Are the Total Body Enhancement red light therapy machines at some well-loved gyms a gimmick or a game changer? I have wanted to find out, but have not had any Crunch Fitness or Planet Fitness gyms in my area here in New Zealand.
My first opportunity to test the machines used by these two popular gyms was while my Light Therapy Insiders team was visiting Europe.
We were interviewing some innovative light therapy companies who were showcasing their newest products at the international Health Optimisation Summit hosted in London in 2023.
Eager to get the metrics for these machines to share with my health-conscious community, I traveled to the other side of the world with my spectrometer, EMF meter, video camera, and my five or six year's worth of extensive experience gained from all my red light therapy research and experiments on countless products across dozens of brands.
Be sure to stick around to the end of this article because I will be sharing some home-use products as well as professional-use equipment that may be even better for your wellness goals than the Total Body Enhancement red light therapy machine by the brand Beauty Angel.
I want to help you get all the best information as well as any discounts available to my readers. If you purchase products through my links in this article and use my discount codes, then I receive a small commission at no cost to you which funds these reviews.
I aim to be affiliated with all light therapy companies to be as impartial as possible. Whether or not I am affiliated with a company does not impact my product evaluations. I always strive to share useful, factual information, so that you are empowered with all the knowledge you want to decide which products are best for you.
This walk-in light therapy cabin is available to Black Card members at Planet Fitness as well as to Crunch Fitness mid-tier and above members.
You simply strip down to your underwear, walk into the device, close the door, put your protective goggles on, and hit start. For 12 minutes you'll be completely enveloped in brilliantly bright light.
The front desk will ask you how many minutes you want from 1–12 per session. Generally, you are permitted to do more than one session since there is no UV light emitted by these machines. It may just mean waiting a bit for the next one to be available since they are a popular amenity.
During a regular session, the door would be closed and all of the 32 lamps that are each 180 watts would be encircling you in cheery, bright light with proven skin-health benefits.
As you can see here, the wall on the left side of the photo with the "pf" Planet Fitness logo is glowing an orange red from the therapeutic light streaming out through the open door.
It is designed to be used as 12-minute sessions 2–3 times a week for at least 90 days to really notice a visible difference in your skin's health and appearance. The machine's therapeutic light will soak into your skin about 1-4 millimeters deep according to some sources.
Beauty Angel uses a variety of wavelengths. The main one is 630 nanometer (nm) wavelength light. (One nanometer is the same as one billionth of one metre/meter.) This special wavelength of light has been scientifically shown to enhance skin health.
"Combined red (633nm) and near-infrared (830nm) wavelengths are proven to improve and clear recalcitrant psoriasis with 60% to 100% effectiveness after just eight 30-minute sessions."
They have a "medically CE certified for acne, psoriasis, wound healing and pain relief (musculoskeletal)" device called Dermalux Flex MD.
Healthier skin naturally looks more youthful and attractive. We have all had the experience of putting lotion on our skin that soaks in to make it look and feel more smooth for a few hours.
Why do cosmetic topical beauty products only last for hours? Well, because it is only temporarily adding an ingredient to the skin that would not normally be there. It is not any substance being produced by the body naturally. That includes the most high-end products like vitamin C serums.
"Transcellular Route: ...This is the most common route of skin care absorption of cosmeceutical ingredients. Molecules must be of a molecular weight less than 500 Daltons to enter the skin this way. (4)
"Olive oil penetrates the skin best..."
For visible and tangible results that last for weeks instead of hours, professional clinicians use both sound waves and light waves in specific frequencies that have been demonstrated to achieve results in scientific studies to help their clients produce more endogenous collagen and elastin.
"Audible sound has frequencies that cover a very big range, from about 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz, meaning that the pressure at your ear oscillates back and forth 20 to 20,000 times per second. Each frequency gives a different audible pitch.
"Visible light has frequencies from around 4*10^14 Hz to around 8*10^14 Hz. Each frequency gives a slightly different visible color."
In the wonderful world of light therapy research, we focus less on frequency as a measure of time because the studies show that particular wavelengths measured in nanometers between peaks is the key to getting results.
"The frequency f tells us how many times the wave completes a period of its oscillation in a given amount of time (if that interval is a second, the frequency is measured in Hertz: 1 Hz=1/s1 Hz=1/s).
The wavelength λ measures the horizontal distance between two peaks [where the length is measured in meters, cm, mm, nm...] on the same side of the baseline.
Beauty Angel machines primarily use wavelengths with a length of around 630nm. One nanometer equals one billionth of one meter (0.000000001 m). So in this device, from the top of one red light wave peak to the top of the next is 0.00000063 of a meter/metre or 0.00063mm or 630nm.
Our eyes and brains are attuned to this special wavelength that we perceive as the color red. These nano-sized waves of therapeutic red light are small enough to penetrate into your skin to a depth of 1.8mm / 0.0018 of a metre/meter (per the Gembared website).
Red light therapy with this scientifically studied wavelength will most likely help enhance your skin health and enable it to produce more of its own collagen and elastin for healthy, youthful, firm, smooth, attractive skin with a more even tone.
A point of interest is that the red light emanating from these special LED lamp bulbs is not merely white light being filtered through some red-colored plastic which is a common misconception.
These LEDs were invented to generate precise beneficial wavelengths that our brains recognize as an important color—red—that naturally captures our attention in a ripe apple, a fragrant rose, and a glorious sunrise or sunset which incidentally also contains beneficial red light.
Device Specifics
I have reviewed dozens and dozens of different light therapy devices over the years. I often get asked what I think of this machine at these highly successful fitness centers with so much to offer their members. So let me tell you all about this skin-improvement device from Beauty Angel which is a company in Germany.
I tested the Ergoline Beauty Angel® RVT 30 model 7200 which is the latest and greatest. This is a walk-in standing chamber booth where a person is completely surrounded on all sides from head to toe by 30 tall LED lamps that look like long cylinders arranged vertically in a circle just behind the walls of clear, hard plastic.
On the Beauty Angel website, it states that their product provides "cosmetic stimulation of the skin using photobiomodulation." We call it red light therapy.
It also says that these machines do not use any UV light which is light wavelengths shorter than 400nm. That's good to know. So they will not give you a tan nor stimulate your skin to produce any of the hormone / vitamin D.
They say within 90 days, you should see improved skin appearance and anti-aging benefits due to your body making more collagen and elastin in the skin from the benefits of the scientifically studied primary wavelength used in this machine.
If you feel like listening to music during your light therapy session, you will get the option to listen to a dozen or so different relaxing music selections at the touch of a button. You can use the MP3 player connection to listen to your own music as well.
If you want, you have the option to use the Vibra Shape feature in the circular floating floor beneath the grey rubber mat. It has 3 different levels of intensity plus a 4th mode that is a varied mix of the three.
These vibrations have additional benefits to help with circulation, lymph flow, and muscle activation. In this article, my focus will be exclusively on the red light therapy features of this device since that is my area of expertise.
Is there evidence to support these claims about red light improving collagen and elastin to give the skin a more youthful appearance? We know that red light therapy has a tremendous amount of research behind it.
The research is solid. The mechanisms of action are well understood by scientists. Everyone who is tapped into the wealth of scientific research surrounding red light therapy knows it is quite amazing!
In order to maximize the benefits of red light therapy, we need to be using both the specific well-researched wavelengths plus the right amount of power and exposure time to ensure optimal results.
Spectrometer Power Testing
The power output metric is an irradiance (Ee) measurement of radiant flux proportional to a specific surface area size. My spectrometer measured this machine's light intensity to be about 13 milliwatts over each square centimeter (Ee: 13mW/cm²).
Ee is a measurement of the concentration of light. If those same 13mW of light were spread out over an entire square meter, it would be lighting up a much larger area far less intensely compared to when all 13mW are striking the small cm² to light up that more brightly.
This machine will deliver approximately 13mW of light energy to every single cm² of your bare skin facing the light. Anything between your skin and the light such as clothing will dramatically reduce that therapeutic light dose down to next to nothing.
If you compare this machine to a regular red light therapy panel, this Ee is on the lower side. Research shows that for optimal surface-level treatment of the skin, you only need about 10 Joules over centimeter squared (10J/cm²).
For deeper benefits such as muscle recovery and joint health, you need a lot more power than that. With this radiance figure of 13mW and a total treatment time of 12 minutes, that comes out to exactly 10J/cm² for the entire body which is optimal for surface level benefits.
This is a good power level for skin health and beauty benefits. It's important to note that this power figure does include all the wavelengths combined not just the reds, but also the blues, and the amber tones, and the greens.
For those of you hoping the Beauty Angel is going to help with muscle recovery after an intense workout, unfortunately the power intensity and the shorter wavelengths selected specifically for surface level skin health don't reach that deep into your tissues.
Beauty Angel doesn't claim to offer those deeper benefits, it is entirely focused on optimizing skin health and beauty. It does that successfully.
Spectrometer Wavelength Testing
On the screen, you'll see the wavelength breakdown from my spectrometer. Surprisingly, we see the main peak at 620 nanometers (nm) which is not typically seen in red lights therapy devices.
This 620nm wavelength straddles the line between orange and red whereas the longer wavelengths around 660nm would be more of a true red.
Now if we look at what the science shows on what wavelengths are best for mitochondrial performance (mitochondria being analogous to our cells' power plants), we see that the best wavelengths are around this 620nm and also around 670nm. So it is ideal for skin health that the main wavelength is in that 620nm range!
We also see a bit of energy at 700nm. Note that the peak of the wavelength's height on the graph is proportional to the amount of energy. As you can see, there's a lot more energy going to the 620nm than there is in the 700nm. Plus, there's a little bit more at 705nm as well.
This blend of light isn't commonly seen in red light therapy devices, so there's not a lot of research around 700nm. That's pretty much on the edge of visible and invisible light. Technically, 700nm is near infrared light while anything under 700nm is red light.
We know that near infrared light is very beneficial in general. However, the reason 700nm in particular is not typically used in light therapy devices is because it doesn't result in significant mitochondrial absorption.
That's why there aren't a lot of solid studies on 700nm unfortunately. If we saw wavelengths in the 800 to 850nm range, that would be much more effective at supporting the health of our mitochondria.
What's interesting to me is that we see some other non-red wavelengths here. There is warm-yellow amber light at 595nm. This has been shown to help reduce inflammation and redness in the skin, so that is a helpful addition.
We then see 546nm yellow-green light. There is a little bit of research here showing that green light can help with hyperpigmentation spots.
High-Energy Violet and Blue Light?
You will notice there is also the short-wavelength, high-energy light over on the left end of my spectrometer's wavelengths spectrum.
The UV region covers the wavelength range 100-400 nm and is divided into three bands:
UVA (315-400 nm)
UVB (280-315 nm)
UVC (100-280 nm).
I've seen two peaks one at 404nm just above the UV range, and another peak at 436nm. The 404nm is quite interesting as this is quite a strong anti-microbial wavelength, so it's often used in dental health as well.
(Check out our blue light therapy article as well if you're interested!)
You may see some benefits when it comes to acne with these blue and violet wavelengths. Remember though, you're not just using this to treat your face if you've got some acne because your entire body will also be bathed in this very low intensity of blue and violet light.
For some people blue and violet light could potentially cause skin irritation. Although, this is a dramatically lower irradiance concentration than what would be used in the dentist's office.
The key takeaway here is to wear blue and violet light blocking protective goggles in these machines. It is similar to how you would wear UV blocking goggles in a tanning bed. It's wise to protect the delicate structures within your eyes from the damaging effects of blue and violet light.
If you use this machine without blue and violet protective goggles, which I don't advise, the blue and violet light may also have unintended effects such as disrupting your circadian rhythm if you're using it after dark which could make it harder to fall asleep later that night through melatonin suppression.
I actually tested how effective the included sunglasses were that I found sitting inside the machine. (Not all machines will have these sunglasses inside.) I found that even with these UV blocking sunglasses, there were still a ton of blue light coming through because sunglasses don't block blue light.
If you are going to use this machine, I'd recommend taking your own blue light blocking goggles with you to use, such as Swannies for instance (code FERGUS saves there!).
Spectrometer Flicker Testing
My spectrometer testing device didn't find any issue with flicker in this new 7200 model. It did show just a little bit of flicker, but it was nothing like what someone filmed showing an older Beauty Angel machine with a lot of flicker. So I'm glad it's good now.
Spectrometer nnEMF Testing
Measuring the levels of non-native electromagnetic frequencies (nnEMF) is one of the many key metrics I test with specialized equipment as I review light therapy products which is what I love to do for a living.
We need to be wary of the unnecessary stressor of nnEMF emitted by some electrical appliance devices with wiring that is not properly grounded because it could create unwanted effects in your body.
"Non-native EMFs are invisible waves of electromagnetic energy ... hundreds of studies have shown that non-ionizing radiation is supremely detrimental at the cellular level ... by flooding the cell with excessive intracellular calcium ... which not only impairs electron flow ... but also increases free radicals ... causing massive damage to mitochondrial health ... you get a significant reduction in intracellular water and ATP ... essential to healthy cellular function."
The nnEMF levels in this Beauty Angel appliance were quite concerning to me since the nnEMF output from this machine literally overloaded my Electrosmog meter device!
This reading was taken where I'd been standing in the center of the machine, and the nnEMF reading was through the roof!
"Also a scientific panel recommended 1mG exposure limit based on risk for leukemia, brain tumors, Alzheimer‘s, ALS, sperm damage and DNA strand breaks [1mG (milligauss) = 0.1uT (microtesla)]. These recommendations are for long-term continued exposure for many hours and days, not to brief exposures like driving under power lines. The main sources of AC magnetic fields are: power lines, appliances, wiring in floors and walls, or improperly wired homes."
Thus at Beauty Angel's recommended dose of 12 minutes 2–3 times a week, that amounts to 24–36 minutes a week which is neither hours nor days as warned above, so the duration would be more akin to driving under power lines in that example given.
However, the dose is also impacted by the proximity, and a person is closer to the nnEMF source inside this light therapy cabin than while driving under power lines.
Many people are unaware that AC electricity generates nnEMF fields that may negatively impact our body to varying degrees depending on the dose.
Since my life revolves around objective testing of light therapy products and evaluating all the pros and cons of each, I was inside that chamber thinking, "This is really not great standing in this machine in the name of health and wellness."
"The electric field readings coming out of this panel are quite high, concerningly high.
"If you look at the power cord coming out of this panel, you will see there are only two prongs... this is the official Joovv cable...
"Here we've got another [3-pronged] cable. This is an American [grounding] cable.
"...it is quite easy to shield or lower electric field readings: it is just to make sure it is well grounded... if the cables come with a grounding pin... then it is safe."
What's My Take?
Is it a gimmick or a total game changer? It's neither really.
It's not a gimmick because some of those wavelengths are scientifically proven to be highly beneficial wavelengths, so you should expect to see some noticeable improvements with skin quality especially with regular use.
Yet, this device is solely focused on beauty and skin health with its 620nm light only traveling 1.8mm (or 1-4mm depending on the data source and also on the unique variables of each individual's skin). It doesn't take a lot of power to do that, so it mostly manages to reach the necessary 10 Jules for that depth.
However, the concerning issue to me is the high nnEMF levels. To a lesser degree, there may be an issue with the blue and violet light which have both been linked with the eye problems, so please use special blue blocking goggles to protect the delicate retinal cells lining the back wall of your eyeball.
Wearing blue blocking goggles in these machines will also to ensure your circadian rhythm doesn't get the wrong signal after sunset that the blue light means it is morning which could disrupt your ability to fall asleep.
Conversely, using it early in the day may promote wakefulness and help you feel energized, but only if the blue and violet light is getting into your eyes which I don't recommend for optimal retinal health.
However, some companies like PlatinumLED have started adding blue light LEDs to their panels which prompted me to publish an article by Bart discussing his findings regarding the pros and cons of blue light.
The UV blocking sunglasses which may or may not be available didn't sufficiently shield the wearer from the blue and 404nm violet light wavelengths in these machines that do not UV light which is technically anything under 400nm.
If you bring your own Swannies blue blocking goggles like I use at home in the evening, it would solve that problem. If you can't get blue and violet blocking goggles, simply cover your closed eyes with your hands to shield your eyeballs.
Related Products
The company that sells these machines to fitness clubs also make a standing tanning booth that incorporates some red light therapy for its skin health properties.
"Total Light Technology represents a new era in combined UV and light technology. This combination of Red Light, Blue Light and UV provides optimal tanning results and high levels of client customization to each and every session."
Why Compromise?
We're talking about a wellness machine at health clubs. What's the point of having totally unnecessary nnEMF stress on the body in exchange for 1–4mm-deep light therapy benefits when there are safer options?
It's definitely not a game changer either. It's missing out on all the longer, therapeutic, near-infrared wavelengths such as 810nm and 850nm light that would tap into deeper benefits for joints and muscle-recovery benefits.
Factoring in the fan noise and the faint flicker, my overall conclusion is that these Total Body Enhancement cabins are not the best available option. There are plenty of better options for clinics and gyms when it comes to walk-in red light therapy chamber cabins.
The Mito Red Room is one such example. I'd wager that the Mito Red Room would cost less than the Beauty Angel machine as well.
Light Therapy Beauty Wall Panels For Home Use
Remember, you can also simply go out and buy your own red light therapy panel for yourself to use in the comfort of your own home any time you like with all the most beneficial, scientifically studied wavelengths without any unnecessary nnEMF exposure.
In fact, this is exactly what thousands of us are choosing to do. We are investing in red light therapy products that help us look our best and support our overall health and wellness.
Even if you are only interested in the shorter wavelengths that are proven to improve the appearance of your skin, I will gladly help you find the perfect device to achieve your desired outcomes. Let me show you all the optimal wavelengths, the best power intensities, evaluate the ease of use, compare price points, and so much more!
Final Note
Red light therapy is backed by thousands of studies showing it really helps with a whole host of health and wellness benefits. It's wonderful that these products are finally available for people as a value-added benefit of their gym membership!
Quora Q&A: Is Planet Fitness "Total Body Enhancement" a scam?
If you have already seen improvements from your Beauty Angel sessions that are limited to these short wavelengths that can only penetrate a couple of millimeters, just imagine the untapped potential available to you if you want to also reap the rewards of products for your gym or home that include additional deeper wavelengths plus no nnEMF.
Thanks for reading my Beauty Angel Total Body Enhancement review. I hope the information I've shared will support your best health!
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