Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsTypesTechniques of Color TherapyUsesBenefitsThings to ConsiderHow to Get Started

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Types

Techniques of Color Therapy

Uses

Benefits

Things to Consider

How to Get Started

Close

Color therapy, also known as chromotherapy, is a form oftherapythat uses color and light to treat certain mental and physical health conditions. We can trace this form of therapy back to the ancient Egyptians. They made use of sun-filled rooms with colored glasses for therapeutic purposes.

Although color therapy has gained some popularity over the years, it’s still not a widely accepted form of therapy in Western medicine. Many medical experts consider it to be pseudoscience or quackery.

Whilecolor psychologyis the study of how different colors can influence human behavior and perception, color therapy is different. It is based upon the unproven assumption that certain colors can impact people’s “energy” and impact health outcomes.

At some point, we’ve all experienced the ways in which color can affect us. For some people, seeing the green in nature on their daily run is an instant mood booster or they instantly feel a little better wearing a favorite yellow dress. The practice of color therapy can be traced to Indianayurvedicmedicine, which claims that the application of certain colors can correct imbalances in our body’s chakras.

Types of Color Therapy

In color therapy, it is believed that different colors are able to impact the body differently.

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Techniques of Color Therapy

Color therapists believe that color can enter our bodies either through our eyes or skin. Each color we can see has its wavelength and unique frequency. Each unique frequency has a different effect on people and is used for different purposes. Warm colors are typically used for stimulating effects, while cool colors are used for calming effects.

What Color Therapy Can Help With

Chromotherapy is considered a type of alternative medicine treatment. It has been purported to help with a variety of conditions, including:

It is important to note that there is no significant evidence that color therapy is effective for any medical condition. According to the American Cancer Society, available scientific evidence does not support any claims that use of light or color therapy are effective in treating cancer or any other illnesses.

There is currently no research to support that color therapy can solely be used as an effective treatment for any of these conditions.

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Benefits of Color Therapy

Over the decades, color therapy has been purported to provide several benefits ranging from physical to mental, including:

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While the premise of color therapy is that certain colors elicit specific emotions from most people, this isn’t always the case. Human beings are unique. The effects of certain colors on people may range from person to person. Colors most people might find calming or soothing might be anxiety-inducing or depressing to others.

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While the science behind color therapy is still largely unsubstantiated, it’s completely harmless to practice certain aspects of color therapy on your own. Here are some ways you can get started with experimenting with color therapy:

It’s important to reiterate that color therapy doesn’t serve as a definitive treatment for any mental or physical health conditions. If you are experiencing a condition such as depression, it’s important to speak to your doctor about it.

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3 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Azeemi STY, Raza M.A critical analysis of chromotherapy and its scientific evolution.Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2005;2(4):481-488. doi:10.1093/ecam/neh137Harvard Health. Blue light has a dark side.July 7, 2020The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley.How nature can make you kinder, happier, and more creative. March 2, 2016

3 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Azeemi STY, Raza M.A critical analysis of chromotherapy and its scientific evolution.Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2005;2(4):481-488. doi:10.1093/ecam/neh137Harvard Health. Blue light has a dark side.July 7, 2020The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley.How nature can make you kinder, happier, and more creative. March 2, 2016

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Azeemi STY, Raza M.A critical analysis of chromotherapy and its scientific evolution.Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2005;2(4):481-488. doi:10.1093/ecam/neh137Harvard Health. Blue light has a dark side.July 7, 2020The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley.How nature can make you kinder, happier, and more creative. March 2, 2016

Azeemi STY, Raza M.A critical analysis of chromotherapy and its scientific evolution.Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2005;2(4):481-488. doi:10.1093/ecam/neh137

Harvard Health. Blue light has a dark side.July 7, 2020

The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley.How nature can make you kinder, happier, and more creative. March 2, 2016

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