Absolutely no impact. . .
What is the essence of infrared rays?
What are its basic characteristics? To understand these issues, we must first understand what electromagnetic waves are. Common sense in physics tells us that there is an electric field around any charged object that exerts force on other charged objects. Similarly, there is a magnetic field around a magnet or other magnets that exerts a force on other ferromagnetic materials. Although these two fields are invisible and intangible, they are indeed objectively existing substances, and their existence can be confirmed with detection instruments. Physicists have discovered that at any point in space, when the electric field intensity changes, a magnetic field or a change in magnetic field intensity is generated around that point; conversely, when a certain magnetic field intensity changes, it will inevitably cause a new magnetic field to be generated around that point. A change in electric field or field strength. That is to say, neither the changing electric field nor the changing magnetic field exists in isolation. They are connected with each other and excite each other to form a unified electromagnetic field. The so-called electromagnetic waves are caused by the vibration of the electromagnetic field. Just like the vibration of water molecules excites waves, they propagate into space from near to far. Since it is a wave, there must be wavelength and frequency. The former refers to the length of the electromagnetic wave, often measured in micrometers, millimeters, centimeters, and meters; the latter refers to the speed of the electromagnetic field vibration, that is, the number of vibrations per second, often measured in Hertz (1 The units are Hertz = 1 time/second), kilohertz and megahertz.
Scientists have confirmed that the propagation speed of electromagnetic waves is the same as the propagation speed of light, which is 300,000 kilometers per second. Therefore, the relationship between wavelength and frequency can be calculated according to the formula:
Wavelength = speed/frequency
In general scientific and technological books or electronic instrument manuals, whenever wavelength is mentioned, it is always Tell you how often. And it can be seen from this formula that since the speed is constant, the shorter the wavelength, the higher the frequency.
At this point, the concept of electromagnetic waves has been basically clear. Its essence is generated by the movement of charged particles that make up the atoms and molecules of objects. It is an objectively existing substance and does not need to be propagated through a medium.
After understanding the basic concept of electromagnetic waves, the problem of thermal radiation can be easily solved. For an object with a certain temperature, the electromagnetic spectrum it emits is certain. The electromagnetic radiation with this characteristic is called thermal radiation. Infrared rays emit electromagnetic waves with longer wavelengths when an object is in a temperature range. Therefore, if electromagnetic waves are compared to a large family, thermal radiation is a small family in this large family, and infrared rays are a member of this small family.
The wavelength range of infrared is very wide, so it is often divided into near-infrared, mid-infrared and far-infrared regions. According to the different requirements of users, the scope of classification is very different. For example, some people divide the three wave bands that can pass through the atmosphere into:
Near infrared band 1 to 3 microns
Mid infrared band 3 to 5 microns
Far infrared The band is 8 to 14 microns
Some people divide the infrared spectrum into:
Near infrared band 1 to 3 microns
Mid-infrared band 3 to 40 microns
Far-infrared band 40-1000 microns
In the medical field, it is often divided as follows:
Near-infrared region 0.76-3 microns
Mid-infrared region 3 ~30 microns
Far infrared area 30 ~ 1000 microns
But in practical applications, infrared rays above 2.5 microwaves are usually called far infrared rays.
Infrared rays:
Infrared rays are one of the many invisible rays in the sun. They were discovered by the German scientist Horschel in 1800. They are also called infrared heat. Infrared radiation.
In recent years, due to the improvement of detection equipment and in-depth research, people have a relatively comprehensive understanding of the physical properties and biological effects of infrared rays, and have made a lot of progress.
Infrared rays, especially far-infrared rays, have been widely used in the medical and health care industry, and various infrared ray products related to daily life have also appeared in large numbers.
1. Mechanism of infrared biological effects
Infrared rays have strong penetrating power on human skin and subcutaneous tissue. The primary effect of external infrared radiation on the human body can increase the temperature of the skin and subcutaneous tissue accordingly, promote blood circulation and metabolism, and promote human health.
The thermal effects, anti-inflammatory effects and regeneration-promoting effects of infrared physiotherapy on tissues have been clinically confirmed. Usually, direct irradiation of the lesion is used for treatment.
Near-infrared micro-irradiation therapy has a significant effect on improving microcirculation, especially the micro-blood flow state. After irradiation, the capillary blood flow speed is accelerated, the aggregation of red blood cells is reduced, and the subpapillary venous plexus congestion is reduced or disappeared, which has a positive effect on improving the nutrition, metabolism, repair and function of body tissues and important organs. The mechanism of secondary effects of infrared rays on the human body is not yet fully understood.
Some scholars believe that far-infrared rays can have a vibrating effect on cells, mainly causing the vibration of water molecules inside and outside cells, activating cells, and producing a series of cellular biochemistry and cell histochemistry that are beneficial to health. Change.
Some people also believe that far-infrared rays can be called "life rays" and can significantly improve human body microcirculation. When it acts on human body water molecules, it can vibrate the aging large molecular groups in the human body to crack them and recombine them into smaller water molecular groups, thereby enhancing the activity and surface tension of cells. As the water molecules that penetrate the cell membrane increase, the activity of intracellular calcium ions is strengthened, thus enhancing the normal functions of human cells and improving bactericidal ability and immunity.
In addition, the life ray can also cut off the double or triple bonds of unsaturated fatty acids in the blood, making the saturated fatty acids less likely to be oxidized into blood lipids [peroxidized lipids], reducing intravascular lipids. The deposition of substances makes the blood vessel walls smooth, thereby reducing the occurrence of cardiovascular diseases such as arteriosclerosis and cataracts or eye diseases, and plays a good role in promoting human health.
Pang Xiaofeng studies the biological effects and medical functions of infrared rays on living things (including humans), mainly from the non-thermal biological effects of infrared rays. The absorption of infrared rays can cause quantum vibrations of the amide bonds in protein molecules, thereby allowing biological energy to be smoothly transferred from one place to another, keeping the living body in a normal state and maintaining the growth, development and health of the living body.
Research on the impact of infrared rays on the body's immune function is still in its infancy. Among various bands of infrared rays, medium-wave infrared rays are more likely to act on immune cells and promote their biological functions. In addition to its wavelength, the effect of infrared rays is also related to the number of photons it emits, that is, to the radiation intensity and radiation time. Excessive infrared radiation may also cause adverse effects on the body, and its detailed mechanism needs to be further elucidated.
Cao Zhiran and others believe that infrared irradiation has both indirect and direct effects on the body's immune system. Indirect effect means that infrared radiation can adjust the status of other systems of the body, such as the nervous system and endocrine system, thereby achieving the purpose of regulating the immune system. Direct effect means that infrared rays can enhance the biological field around immune cells and immune organs after being absorbed by the body, enhancing their activity and mutual regulation. Infrared photons can directly act on the stimulated points of immune cells.
Mao Wen et al. speculated that its mechanism of action is that infrared rays may activate receptors deep in tissues. On the one hand, its physiological and biochemical effects may pass through the nerve-humoral reflex pathway, and on the other hand, it may pass through the meridian conduction pathway that is not well understood at present. The activities of biological macromolecules, cells and organs have a positive impact, thus having an overall benign effect [2].
2. Possible adverse effects of infrared rays on the human body
Thermal radiation is also called infrared radiation. The main feature of high-temperature working environments in steel and metallurgical enterprises is strong thermal radiation and high temperatures. Especially in steel smelting, red steel hot rolling and medium-sized sintering machines, it is a typical infrared heat radiation contact operation.
Short-wave infrared rays can enter the eyeball, aqueous humor, iris, lens and vitreous humor through the cornea, absorb part of the infrared rays and cause cataracts, which are called "infrared cataracts".
Some studies have also pointed out that damage to the eyes and skin caused by ultraviolet (UVR) and infrared rays (IFR) is an important aspect of occupational damage in electric welding operations. Ultraviolet rays and infrared rays during electric welding operations can cause damage to the cornea and lens [ 7].
The infrared rays in sunlight have a different damaging effect on the skin than ultraviolet rays. Ultraviolet rays mainly cause photochemical reactions and photoimmunological reactions, while reactions caused by infrared irradiation are caused by molecular vibration and temperature increase.
Thermal radiation caused by infrared rays penetrates the skin more than ultraviolet rays. Through its thermal radiation effect, infrared rays can directly cause adverse effects on the skin, such as increasing skin temperature, dilating capillaries, causing congestion, increasing epidermal water evaporation, etc. Its main manifestations are red papules, premature skin aging and pigment disorders. Increased skin temperature, dilation and congestion of capillaries, increased evaporation of epidermal water, etc., directly have adverse effects on the skin.
Infrared rays can also enhance the damaging effects of ultraviolet rays on the skin and accelerate the skin aging process. This is caused by the dual effects of ultraviolet and infrared rays on the skin under natural sunlight. Infrared and ultraviolet light play the same role in accelerating tissue degeneration. Infrared rays can also promote the development of skin cancer caused by ultraviolet rays.
3. Clinical application research on the biological effects of infrared rays
Infrared rays can be absorbed by superficial tissues of the body, have significant drying and dehydration effects, accelerate blood circulation in local tissues, and reduce inflammation. Analgesic effect. Clinically, local topical safflower oil plus far-infrared irradiation is used to treat bedsores, and it is found that the effect is good and quick.
Using far-infrared rays to treat herpes zoster, the results showed that the time to relieve pain, stop blisters, and cause infestation were shorter than those in the control group. Experiments have shown that bioceramic far-infrared rays have significant efficacy in the treatment of burns. For the treatment of injury pain, chronic soft tissue injuries are most effective. Clinical nursing observations have found that far-infrared protective gear such as waist protectors, knee protectors, elbow protectors, wrist protectors, neck circumference, etc., made by adding ultra-fine ceramic particles to traditional textile materials, can reduce inflammation, reduce swelling, activate blood circulation, relieve pain, and relieve pain. It has significant effects on activating meridians and improving microcirculation. At the same time, the pain caused by closure to the patient can be avoided. Far-infrared radiation heating bed was used to treat children with red buttocks and buttock ulcers. Compared with the control group, the average healing time of the treatment group was shortened and the effectiveness was higher.
The issue of rewarming in the treatment of neonatal scleredema is an important part of the success of the treatment. In the past, the effect of gradual rewarming using ordinary incubators was poor, but now the use of far-infrared rays for rapid rewarming has resulted in the death of the child. The rate dropped significantly and the rescue success rate increased significantly. Flap necrosis is a common postoperative complication in plastic surgery and other clinical settings, mainly due to microcirculation disorders. There is currently no ideal prevention and treatment method. Jiang Pingping directly observed the microcirculation changes of random skin flaps on the back of rats in vivo. It was found that far-infrared local radiation has a biological effect similar to that of a vasodilator, which can improve microcirculation and increase the survival rate of skin flaps without obvious side effects within the therapeutic dose range. Some Japanese scholars have reported that using linearly polarized infrared light to treat various types of alopecia areata has significant effects.
Linearly polarized near-infrared light is used to treat temporomandibular joint pain caused by rheumatoid arthritis with a short course of treatment and good efficacy. The mechanism may be that light stimulates photoelectric energy, electromagnetic waves and photochemistry, thereby inhibiting nerve excitation, relaxing muscles, dilating blood vessels, increasing blood flow, promoting lymph circulation, and promoting the production of active factors, thus achieving therapeutic effects. effect. Observing the blood viscosity before and after far-infrared ray treatment, it was found that low-temperature excitation of far-infrared rays has a wide range of biological effects, mainly the low-temperature thermal power effect. It can reduce the blood viscosity of patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, prevent thrombosis, improve microcirculation, and reduce the risk of thrombosis. Chest tightness, palpitations, dizziness, numbness and other symptoms. Compared with other drug therapies, the use of infrared rays to irradiate the bladder area to treat urinary retention has no pain for the mother, does not increase the amount of postpartum bleeding, and is easily accepted by the mother.
Some people have used far-infrared irradiation to treat intestinal spasm in children2 and found that its efficacy is significantly better than drug treatment, it is simple and easy to use, has no side effects, and children are happy to accept it. Infrared radiation has a significant alleviating effect on hyperglycemia in diabetic rabbits, and blood sugar is subsequently reduced. Mid- and far-infrared treatment enhances the ability of tumor hosts to scavenge free radicals and inhibits the growth and proliferation of tumor cells.