Red and Blue Light Therapy:

“We’re finding more and more patients that have done so many at-home remedies or prescription meds that they’re looking for something else,” Dr. Schweiger said. Enter in-office procedures like red and blue light therapy. The procedure takes about 30 minutes and is totally painless. Blue and red LED lights are applied to your skin–blue light kills bacteria and red light acts as an anti-inflammatory, so it hits the problem in two different ways.

Another version is called Photodynamic Therapy. A topical medication, Levulan, is applied to the skin and gets absorbed into pores. Blue light is then applied, directly killing bacteria. But the Levulan also shrinks oil glands, meaning you get more long-term (in some cases even permanent) results.

These treatments don’t come cheap though. The light treatments can set you back $250-$450 per session.