8 Sunlight Health Secrets From Dr Roger Seheult That Will Blow Your Mind

Professor Roger Seheult, MD recently dropped some absolute bombshells about sunlight and health on Steven Bartlett's "Diary Of A CEO" podcast.

As someone who's spent 9 years in the red light therapy industry, I thought I knew everything about the power of light therapy. I was wrong.

These 8 insights from Dr Seheult completely changed how I think about light, health, and the human body.

Who Is Dr Roger Seheult?

Before we dive into the mind-blowing stuff, let me set the scene.

Roger Seheult is an Associate Clinical Professor at the University of California, Riverside School of Medicine, and an Assistant Clinical Professor at the School of Medicine and Allied Health at Loma Linda University. He's quadruple board-certified in Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Diseases, Critical Care Medicine, and Sleep Medicine.

He's also one of the cofounders of the brilliant YouTube channel and CME accredited learning platform, Medcram. His recent appearance on the Andrew Huberman podcast gave him the profile boost he deserved.

The NEWSTART Health Philosophy

Roger kicks off by discussing "NEWSTART" - an acronym for the 8 pillars of health he believes in.

It's strongly associated with the Seventh-day Adventist Church but is also employed by hospitals and universities worldwide:

• Nutrition
• Exercise
• Water
• Sunlight
• Temperance
• Air
• Rest
• Trust

It's easy to see why this makes a solid foundation for healthy living. But Roger is most excited about the breakthrough science around sunlight that's finally hitting the mainstream.

Here's where things get really interesting.

1. Sunlight Heals Flesh-Eating Lung Bacteria

This story sounds like something from a medical thriller, but it's completely true.

A young teenager in Minnesota developed a devastating fungal infection in one of his lungs. The bacteria was completely destroying his lung tissue, so doctors removed the entire lung. Post-surgery scans revealed the bacteria had moved into his remaining lung.

The medical team had to deliver heartbreaking news to the family: there was nothing more they could do. They expected their son to live for another two days maximum.

When asked what he wanted to do with his final days, the dying boy had one simple request: he wanted to be wheeled outside so he could lie in the sun.

Here's what happened next:

• Day 1: His white blood cell count began dropping (infection weakening)
• Day 2: White blood cell count dropped further, oxygen requirements decreased
• They removed his breathing support machine - he was breathing independently
• After just two days in the sun, the disease was 60-70% gone from his lung

That young man is still alive today, living his best life in Minnesota. All thanks to the power of natural sunlight.

2. Shocking Anomaly Amongst Covid Patients

The biggest revelation about Covid wasn't what you'd expect.

The virus itself wasn't the main killer. Most people who died had at least 3 co-morbidities: pulmonary diseases, obesity, heart disease, kidney disease, dementia, and other chronic illnesses.

The common thread? Mitochondrial dysfunction.

These patients were also generally low in vitamin D, suggesting they weren't getting enough sun. Initially, researchers recommended vitamin D supplements to improve Covid survival rates.

But here's the kicker: vitamin D supplementation made no difference to survival rates.

The high vitamin D levels were only a proxy for something else the sun was doing for survivors. It turns out it was the infrared light from the sun that was giving a massive boost to immune systems and helping people survive Covid.

It wasn't the low vitamin D killing people - it was the lack of infrared light exposure.

3. Sleep Hormone MELATONIN: Most Powerful Antioxidant

Most people think of melatonin as just the sleep hormone produced in the pineal gland.

Recent research has discovered that extra-pineal melatonin (produced outside the pineal gland) acts as an incredibly powerful antioxidant. When infrared light is absorbed by our cellular mitochondria, this antioxidant form of melatonin is produced in large quantities.

This antioxidant melatonin helps protect cells against the oxidative damage that modern life constantly inflicts on us.

4. Red Light Therapy Makes Healthy Mitochondria

Roger highlights two profound research papers from Glen Jeffrey in London that demonstrate the power of red light therapy for mitochondrial health.

Eye Health Study: Brief red light therapy treatments directly to the eyes in the morning improved cellular health and gave subjects sharper, clearer vision.

Blood Glucose Study: Just 15 minutes of red light therapy significantly increased mitochondrial activity. Treated subjects showed a 27% reduction in blood glucose spikes after meals.

The theory? Red light therapy supercharges mitochondrial activity, which sucks more sugar out of the blood.

The Abscopal Effect: This describes how shining red light therapy on one part of the body can benefit another part that didn't receive the light. Glen believes this is exactly what's happening with red light therapy.

I've seen studies where red light therapy on the body had positive effects on brain function. The systemic benefits are remarkable.

5. More Evidence That Infrared Light Heals

A small study in Brazil provides even more compelling evidence.

Researchers created a jacket containing 940nm near-infrared light LEDs for Covid patients. Half the patients received the infrared light treatment, the other half didn't.

The results were striking:

• Untreated group: Released from hospital after 12 days
• Infrared light group: Released from hospital after only 8 days

Yet more evidence of infrared light's profound healing effects.

6. Not Getting Enough Sun Is As Dangerous As Smoking

This one absolutely floored me.

Swedish researchers followed nearly 30,000 women aged 25-64 for about 20 years. They categorised sun exposure into three groups: avoided sun, got a little sun, and got lots of sun.

The findings were shocking:

• Women who got the most sun had the lowest overall death rates
• Women who smoked but had high sun exposure had the same death risk as non-smokers who avoided the sun
• Women with the lowest sun exposure had double the mortality rate of those who got the most sun

In other words, avoiding the sun is as dangerous as smoking.

7. More Sun Does NOT Equal More Skin Cancer Deaths

Richard Weller, a dermatologist from the University of Edinburgh, wrote a controversial opinion piece questioning the blanket advice to avoid sun exposure for "skin health".

His arguments are compelling:

• No evidence that higher sun exposure increases your risk of dying
• Higher sun exposure is associated with lower mortality rates from all major diseases, including other cancers
• While sun exposure may result in more skin cancer cases, it doesn't result in more deaths from skin cancer

My take: Context matters enormously. Are you getting sun through windows (which mutates the light spectrum)? Using chemical sunscreen (hormonal disruption)? Getting burnt because you avoid sun all year then go crazy on holiday?

Poor sun habits will cause damage. Smart sun exposure supports health.

8. Time In Nature Heals - Science Shows It

The Green Heart Study provided beautiful evidence that nature literally heals.

Researchers divided a 4-square-mile area of a town with almost no trees. They measured inflammation levels in 745 residents. Over three years, they planted 8,000 trees in half the town.

The results? People living near the newly planted trees had up to 20% reduction in inflammation levels.

Trees are medicine. They release chemicals called phytoncides - oils that lower cortisol in humans when inhaled.

These were only 8 points that blew my mind, but I could have written at least 20 more.

Dr Roger Seheult's insights completely changed how I think about light, health, and the incredible healing power that surrounds us every day. The science is clear: our relationship with light - whether from the sun or targeted therapy - may be one of the most important factors in our health.

After 9 years in this industry, I thought I'd heard it all. Turns out, we're just scratching the surface of what light can do for human health.

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At Red Light Rising, we believe in empowering people to take control of their health with safe, non-invasive red light therapy solutions backed by science and real-world results. Founded in 2017, we continue to lead the way in delivering high-quality red and near-infrared light devices designed to support recovery, performance, energy, and long-term wellbeing.

Whether you’re new to red light therapy or looking to optimise your routine, our mission is simple: help you feel better, move better, and live better—naturally.