone wants to know about light, ranging from how much sunlight should one get to what time of day is best for infrared light exposure.
Some great nuggets you don’t want to miss! Timestamps below cover the topics discussed well.
Watch on YouTube. Listen on Spotify, or any other podcast platform.
Follow me on X @aasthajs for more on longevity. Hope you enjoy the conversation!
All other platforms: here
Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
0:59 Light impact on public health
3:08 Light research is understudied, mitochondria is impacted by light
6:05 Red and blue light impacts on mitochondria
8:25 Benefits of red light - wound healing, lower glucose
15:09 Are there downsides to red light?
16:59 Does time of day impact red light benefits?
22:05 Red light and cancer
26:00 Blue light is making you pre-diabetic
37:46 n=1 light experiments
39:22 Mitochondria & Longevity
46:21 “Sunlight offers a unique package”
Rapid fire questions:
53:40 Is sunlight good enough for red light?
55:10 How much sunlight do we need?
56:07 When should you get sunlight?
56:55 Should you worry about afternoon sunlight?
58:57 Can you get sunlight on cloudy days?
59:38 Does sunscreen mitigate benefits of sunlight?
1:00:12 Should you not wear caps and sunglasses in sunlight?
1:01:43 Clothing and sunlight
1:05:52 Sunlight through window?
1:06:16 Are blue light blocking glasses helpful? (see 1:19:31 for more context)
1:08:17 Do Artificial sunlight lamps work?
1:08:51 What wavelength red light is the best?
1:10:56 Time in front of red light device
1:12:41 Body exposure to red light
1:15:37 Lighting at home at night
1:19:31 Differences in blue light for mitochondria vs. circadian biology
1:24:18 Stop using LEDs
1:25:24 Does light impact the bioelectrics of the mitochondria?
1:26:55 Mitochondria in melatonin mop up ROS
1:31:29 Benefits of fire light?
1:35:33 Open questions on light and health
1:37:28 Support Live Longer World
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