Acid burns, infections, dermal suffocation: Skin doctors reveal the hidden risks of Hollywood health craze

Pimples have long been the bane of teenagers’ existence, something to agonize over in the mirror and then hide away when they leave the house.

But that all changed three years ago when, instead of layering on concealer, a few celebrities started a new trend: covering their blemishes with bright, colorful stickers.

Those stickers, known as pimple patches, quickly went viral on social media and boomed in popularity. Now everyone from Hailey Bieber to strangers on the street are wearing them.

Proponents of the patches claim they not only keep the pimple out of sight, but also actively ‘treat’ it, reducing its size and color so that when you remove the patch, the spot is basically gone.

But now, top dermatologists have exclusively revealed to the Daily Mail that the patches can do a lot more harm than good and they have warned the public to take caution before jumping on the trend.

According to renowned dermatologist Dr Kenneth Mark: ‘In the last two or three years, they rose in popularity because everybody wants an instant fix.

‘They’re promised to work so fast, but they don’t and you definitely can have problems with them.’

Dr Mark says there are two main issues that can arise from the patches: infection and irritation.

Many of the pimple patches contain a layer of hydrocolloid, a specialized wound bandage that keeps the skin and spot moist.

This, Dr Mark said, is a problem.

‘One of the things you really have to be careful of when you’re using a hydrocolloid bandage is sometimes the wound gets too wet,’ he said.

When this happens, he cautioned, infection can set in and then ‘the patient comes for follow up, and you can smell the odor across the room.’

‘We know bacteria already play a role in acne, and there’s definitely a risk of promoting infection with the increased moisture from hydrocolloid,’ he added.

Then, he said, another common ingredient in the patches, salicylic acid, can cause irritation.

While salicylic acid is usually a safe and effective acne treatment in low concentrations, Dr Mark says that by putting it under a patch and keeping it trapped against the skin, rather than washing it off, it becomes much stronger and more dangerous. 

‘You can get extra irritation because you’re magnifying the power of the acid,’ he said, ‘you can get irritation and a burn.’

He’s seen the damage the patches can do firsthand in his work.

‘I had a patient who didn’t even want to go to school because her spot was so red. She put a patch on it, and my first thought was that the patch made it even worse and caused more inflammation,’ Dr Mark told the Daily Mail.

Of course, the risks haven’t dissuaded young people from trying them out.

And it doesn’t help that more and more celebrities have embraced the fad.

Anne Hathaway recently posted a photo of herself wearing the patches while Hailey and Justin Bieber are frequently seen with them.

The actress Florence Pugh shared a photo of herself with three of the patches on her face and the caption: ‘I should thank spot stickers in my credits because I truly thank them daily.’

At time of writing there were over 110,000 videos on TikTok with the hashtag pimple patches.

And now, people are posting videos with dozens of the colorful stars and dots all over their faces, before filming themselves taking them all off to reveal the acne beneath.

Dr Muneeb Shah, board-certified dermatologist and founder of the skincare line Remedy, told the Daily Mail: ‘One of the things I don’t like is how some people have been using them lately, which is over their entire face.

‘They use like these gigantic ones over the entire nose, they’re using 10, 20 at a time.’

The problem, he said, is that ‘the skin needs to exfoliate itself. Like people say, “your skin needs to breathe.”‘

While most of the videos on social media focus on the alleged benefits of the patches, a few include warnings.

In one, a nursing graduate tries to warn their followers not to buy the patches, saying: ‘All you are doing is tearing the whitehead off your pimple, which leaves you with an open wound.’

And, no matter how cheap the patches – which can be bought for around $5 to $10 at most major pharmacies – are, professionals like Dr Mark warn the public not to just pick some up and put them on.

Instead, he recommends washing your face with a gentle cleanser, and then seeking professional help if your acne gets out of hand.

His advice? ‘Watch out for infection, watch out for irritation, watch out for these things not working, and be careful.’