A pioneering study by UCL researchers has found that just three minutes of exposure to deep red light once a week, when delivered in the morning, can significantly improve declining eyesight.
Published in the journal Scientific Reports, the study builds on the team's previous work, which showed daily three-minute exposure to longwave deep red light 'switched on' energy-producing mitochondria cells in the human retina, helping boost naturally declining vision.
For this latest study, scientists wanted to establish what effect a single three-minute exposure would have, while also using much lower energy levels than their previous studies.
Furthermore, building on separate UCL research in flies that found mitochondria display 'shifting workloads' depending on the time of day, the team compared
morning exposure to afternoon exposure.