Articles ¬ The Source ¬ Intense Pulsed LightNaturopathic medicine is amazing and continues to impress me with its ability to heal everything safely and so quickly. Well, almost everything. Skin has always been the exception to this rule as so many internal factors can cause it to either heal slowly or not at all. Thankfully, two years of going to the United States for Anti-aging conferences has paid off in many ways, including by finding out about Intense Pulsed Light systems (IPL).
This incredible therapy was pioneered by Dr. Patrick Bitter Jr. and is based on emitting broad spectrum, high intensity pulses of light by use of a specially constructed xenon flash lamp through a sapphire lens which penetrates the skin. The light that emanates from the IPL hand piece is filtered to remove any ultraviolet components, eliminating the possibility of UV skin damage.
IPL technology can be used to heal and erase brown age spots, broken blood vessels and other skin issues brought on by sun exposure. It is also effective with acne, rosacea, telangiectasia, freckles, pigmented or vascular birth marks, permanent hair reduction and in some cases, permanent hair removal. IPL systems can also perform facials which increase collagen production to reduce fine wrinkles, decrease pore size and improve skin tone and elasticity.
This form of light therapy eliminates pigmented lesions (sunspots or age spots), by passing harmlessly through the skin and is absorbed by the pigment (melanin) in the lesion. The light heats the pigment and disables the cells that produced it. These dead cells are naturally shed by the body after approximately two weeks, leaving behind fresh, unblemished skin. The way that an IPL system is able to decrease hair growth is also by targeting the melanin in the hair with the light being changed into heat and disabling the hair from growing. Pulsed light treats blood vessels (such as those that cause Rosacea and telangiectasias) by heating the hemoglobin within the vein. The absorption of heat causes injury to the internal walls of the veins, making them collapse, become reabsorbed by the body and fade from view. The IPL system treats acne on two fronts: it kills the bacteria that cause acne and it damages the overactive glands that trap the bacteria and lead to more acne.
The pulses of light produced by IPL equipment are very short in duration, so discomfort and damage to non-target tissues is minor. Most patients describe the light pulses as a ‘snapping’ sensation, which causes mild discomfort at most. After the treatment, there may be some redness and swelling which quickly fades, making IPL therapy a " no down time" method of working with skin issues.
This technology is a great combination of nature and science. It has been very exciting using this with my patients and seeing such fast results This new addition to my practice can effect immediate changes for your skin from the outside and then be supported internally with Naturopathic Medicine, so that the changes are long lasting. Healing from the outside in and the inside out.
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