The national magazine and consumer champion says that it chose five leading brands that have recently been made available on the market, which are basically scaled down versions of equipment that has now been used by professional dermatologists for a number of years in the US.
The products cost between $200 and $400 and have all been launched on the US retail market within the last year.
Testing carried out over six week period
The testing was carried out on a series of volunteers, following the manufacturers’ instructions for use and were used from once a week to daily for a period of four to six weeks.
The study found, that with only very few exceptions, there was no visible effect on fine lines and wrinkles after the testing was completed.
However, two of the machines were said to have improved the quality of the skin – the Evis M.D. Platinum Red LED Rejuvenating Facial Light and Tända Regenerate Anti-Aging Starter Kit - were said to have improved the quality of the skin.
Skin quality improved
Skin quality was said to have slightly improved after treatment using these two devices, with the lab evaluations concluding that sun spots, skin pores and skin textures did show some visible signs of improvement at the end of the study.
"While you may get some skin benefits from led devices, they're expensive and they're time consuming, and you'll probably get just as good results from a much less expensive face cream," said beauty editor Leesa Suzman.
Although this latest report is unfavourable, the popularity of light-based therapies and their move into the home market has provided new opportunities for skin care manufacturers, which can develop products specifically targeting these treatment options.
Recently there has been a significant amount of movement in the market for personal light-based anti-aging devices, after the FDA started to give the green light for their use in the home.
Likewise there has also been a flurry of business activity in this area, highlighted by PhotoMedex announcing its acquisition of light-based treatment manufacturer Photo Therapeutics back in October last year.