Green light may help relieve pain, study finds

Green has long been the colour of nature and envy, even if more recently it’s been associated with money and traffic lights.

Now, however, some researchers think there may be another use for it — as a potential pain reliever.

University of Arizona professor Mohab Ibrahim was first inspired to undertake the study by his brother’s seemingly unusual treatment for his headaches.

“I used to recommend some NSAIDs for him, but on many occasions he declines,” Ibrahim told Digital Trends. “He told me several times that he prefers to sit among his trees … and that reduces his headache.”

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Ibrahim didn’t pay much attention to his brother’s technique until one day when he himself had a headache, but was all out of ibuprofen. On his way to the pharmacy, Ibrahim passed a park and remembered what his brother had told him.

“I took a little detour and I went to the park instead,” he said. “After about fifteen minutes or so in the park, my headache started to get better.”

After sharing his idea with some colleagues, Ibrahim decided to test the effect of green light on rats. The researchers placed one group of rats into a container bathed in green LED lights and equipped another group of rats with contact lenses that only allowed green light to pass through. A third group wore lenses that blocked green light.

The study demonstrated that rats with neuropathic pain benefited from the green LEDs by showing more tolerance to heat and touch. The researchers published a paper detailing the study last week in the aptly named journal Pain.

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