These Adorable Skin Patches Use Plant-Based Actives To Help Heal Itchy Skin, Bug Bites, And Rashes

One thing they don’t tell you in the parenting handbook is that as your kids grow, they’re prone to get a bunch of strange rashes and bumps. Scrapes and bruises are to be expected, but how do you manage a child who’s got sensitive, itchy skin?

While serious issues are best treated by a dermatologist or your pediatrician, smaller issues — like bug bites and mild rashes — can usually be treated at home. It’s just a matter of finding out which products work (and which ones only end up causing more frustration for you and your child). A lot of kids are wary of treatments that might leave a sticky residue on their skin, or feel otherwise unpleasant. That’s where the EmBeba Soothing Patches come in.

What is EmBeba?

EmBeba is a family-owned company that was founded in 2019 by Thai-Anh Hoang, inspired by an instance when her daughter developed a bad outbreak of eczema while on vacation visiting family; none of the go-to remedies brought relief or slowed the tears — that is, until they finally turned to a time-tested healing ingredient found in the family garden.

Safety and efficacy are both a big part of the EmBeba mission. The company’s products — which include its Soothing Patches — are cruelty-free and tested by both pediatricians and dermatologists.

How do EmBeba’s Soothing Patches work?

EmBeba’s Soothing Patches come in two colorful, child-friendly designs: hearts and pandas. Both function as a “sticker” that goes over the itchy patch of skin or bug bite (the brand just advises not to use them on open wounds or eyes). The patches can be worn for up to an hour at a time and are designed to offer fast relief. EmBeba recommends these patches for infants and everyone beyond.

After learning more about the patches, I decided I had to try them for myself. Three patches are included within each resealable pouch, which is so convenient; these were definitely created with travel in mind.

Upon seeing me unwrap one, my five-year-old was curious — once she saw the panda design, she immediately wanted to give it a go, choosing an area on her leg with a small scratch that had just another day or so to fully heal.

Right away, she loved it. She also loved the fact that, unlike a regular bandage, she was able to easily apply it herself without any help from me.

While these patches try their hardest to stay in place, they definitely seem better suited to areas of skin that aren’t covered in clothing. For example, my daughter’s patch bunched up a bit after trying to pull down her pant leg to cover it. But had she been wearing shorts, there wouldn’t have been anything interfering with the adorable yellow panda that helped take the itch out of her scratch.

What are the active ingredients in EmBeba patches?

So, what’s behind the fast relief found in these patches? Allantoin and aloe are two active ingredients that are included to help soothe the skin. To help skin heal, there’s tea tree (known for its anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties) and centella asiatica extract (known to help increase hydration and prevent oxidative skin damage, according to the National Library of Medicine). And piper nigrum fruit — also known as black pepper — helps cleanse the area (it’s actually used a lot in the food industry due to its antioxidant and antimicrobial terpenoids, according to ScienceDirect).

What are the pros of EmBeba patches?

There’s a lot to like about these patches. For one, they work — my daughter noticed that the itch went away pretty quickly. I also tried one on a bug bite that sprouted on my arm and was pleasantly surprised by how soothing it was. Even though the patches are geared toward kids, adults can use them too. (Especially if they happen to work remotely.)

They’re cute and perform as advertised. After wearing one, my bug bite itch was no more, and since I lost the urge to scratch at it, I suspect that the bump will eventually vanish just as quickly as it appeared.

EmBeba patches can be purchased as one-time orders or with a subscription plan, which might come in handy if you’ve got multiple children or live in a dry or buggy area. Choose from monthly deliveries of three, nine, or 18 patches (like with most subscription plans, the more you get, the more you save).

What are the cons of EmBeba patches?

As I mentioned, the EmBeba patches I tried didn’t always stay on as well as I had hoped. But, on the plus side, that meant that they were seamless to take off. Unlike many bandages that feature stubborn adhesive, these didn’t bring any tears or fear when it was time to throw them away.

Since they’re only meant to be worn for 60 minutes at a time, their lack of stickiness isn’t the end of the world. However, you might end up finding a loose patch or two in your laundry bin, so you’ll want to keep an eye out.

Are EmBeba patches worth buying?

These are a great thing to throw in your bag or purse before going camping, or out to watch your child’s soccer match. The ingredients list is something that you’ll feel good about — it features plant-based actives and is free of fragrances (which can be an irritant for some) and phthalates (which have been linked to endocrine disruption).

Just make sure your kids know that these patches are for a good purpose — otherwise the compulsion for them to use an entire box at once for fun (because, hearts and pandas!) may be too great.

Studies referenced:

Cynthia C.A. van Amerongen, Robert F. Ofenloch, Simone Cazzaniga, Peter Elsner, Margarida Gonçalo, Luigi Naldi, Åke Svensson, Magnus Bruze, and Marie L.A. Schuttelaar (2021) Skin exposure to scented products used in daily life and fragrance contact allergy in the European general population. The EDEN Fragrance Study. Contact Dermatitis, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8247875/

Nader Pazyar, Reza Yaghoobi, Nooshin Bagherani, Afshin Kazerouni (2012) A review of applications of tea tree oil in dermatology. International Journal of Dermatology, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22998411/