Weekly Newsletter: New Parkinson's Disease And Light Therapy For The Brain Study

This week we're covering a very exciting new Parkinson's disease study - with a SYMBYX helmet which has been covered on this website previously.

We've also added the latest articles, YouTube videos, polls, and anything else important!

Weekly Study: More SYMBYX Neuro Usage In Parkinson's Disease For Both Motor And Non-Motor Symptoms

We've talked a lot about Parkinson's disease in the past - the neurodegenerative condition whereby motor control is progressively lost (esp. without medication). Many other symptoms exist, such as cognitive, emotional, gut function, and more.

(I have included a very extensive deep dive into light therapy for neurodegeneration in my course - you can join for free!)

So this October 2025 study came out using transcranial red light therapy:

That "transcranial" or "through the skull" - in plain English - light therapy helmet is from SYMBYX. I've personally met and interviewed the founders in the past. Check that interview here:

But let's go back to the October 2025 study. The study had two different groups, a sham treatment (placebo; who didn't receive the real intervention) and an intervention group (only they received light therapy).

The intervention group had their head treated, as well as the back of their neck and abdomen. The study setup was actually quite complex, as after the intial period (stage 1), the nature of the study changed:

"Stage 1 was an 8-week double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial using either active or sham PBMt to the head, back of the neck and abdomen three times weekly at home, followed by a 4-week washout. Stage 2 was 8 weeks of active PBMt for all participants. In Stage 3, participants chose to continue active PBMt treatment (‘continuers’) or receive no PBMt treatment (‘non-continuers’) for up to 48 weeks."

So eventually, even the sham group received the full treatment during stage 2 of this study. And stage 3 is more of a long-term phase of the study, to measure long-term effects, which is great as I often criticize the lack of long-term effects in studies!

(Measuring long-term effects is expensive though - so that'a huge issue)

So what's the outcome? Well, many different outcome measures were tracked during this study. These outcomes include functional mobility, gait (your ability to walk, basically), a neurological evaluation for Parkinson's disease, balance, fine motor skills, cognition, mental health, sleep quality - basically anything that's stronly affected by Parkinson's disease.

The results of the study? Well, it's quite surprising, as mostly long-term effects were measured - there wasn't any immediate improvement here. Here's what researchers write:

"There was no significant difference between the Active and Sham Groups after Stages 1 or 2, apart from minimal increase in [...] cognition (Sham Group) in Stage 1. After Stage 3, continuers showed a significant improvement in the primary outcome measure compared to non-continuers. Anxiety and the motor experiences of daily living (MDS-UPDRS Part II) were also significantly improved, while other outcomes approached significance, including MDS-UPDRS Total score [,which measures neurological function] (p = 0.062). "

So only in stage 3 were the biggest differences observed for people who continued treatment with a device over time. Side effects were extremely rare but headaches and nausea, linked to a pre-existing cardiac issue, are described in the study.

Also, there's the issue of individual variability - the fact that different individuals have different results. Here's what the researches write about that:

"Results for the effect of [Light therapy to the brain] on Parkinson’s symptoms are highly individual, as would be expected for a disease with such heterogeneous symptomology. Multiple factors can influence the presentation of symptoms, including genetic predisposition, stage of the disease, and the postulated body-first and brain-first variants of the disease. It should also be noted that at baseline, the majority of participants in this study were categorised as mild to moderate for most symptoms (Hoehn and Yahr stage 2), thus leaving less room for improvement than in more advanced stages of [Parkinson's Disease], where response to [light therapy to the brain] might be different."

Curious to learn more? Read the full study that is quite complex. Suffice it to say, this particular study shows impovements in overall Parkinson's disease, especially with long-term treatment. So, if you've got mild to moderate Parkinson's Disease, the therapy is very much worth trying in my opinion.

Learn more? Check my deep dive article on this topic as well:

That article analyzes and integrates all of the published science up until mid-2025 in a readable and understandable way.

Nevertheless, we're pretty happy with the outcome of this study. And the researchers are too. Here's what they conclude with:

"In conclusion, this is the largest study to date that has assessed the efficacy of [light therapy to the brain] as a treatment for Parkinson’s symptoms and increases the weight of evidence of the efficacy of this device-assisted therapy. There was a significant difference in the primary outcome measure (TUG) [which is your ability to get up from a chair and walk] when [light therapy to the brain] was continued for an extended time. Notably, there was also a significant improvement in anxiety for those who continued [light therapy to the brain]. Longer term, larger studies are warranted from the results presented here, with the intention to slow the progression of Parkinson’s symptoms."

Great!

Weekly Poll On The Best Red Light Therapy Device

So here's a somehwat older poll by Alex - on what brands you'd consider buying from.

You can join the poll HERE. We'll be updating you with lots and lots of new polls in the near future, as we're becoming more active in this area in our Facebook group:

We've had quite some votes so far right now. Again, you can join the poll HERE.

Here Are Our Latest Light Therapy Insiders' Articles:

Every single article that we've published recently - you can find the videos in the article itself:

Do LED Masks Actually Build Collagen? The Studies Say This: - Alex explains the link between using red light therapy masks and collagen - one of the most popular topics out there right now, and the reason why so many buy masks.
Red Light Dosing & Wavelengths Explained Simply - This question comes up so often in our Facebook group - dosing, wavelengths, and more, so Bart create a guide on the topic!
Interview With Sun Stream Sauna Owner And Founder Kevin Halsey - Here's an older interview of Alex by the founder and owner of Sun Stream Saunas - who are also linked to Rojo! Alex has been recommending this company for years now.
The Fascinating History Of Red Light Therapy - Here's how red light therapy got started decades ago, by Bart - a deep dive!
Infrared Sauna vs Red Light Therapy: Why They’re NOT the Same - Alex explains why red light therapy, and infrared saunas, aren't the same, and how to combine (or NOT!) the two...
Neuronic Helmet Science: 3 NEW Groundbreaking Studies - Here, Bart interviews Neuronic scientists and the founder, with 3 groundbreaking studies on the topic using their own device!
The Valeda Light Delivery System (LDS) For Eye Health In The Global News - Here's the very important light therapy system for eye health, and the pros and cons of this solution.

Also, Check Out Some Of Our Other Content:

Below you'll find some of our best content that you shouldn't miss:

Light Therapy Advanced Science Course (Just Launched!):

Join Bart's 100% free advanced science light therapy course above, where he takes deep dives into many different topics, such as mechanisms, neurology (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, etc), exercise recovery, skin beauty & rejuvenation, and much more.

Some of the topics are only published in that course, such as UV light risks and benefits, addiction, anxiety, depression, and more. So join HERE!