Simple explanation:

Red Light Therapy = Signal mitochondria to repair, energize, and optimize without heat in a low stress environment.

Infrared Sauna = Signal mitochondria and the body to respond to stress, adapt, and detoxify through heat.

Trying to do both at once sends a mixed message — diluting the effectiveness of each therapy. ⬇️⬇️

At a basic level, red light therapy (photobiomodulation) and infrared sauna therapy are trying to achieve different cellular responses — and combining them at the same time sends conflicting signals to your mitochondria.

Here’s the science behind it:

Different Stress Environments

• Red light therapy acts by increasing cytochrome c oxidase (Complex IV) activity in the mitochondrial electron transport chain, boosting ATP production, reducing oxidative stress, and promoting cellular repair.
• Importantly, red light therapy works best under conditions of minimal heat and minimal inflammatory stress. Studies show excessive thermal stress can reduce photobiomodulation efficiency (Hamblin, 2017).
• Infrared sauna activates heat shock proteins (HSPs), increases ROS signaling (as a hormetic stressor), stimulates mitochondrial uncoupling, and forces a metabolic stress adaptation.
• While beneficial, this is a fundamentally stress-inducing therapy — the opposite environment of what you want during precision PBM.

Mitochondrial Prioritization

Your mitochondria have to prioritize based on the environment.

• If you apply red light therapy alone, mitochondria focus on efficient ATP synthesis, repair, and redox balance improvement.
• If you add heat (via sauna) simultaneously, mitochondria shift toward damage control, protein stabilization, and metabolic uncoupling to manage thermal stress.

Result?

Instead of focusing on clean, efficient energy production, your mitochondria can get “distracted” dealing with the emergency stress signal from heat — which can dampen the intended PBM effects on energy metabolism and cellular repair.

Photoreceptor Saturation and Signal Interference

• Cytochrome c oxidase (CCO), the primary photoreceptor in red light therapy, can be temperature-sensitive.
• Excessive tissue heating can alter mitochondrial membrane fluidity, affect protein conformation, and saturate signaling pathways — meaning the light signal doesn’t hit the target the same way.
• Animal models suggest that red light therapy under normothermic (normal body temp) conditions improves ATP and cellular respiration, but under hyperthermic conditions, the effect is blunted or even reversed.

(Hamblin MR. Mechanisms and mitochondrial redox signaling in photobiomodulation, 2018.)

Increased Risk of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) Imbalance

Both PBM and sauna can independently modulate ROS levels — but in different ways:

• PBM creates a controlled, small ROS burst (like a gentle “wake up” call for the cell) that triggers protective gene expression (e.g., NRF2 activation).
• Sauna-induced hyperthermia causes a larger oxidative stress response to promote adaptation.

When combined improperly:

You could risk overloading the redox system — causing oxidative stress rather than hormetic signaling — especially if mitochondrial reserve capacity is already low (e.g., in chronic fatigue, autoimmunity, or aging populations).

What If You Already Have a Combo Device? If you already have a combo device - do not stress, just know that you are primarily getting sauna benefits from your device! Use your device and enjoy it for the sauna benefits. I would recommend using red light therapy at a separate time. The key is timing and intentional sequencing. Here’s how to optimize: ✨ 1. Separate Red Light Therapy from Sauna Sessions Best strategy: Use Red Light Therapy when your body is not under thermal stress. Use Infrared Sauna for heat stress separately, allowing the hormetic response to occur naturally. Do some sort of cold immersion in between your sauna session and red light therapy session Or do the therapies at different times of day (see below) ⬇️ ✨ 2. Ideal Post-Sauna Protocols If you’re doing a full sauna session and want to incorporate red light therapy too, here’s a second option: Sauna first → Cold therapy (optional) → Red light therapy Example: Step 1: Sauna session (20–40 minutes) to raise core temperature and stimulate heat shock proteins. Step 2: Cold plunge or cold shower (1–5 minutes) to rapidly cool the body and stimulate mitochondrial uncoupling and brown fat activation. Step 3: After cooling off and re-establishing a normal temperature, apply Red Light Therapy (ideally in a cool, comfortable environment). Why this works: You’re not layering conflicting signals. You fully finish the heat stress phase first → then re-enter a low-stress, repair-focused zone for PBM. Practical Rules: Morning Red Light → Afternoon/Evening Sauna = Ideal. Or: Complete Sauna → Cool down → THEN Red Light Therapy. Don’t blast your cells with heat and photobiomodulation at the same time if you want maximum benefits. Use red light in a calm, non-heated state to protect mitochondrial precision. Bonus: What Dr. Glenn Jeffrey’s research suggests: Natural light exposure (especially red and infrared) early in the day is critical for mitochondrial repair and circadian rhythm anchoring. Red light therapy in the morning can boost brain mitochondrial function, improve ATP production, and support healthier circadian clocks — even in aging populations. (Jeffrey et al., 2018 — Photobiomodulation improves mitochondrial function and memory in middle-aged mice.) Want to learn more about sauna - cold & nutrition protocols based on your current health concerns (PCOS, thyroid, autoimmune, fertility, perimenopause & menopause) - Check out Quantum Nutrition 2.0 where I give protocols for cold, red light & sauna based on your needs!