Oral health technology developer Photomedics Inc., based out of the Forsyth Institute, an oral health research center, has developed and designed a functional, proprietary intraoral light device with the proven ability to reduce the number of potentially pathogenic bacteria in the mouth that are linked to cardiovascular disease, stroke, premature birth and low birth weight through gum disease and bad breath. The patented Photomedics BlueLight technology, floods the mouth with light of the appropriate wavelength and intensity, targeting and killing only the harmful, disease-causing bacteria. Courtesy of the Forsyth Institute and Photomedics Inc. Conventional, antibacterial oral care treatments such as mouthwashes disrupt the oral ecology of the mouth by indiscriminately killing all bacteria. However, the patented Photomedics BlueLight technology, floods the mouth with light of the appropriate wavelength and intensity, targeting and killing only the harmful, disease-causing bacteria. This allows the helpful bacteria to thrive and rebalances the oral microbiome. The lightweight and ergonomically designed BlueLight is activated by an intuitive bite switch with a recommended use of twice per day for only two minutes. The novel BlueLight device has the capability of simultaneously enhancing personal aesthetics while reducing disease-causing bacteria. "We are proud that our collaborative and experiential research environment fosters products like the Photomedics BlueLight, which we believe could revolutionize the way households approach their oral health habits,” said Wenyuan Shi, CEO and chief scientific officer at Forsyth. The discovery of blue light’s killing effects on certain potentially pathogenic oral bacteria in 2002 by co-founder and CEO Nikos Soukos and co-founder and chief scientific officer J. Max Goodson, followed by their vision of the development of intraoral blue light technology as an adjunct to routine oral hygiene, led to the founding of Photomedics in 2017. "When Nikos and I first discovered the effects of oral blue light, we immediately recognized its importance," Goodson said. "Through numerous studies, we have developed a user-friendly, one-size-fits-all intraoral device that can reduce pathogenic bacteria and bad breath." "As a pioneer in oral microbiome research, Forsyth's faculty and facilities have helped incubate Photomedics to what it is today," Soukos said. "I am thrilled to see our product come to fruition. The Photomedics BlueLight will be the catalyst in changing societal oral health habits." Soukos served as Forsyth's founding director of the Applied Molecular Photomedicine Laboratory, and Goodson served as Forsyth’s director of clinical research and a senior staff member. The Harvard-affiliated Forsyth Institute acts as co-founder and lead investor of the product, which was featured at the Yankee Dental Congress in January.