Best Night Ever!
Best Night Ever!
The Red Light Sleep Secret… and Why You’ve Been Using Melatonin All Wrong
Could the secret to deeper, more restorative sleep be as simple as the right light… at the right time? Dr. Jay Khorsandi unpacks the cutting-edge science of red light therapy, how it interacts with your body’s natural melatonin production, and why timing is everything. Learn the powerful connection between light exposure, circadian rhythm, and hormone regulation… and discover why most people are sabotaging their sleep with one common mistake. Plus… practical, step-by-step strategies to use light like a biohacker and wake up feeling truly recharged.
Welcome back… to Best Night Ever… where we explore the latest science and practical strategies to improve your sleep… your wellness… and your longevity. If you’re not already following along on Instagram… you can find me at sleepbiohacker for daily tips… behind-the-scenes experiments… and the occasional deep dive that never makes it onto the podcast. And… if you want to take your sleep optimization game to the next level… sign up for my weekly email list at www dot sleepbiohacker dot com… and I’ll send you my free Biohacker’s Guide to Jet Lag Hacking. It’s a complete playbook to recover faster from travel… and trust me… it works. Now… let’s get into today’s topic… In the last episode… I teased something that has completely changed the way I approach my own sleep. Something that doesn’t come in a pill… doesn’t plug into the wall next to your bed… And yet… when used correctly… can help your body produce more of the single most important sleep hormone you have. I’m talking about light… specifically… red light therapy. Most people think about light only in terms of“too much blue light before bed is bad.” Which is true… but that’s only half the story. Here’s the fascinating part… Light isn’t just something you see… it’s something your body reads. Your skin… your eyes… even the cells inside you have specialized photoreceptors that respond to specific wavelengths of light. And… different wavelengths send different messages to your body. Blue light? That’s your daytime signal. It says…“Stay alert… produce cortisol… hold off on melatonin.” Red and near-infrared light? That’s a completely different conversation. It tells your body…“The sun is setting… shift into repair mode… start producing melatonin naturally.” And here’s where it gets interesting… Your body doesn’t just make melatonin in your brain’s pineal gland. There’s a second… much larger… source of melatonin production… and it’s inside your cells. This is what researchers are calling mitochondrial melatonin. Think of it like an on-site antioxidant factory. This melatonin doesn’t just help you fall asleep… it protects your cells from oxidative stress… supports DNA repair… and primes your body for deep… restorative sleep. A twenty-twenty-four paper in Frontiers in Neuroscience showed that red and near-infrared light can boost mitochondrial melatonin production by activating something called cytochrome c oxidase an enzyme deep in your cellular machinery that responds to these longer wavelengths. Translation? Red light before bed isn’t just about mood or ambience… it’s literally telling your cells…“It’s time to heal… and it’s time to sleep.” But… here’s where most people get it wrong with melatonin. They think…“If a little is good… more must be better.” And so… they pop a 5 or 10 milligram melatonin supplement every night… at whatever time they remember. And then they wonder why they start feeling groggy in the morning… why their dreams get weird… or why the supplement eventually seems to stop working. Here’s the truth… Melatonin is a timing molecule… not a sleeping pill. Its main job is to tell your body when to sleep… not to knock you out like a sedative. If you take it at the wrong time… you can actually shift your circadian rhythm in the wrong direction… making your sleep worse. Most people are taking melatonin way too late… after they’ve already missed the natural signal. And… they’re ignoring the most powerful melatonin booster of all light management. So… how do we use red light therapy the right way? First… timing is everything. You want to use red or near-infrared light in the 30–60 minutes before bed. This mimics the natural sunset signal… telling your brain and body to start winding down. Second… think about intensity and distance. You don’t need to blast yourself with stadium lighting. For most people… 5 to 15 minutes… sitting a couple feet from a quality red light panel… is enough to trigger the mitochondrial response. Third… pair it with reducing blue light. This means dimming overhead lights… turning on warm amber bulbs… and getting rid of any bright screens after your red light session. Here’s my personal evening light stack: I start with 10 minutes of red light therapy while doing my nightly jaw massage yes, still working that from last episode… Then I keep the lights in my house dim and warm. No overhead LEDs. No bright white light. And I aim to be in bed about 45 minutes after my session… which seems to sync perfectly with my sleep onset. The results? Deeper sleep scores on my tracker… fewer nighttime awakenings… and a more refreshed feeling in the morning. Now… here’s a bonus biohack… Red light therapy isn’t just for nighttime. Using near-infrared light in the morning especially on your torso or large muscle groups can help energize mitochondria and set the stage for better daytime energy… which feeds into better nighttime sleep. And yes… there’s a right way to combine melatonin supplements with light therapy. For most adults… if you’re going to supplement… keep the dose low think 0.3 to 1 milligram and take it about 90 minutes before your target bedtime… but only if you need a temporary reset. And use red light in that final hour to naturally amplify your body’s own production. Because here’s the big takeaway… If you manage your light right… you may not need supplemental melatonin at all. In our next episode… we’ll explore something that’s been called“the oxygen paradox” in sleep science… why more oxygen isn’t always better… how certain breathing techniques before bed can transform your sleep quality… and the surprising ways altitude… breath-holding… and even carbon dioxide levels play into deep sleep cycles. Until then… I challenge you to experiment with your evening light routine. Turn down the blue. Bring in the red. And see if your sleep… becomes your Best Night Ever. This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide medical advice. Please… consult with a qualified healthcare provider before beginning any new therapy… especially if you have a medical condition or are taking medications. Red light therapy is generally considered safe… but the optimal approach varies from person to person. The information shared here is based on current research and my own clinical and personal experience… and is intended to help you make informed decisions about your sleep health.