Colour therapy is a case where the general claim is unsupported but two specific applications are established medicine. Sorting one from the other is the useful thing this page can do.
Egyptian temples are said to have had healing rooms coloured with sunlight. Ayurveda associates colours with the doshas and with the chakras — red at the root rising to violet at the crown. Ibn Sina wrote on colour in both diagnosis and treatment. In the nineteenth century Augustus Pleasonton and Edwin Babbitt built elaborate systems of chromotherapy, and Dinshah Ghadiali carried the idea to America as “Spectro-Chrome”.
In Su Jok, coloured pens mark correspondence points — red to stimulate, black to sedate, green to balance. It is harmless and pleasant.
Shining coloured light on the body to treat organs or diseases has no supporting evidence. Ghadiali's Spectro-Chrome devices were the subject of prosecutions in the United States. Coloured water left in the sun is harmless but does nothing.
Colour does affect mood, appetite and alertness — that much is well studied and is why hospitals, restaurants and classrooms are painted as they are. Using colour thoughtfully in a home is sensible. Using it in place of treatment is not.
This site is a personal account and a record of traditional practice, shared for information. It is not medical advice, not a diagnosis, and not a treatment for any disease. I am not a doctor.
If you are unwell — and especially if you have a serious illness such as cancer, diabetes or heart disease — please stay under the care of a qualified physician. Nothing here should replace or delay that care.