Do wellness patches work? How to tell the good from the bad

From sleep aids and stress relief to vitamins and energy boosts, wellness patches are surging in popularity. These stick-on supplements promise to deliver nutrients and plant-based compounds directly through your skin and into your bloodstream – no pills, no needles, no fuss.

Inspired by medical patches that deliver hormones or nicotine, they certainly sound scientific. But do they work?

The short answer is: sometimes, but often not in the way they suggest. While the idea of nutrient delivery through the skin is firmly rooted in science, the reality of wellness patches is more complicated.

The skin, after all, is an excellent barrier. Its outermost layer, the stratum corneum, is like a brick wall. The “bricks” are dead skin cells and the “mortar” is a waxy mix of fats. This structure is incredibly good at blocking water, bacteria and most drugs.

Only a few types of molecules can easily sneak through this barrier. These tend to be small, fat-soluble molecules, such as nicotine, oestradiol (used in HRT) or certain painkillers – hence their established successful use.

Read more: Your ‘skin barrier’ protects your skin and keeps it hydrated – here’s how to look after it

As a rule of thumb, small fatty molecules can cross, anything water soluble cannot. Vitamins are generally water soluble and therefore fail at the waterproof barrier.

Vitamin B12, magnesium and iron – all available in patch form – are typically too large or water-soluble to cross the skin in meaningful amounts. If nutrients need to be injected or taken in high oral doses to be effective, the likelihood of a patch delivering enough through the skin becomes very slim.

Spotting guff

Still, some wellness patches may hold more promise than others. So how can you tell the difference between a product with potential and one that’s mostly marketing?

First, look closely at the active ingredients. If the patch contains small, lipophilic (fat-loving) molecules – like melatonin, caffeine or certain cannabinoids – there’s at least a theoretical chance of absorption. Larger or charged molecules like B12 or magnesium salts are far less likely to make it through the skin barrier without special assistance.

Second, check for transparent dosing. A trustworthy patch will state the amount of active ingredient it contains (in milligrams or micrograms), the duration of delivery, and ideally, the rate at which the compound is released. If it just says “infused with essential oils” and doesn’t tell you how much or how it works, take it with a pinch of salt.

Third, examine the delivery technology. Medical-grade patches use either a matrix system, where the active ingredient is distributed evenly throughout the patch, or a reservoir system, which controls release from a central chamber.

Some also use chemical enhancers to help increase absorption. Nicotine patches offer an excellent example of this enhanced delivery. As ever, the key to delivery is overcoming the stratum corneum. Nicotine is small, lipophilic and uncharged – three features that make it particularly well suited to slip through the skin and into the bloodstream.

Once it diffuses through the stratum corneum, nicotine travels into the viable epidermis and dermis, where it can enter capillaries and circulate in the body.

Modern patches use specially designed adhesives and permeation enhancers – compounds that temporarily loosen the skin’s lipid matrix to improve absorption. A common example is oleic acid, a fatty acid that disrupts the tight lipid packing in the stratum corneum, allowing more nicotine to pass through.

Read more: Medical advice: In a world awash with misinformation, who do you trust?

This, combined with a controlled-release design, ensures a steady, low-level delivery of nicotine throughout the day, helping reduce withdrawal symptoms and cravings without the rapid spikes associated with smoking.

The same principle is applied to skin creams that penetrate the epidermis primarily through passive diffusion, moving between the cells of the stratum corneum via the lipid matrix.

Small, lipophilic, and uncharged molecules pass more easily, and formulations often include mild penetration enhancers, such as alcohols or glycols, to temporarily loosen the lipid structure and improve absorption into the viable epidermis. By contrast, if a wellness patch resembles a sticker soaked in oil or offers no explanation of its mechanism, you might want to question its effectiveness.

That said, the placebo effect itself can be powerful. If a patch makes someone feel more in control of their sleep, stress or energy levels – and causes no harm – there may still be a benefit, but it’s important to understand where marketing ends and science begins. DM

This story was first published in The Conversation. Michelle Pier is a Professor of Anatomy at the University of Bristol.