Science: For the curious nerd inside all of us
Explore the research behind red light, vibration, PEMF, hyperbaric oxygen, and more—with clear findings and links to the original studies.
Each study examines specific people, equipment, and treatment schedules. The findings below describe the outcomes measured in those settings.
Compiled
A selected overview of published findings, organized by treatment and measured outcome.
| Treatment | What has been studied | Main takeaway |
|---|---|---|
| Red Light | Skin appearance and whole-body exercise recovery. | Repeated light treatments improved selected skin measures. Whole-body studies reported preliminary sleep findings, with no performance or fatigue-biomarker benefit. |
| Whole Body Vibration | Strength and physical function, especially in older adults. | Reviews reported improved lower-body strength and physical function in older adults following training programs. |
| PEMF | Pain and function in people with osteoarthritis. | Reviews reported improved physical function in osteoarthritis; pain findings differed across reviews. |
| Hyperbaric Oxygen Source: R7 | Specific medical conditions, including selected chronic wounds. | A pooled analysis reported more healed ulcers at six weeks under medical wound-care protocols. |
| Emsculpt | Muscle and fat measurements in body-contouring studies. | Several body-contouring studies reported favorable measurements; reviews differed in their interpretation. |
| Exercise With Oxygen Source: R10 | Exercise performance while breathing oxygen-enriched air. | A meta-analysis reported improved acute performance while oxygen-enriched air was supplied. |
| BioBlast and Glow Burrito | Their individual components have been studied separately. | Research on individual components explains the technologies used in these sessions. |
Research on skin appearance and exercise
Researchers reported improved skin appearance and collagen density after repeated light treatments. Whole-body exercise studies measured performance, fatigue, and sleep, with different findings for each outcome.
R1 · Wunsch and Matuschka, 2014, Photomedicine and Laser Surgery.
Researchers reported improvements in skin roughness, appearance, and ultrasound-measured collagen density.
Study context
Skin outcomes were measured after 30 sessions; the comparison group was not randomized.
R2 · Álvarez-Martínez and Borden, 2025, Lasers in Medical Science.
105 physically active participants in total. No benefits were reported for exercise performance or fatigue biomarkers in the included studies. Two studies reported sleep-related improvements.
Study context
The five-study review reported sleep improvements in two studies and no exercise-performance or fatigue-biomarker benefit.
At Hyped, our nine-wavelength setup delivers light from the front, back, and above. Explore the treatment page for our session format.
Research on strength and physical function
Reviews report improvements in lower-body strength and physical function in older adults following repeated vibration training programs.
R3 · Tan and colleagues, 2023, Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.
Improvements were reported in several strength and physical-performance measures.
Study context
The participants were older adults following repeated training programs.
R4 · de Oliveira and colleagues, 2023, Journal of Clinical Medicine.
Some lower-body strength measures improved compared with control groups. No difference was found between vibration and other forms of exercise. 56% of included studies were rated as having low methodological quality.
Study context
Strength findings varied by outcome; vibration performed comparably to other exercise in this review.
Research on pain and physical function
Reviews of targeted PEMF treatment in people with osteoarthritis report improvements in physical function. Pain outcomes differ across reviews and treatment protocols.
R5 · Wu and colleagues, 2018, BMJ Open.
Reported pain and function improvements for knee and hand osteoarthritis, but not cervical osteoarthritis.
Study context
The review examined targeted osteoarthritis treatments with varied device settings.
R6 · Chen and colleagues, 2019, Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine.
Physical-function scores improved. Pain and stiffness did not show a statistically significant advantage over placebo.
Study context
Physical function improved; pain and stiffness were comparable to placebo.
At Hyped, PEMF is a component of selected combined sessions. Our team can explain the mat and session setup.
Research in medical wound care
Clinical research has examined hyperbaric oxygen for specific medical conditions. The chronic-wound review below reported increased ulcer healing at six weeks in a pooled analysis of five trials.
Medical research · Chronic wound care
R7 · Cochrane review, 2015.
12 randomized trials with 577 participants. Most trials involved diabetic foot ulcers. A pooled analysis of 5 trials involving 205 participants found more healed ulcers at six weeks with HBOT. The benefit was not evident at one year. Major-amputation results were not statistically significant. Trial design and reporting problems reduced confidence.
Study context
These findings concern supervised medical wound care, rather than general wellness sessions.
Hyperbaric equipment requires trained operation, appropriate screening, and adherence to manufacturer instructions. Read FDA safety guidance.
Research on body-contouring measurements
Published studies examine muscle and fat measurements following HIFEM body-contouring treatments. Reviews document favorable findings and assess the methods used to measure them.
R8 · Kohan and colleagues, 2024, Aesthetic Plastic Surgery; published online in 2023.
Examined HIFEM treatments, including Emsculpt and Emsculpt NEO. Many studies reported favorable measurements or satisfaction. Two reported marginal or no benefit. Reporting limitations made some results difficult to interpret.
Study context
The review included Emsculpt and Emsculpt NEO, which use different technologies.
R9 · Swanson, 2023, Annals of Plastic Surgery.
Only one included a sham group. Raised concerns about small measured changes, measurement variability, and manufacturer relationships. Questioned how confidently the published findings establish meaningful benefit.
Study context
This review evaluated study design and measurement quality; it overlaps with the research reviewed in R8.
At Hyped, an applicator uses electromagnetic energy to activate selected muscles during a guided session. Body-contouring measurements and recovery outcomes are different areas of research.
Research on acute exercise performance
A meta-analysis reported improved acute exercise performance while participants breathed oxygen-enriched air. These findings describe performance during the studied exercise tests.
R10 · Mallette, Stewart, and Cheung, 2018, Sports Medicine.
Reported improvements in acute exercise performance. Evidence for longer-term training and recovery was limited and variable.
Study context
The measured benefits occurred during oxygen-enriched exercise; lasting training and recovery effects were not established.
Research on the individual technologies
BioBlast and Glow Burrito bring several technologies into one guided visit. The studies on this page examine the individual components, rather than these exact combined sessions.
| Session | Components described by Hyped | Evidence status |
|---|---|---|
| BioBlast | Hyperbaric oxygen, red light, PEMF, and Whole Body Vibration. | The cited studies examine individual components, not this exact combined session. |
| Glow Burrito | Red light wrap, PEMF, and oxygen-enriched breathing. | The cited studies examine individual components, not this exact combined session. |
Exercise with oxygen and resting with oxygen-enriched breathing are distinct setups. Combined sessions require equipment compatibility and an approved operating configuration.
Researchers define their protocols through specific equipment settings, treatment schedules, and participant groups.
| Treatment | What needs to match |
|---|---|
| Red Light | Wavelengths, light intensity at the body, delivered dose, distance, body coverage, and treatment schedule. |
| Whole Body Vibration | Frequency, movement size, platform type, body position, exercises, and training schedule. |
| PEMF | Field strength, pulse frequency, waveform, treatment area, and schedule. |
| Hyperbaric Oxygen | Chamber pressure, oxygen actually breathed, session length, number of sessions, and clinical purpose. |
| Emsculpt | Exact device, applicator, treatment area, intensity, treatment schedule, and whether radiofrequency is included. |
| Exercise With Oxygen | Delivered oxygen concentration, mask and reservoir setup, exercise intensity, duration, and training schedule. |
These details identify the treatment protocol used to produce each study’s findings.
01
Results in people with a specific condition may not apply to healthy adults.
02
A comparison with a sham treatment or another activity can help separate treatment effects from expectation and other changes.
03
A study involving weeks of sessions does not tell us what one introductory session will do.
04
An effect size compares results; it is not a percentage improvement. Confidence intervals show the uncertainty around an estimate.
05
Small samples, incomplete reporting, funding relationships, and overlapping reviews can limit confidence in a finding.
Every source cited on this page is listed here with its original link.
| Source | Research size | Selected finding | How to interpret it | Original source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | 136 enrolled; assessment after 30 sessions | Improvements in selected skin measures | Repeated treatments; nonrandomized control group; not proof of a one-session result | Wunsch and Matuschka, 2014, Photomedicine and Laser Surgery. Skin appearance Read original source |
| R2 | 5 studies; 105 participants | No exercise-performance or fatigue-biomarker benefit reported | Small whole-body evidence base; some preliminary sleep findings | Álvarez-Martínez and Borden, 2025, Lasers in Medical Science. Whole-body exercise performance and recovery Read original source |
| R3 | 18 randomized studies | Knee-strength SMD 0.72; 95% CI 0.38–1.07 | Standardized effect in older adults, not a 72% improvement | Tan and colleagues, 2023, Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Strength and physical performance Read original source |
| R4 | 34 studies | 56% rated low methodological quality | Quality limits confidence; no demonstrated advantage over other exercise | de Oliveira and colleagues, 2023, Journal of Clinical Medicine. A broader look at strength research Read original source |
| R5 | 12 randomized trials | Knee-pain SMD −0.54; 95% CI −1.04 to −0.04 | Lower pain scores favored PEMF in this analysis; protocols varied | Wu and colleagues, 2018, BMJ Open. Osteoarthritis review Read original source |
| R6 | 8 trials; 421 patients | Function WMD −5.28; 95% CI −9.45 to −1.11 | Function improved; pain and stiffness did not clearly outperform placebo | Chen and colleagues, 2019, Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine. Knee osteoarthritis compared with placebo Read original source |
| R7 | 12 trials; 577 participants overall | Six-week healing RR 2.35; 95% CI 1.19–4.62, from 5 trials/205 participants | Medical wound care; not a healing-speed measure or general wellness claim | Cochrane review, 2015. Chronic wounds Read original source |
| R8 | 15 clinical studies | Favorable results in several studies; two marginal or null | Different devices and incomplete reporting limit generalization | Kohan and colleagues, 2024, Aesthetic Plastic Surgery; published online in 2023. Published body-contouring research Read original source |
| R9 | 14 studies | Only one sham-controlled study | Raises questions about how much change is caused by treatment | Swanson, 2023, Annals of Plastic Surgery. Critical review of the same research area Read original source |
| R10 | 51 manuscripts | Time-to-exhaustion g 0.89; time-trial g 0.56 | Acute exercise effect sizes, not percentage improvements | Mallette, Stewart, and Cheung, 2018, Sports Medicine. Exercise under oxygen-enriched conditions Read original source |
Do not sum study or participant counts across reviews: reviews may include the same underlying trials. These numbers measure different outcomes in different populations and cannot be compared on one scale.
Choosing a session starts with appropriate screening. Tell our team about relevant health conditions, medications, pregnancy, or implanted devices before your visit. Some services may require medical clearance. Research summaries are educational, not personal medical advice.
We’re happy to talk about our equipment and what a session looks like. Please don’t include private medical information in a general inquiry.
Plan a visitEvery study above links to its original source in the table. FDA safety guidance: Safe use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy devices.
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