In recent years at-home skin devices, like LED face masks, have surged in popularity. They aim to bring the benefits of professional treatments to your daily skincare routine, often with less expense than a series of clinic visits. Although at-home devices are a convenient option, many people wonder whether they hold a light to their clinical counterparts. Let’s investigate how at-home LED devices, like our SAN LUEUR Advanced LED Light Therapy Facial Mask, compare with clinical LED light devices.
Wavelengths, irradiance, and energy output
Three elements make light emitting diode (LED) devices effective: wavelengths, irradiance, and energy output. Here’s a brief recap of what this means:
- Wavelengths are lights visible to the human eye. We see them as the colours in the rainbow – red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. When wavelengths are emitted from an LED device to your skin, they will travel to a specific depth. This depth is measured in nanometres (nm).
- Irradiance is a way of measuring the power density or intensity of light in a device, measured in mW/cm2.
- Energy output, or fluence, refers to the amount of energy delivered by a device, measured in J/cm2.
For any LED device to be beneficial, its wavelengths, irradiance, and energy output must be at optimal levels. These levels are defined by clinical studies and academic research into the effects of LED treatments on human skin.
To make an accurate comparison between an at-home LED device and a clinical LED device, it’s necessary to compare wavelengths, irradiance, and energy output. Put simply, one is not inherently better than the other.
Safety specifications
LED light therapy is considered to be a low-risk skin treatment. It’s suitable for all kinds of skin, and when applied safely, there are minimal (if any) side effects to using LED light. There’s no downtime required and practically zero discomfort, making it a superb skin treatment for most people.
The SAN LUEUER LED Facial Mask is the world’s first LED mask that delivers all three clinically approved wavelengths at the highest optimised irradiance (50-60mW/cm2) and energy output (23J/cm2) possible for an at-home device. Any more and it would be uncomfortable to use; any less and it wouldn’t be worthwhile.
Depending on which specific in-clinic LED machine is used, some professional LED light therapy devices found in clinics can feature higher irradiances and energy outputs, as aesthetic practitioners are trained to use higher-powered LED technology safely. Compared to at-home LED light devices, they may provide accelerated results in a shorter time frame. However, ongoing in-clinic ‘top-up’ appointments are required weekly or monthly if you aren’t simultaneously using an at-home device to continue your skin progress.
Our SAN LUEUR Advanced LED Facial Mask has a flat and flexible design to adapt to all face shapes and it is also designed to sit as close to your skin as possible. This allows for maximum penetration of the wavelength, avoiding any scatter of the light. Utilising the same wavelengths used in-clinic, and paired with the highest irradiance and energy output possible for an at-home device, makes our mask highly effective when used consistently.
Compatibility with other treatments
The SAN LUEUER Advanced LED Facial Mask can be used at home as part of your skincare routine. There’s no need to stop using actives or make any adjustments to your existing regimen. It’s a convenient addition to amplify your skincare results.
Our at-home LED light mask can also be used in conjunction with other clinical treatments. It is compatible with popular modalities including intense pulsed light (IPL), laser, and microneedling. Depending on how often you use your at-home LED device, it may help maintain your clinical treatment results for longer, extending the time between appointments.
Clinical LED light devices can also be paired with other professional skin treatments. LED light therapy is often used in clinics for skin recovery after more intensive treatments such as lasers, chemical peels, and injectables. Following your clinical treatment, our LED face mask is also beneficial to use post invasive treatment as it can help reduce downtime and speed up recovery.
Better together
There’s no definitive winner between at-home LED light devices and clinical LED light treatments. Technically, they can be compared by assessing device specifications, including wavelengths, irradiance, and output. However, which is “better” depends on your personal preferences and skin goals. Do you enjoy attending in-clinic appointments or do you prefer treating your skin at home? Will you be consistent in using an at-home device, especially if you’re travelling? Do you prefer to have in-clinic LED treatment supplemented by an at-home LED mask for a cumulative effect to enhance results?
Our skin cycle renews every 28-30 days so whether it comes down to in-clinic treatment of at home LED treatment, consistency is key to experiencing noticeable results. Those who are part of our SAN LUEUR society are seeing results in as little as two weeks when using their at-home LED mask consistently.
Whichever option you prefer - in-clinic LED treatments or at-home LED treatments, both options are great on their own, but even better together. The most noticeable skincare results can be achieved by using the SAN LUEUR LED Facial Mask in between in-clinic LED light treatments.
If you’re interested in learning more about how your skin can benefit from the SAN LUEUR LED Facial Mask, head to our ‘The Science, Unmasked’ page, 'SAN LUEUR Advanced LED Light Therapy Facial Mask and Results' page or our FAQs.
If you have any questions or you would like to get in touch, please contact us at info@sanlueur.com