An exciting new study says that exposure to blue light is an effective, non-pharmaceutical treatment for high blood pressure, which simultaneously reduces the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

During this study, which was published in the European Journal of Preventative Cardiology, participants were exposed to 30 minutes of whole-body blue light at approximately 450 nanometers – a dose comparable to daily sunlight – followed by exposure to a control light on a different day.

Visible blue light, as opposed to ultraviolet (UV) light, is not carcinogenic. To assess the impact, participants' blood pressure, stiffness of arteries, blood vessel dilation, and blood plasma levels of nitric oxide stores were measured—before, during, and up to two hours after irradiation with both lights.

The researchers who conducted the study from the University of Surrey and Heinrich Heine University Duesseldorf discovered that exposure to whole-body blue light significantly reduced the systolic blood pressure of participants by almost 8 mmHg, compared to the control light which had no impact.