Sali Hughes on beauty: vitamin patches are all the rage, but are the effects more than skin deep?

At the end of last year, I noticed many of my beauty industry colleagues were wearing brightly coloured patches – a bit like children’s novelty sticking plasters – on their wrists. Soon they started popping up on my Instagram feed via wellness and lifestyle accounts. These transdermal supplement patches, claiming to improve mental wellbeing, skin, nails, energy levels and more, are expected by industry figures to replace vitamin tablets and gummies in the next five years.

Whether or not they do much is hard to call. As patches (and indeed oral supplements) aren’t generally classed as medication, they’re a low priority for clinical testing, while many studies that do exist were undertaken by supplement companies. The anecdotal evidence in favour seems significant, and while this may well be a placebo effect – a friend told me that just seeing the patch there makes her feel calmer; another describes his physiological response to the What Supp Co’s Dip Out Chill Patch as “surprisingly dramatic” – if the effects are beneficial to a user’s sense of wellness, there is arguably nothing wrong with that. I wish I felt the same – or indeed any – effect from the many patches I’ve tried so far.

What we know is that transdermal patches for HRT, nicotine and the like do work, and that the skin will accept molecules with a weight of 500 daltons or under. The What Supp Co’s founder, Kelly Gilbert, has followed this evidence in the creation of her patches and is scathing of brands using heavier molecules such as vitamin B12 purely for marketing purposes. Her recyclable, vegan and allergy-tested patches come in three cocktails of vitamins and amino acids: Chill, Energy and Detox. All are £18 for 15 patches.

Another brand loved by industry insiders is Ross J Barr. One usually cynical health and beauty journalist I know says her two adult daughters cannot endure their periods without Period Patches (£15 for a pack of seven) from the celebrity acupuncturist. His herbal patches, developed in association with a hospital gynaecology department, are placed over the lower back. My colleague is evangelical about their ability to treat pain and improve mood.

Oral supplements contain bulking agents and their packaging is often non-recyclable. They can be problematic for those with swallowing or digestive issues. So if transdermal patches work for you, there are many good reasons to switch permanently. Whether they prove to be a patch on oral supplements remains to be seen.

Set styling: Yvonne Achato. Patches: The Whatsupp Company and My Barriere