Can violet light therapy help with depression? Original paper

In this 4-week randomized crossover study in 57 adults in Japan with major depressive disorder, violet light therapy (a noninvasive treatment that uses violet light to stimulate brain activity) reduced depression symptoms compared to a placebo.

This Study Summary was published on March 26, 2025.

The study

The participants, who were already taking antidepressant medication, wore either active violet-light or placebo irradiation goggles for 3 hours daily over a 4-week period, followed by a 4-week washout between the conditions.

The violet light therapy reduced depression symptoms with a small effect size. This improvement had a p-value of 0.042, which just passes the threshold for statistical significance.

No adverse effects were reported.

One of the authors holds a patent for the device that was tested.

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The results

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    This Study Summary was published on March 26, 2025.