If you're taking a trip this summer - be it a visit to family living elsewhere in the country, a weekend in a European city or a beach break, you'll likely be taking your SPF, maybe a changing robe for potential dips in the sea and possibly your gym trainers, for any days spent out on foot.
If supplements - say, vitamin D, vitamin B12, omega 3 or magnesium - are part of your routine when you're at home, though, it's likely they won't make it into your travel bag. Who has room for a zillion little bottles clunking around?
Good news is, you can now get your daily vitamin hit via ultra convenient patches. These little doses use transdermal delivery, which just means active ingredients being delivered via your skin to hit your system.
Patch-makers TOCU sell theirs in travel size packs, making them even easier to chuck in your suitcase and roll. To apply, stick a patch on to a relatively hair-free bit of your body, and do not apply moisturiser ahead of time - any extra barriers will block absorption.
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As ever, know that experts agree that it's generally best to seek your nutrients via whole foods, where possible. Doing so when you're on hoof, though, can be tricker, which is where handy solutions like this can come in.
Another benefit of taking vitamins this way, is that it takes the stress and pressure of those who struggle to swallow or stomach traditional pills.
Dr Amit Shah said: 'TOCU removes the regiem from daily vitamin swallowing and brings in a regimen of non-invasive nutritional support. A real game-changer for gut intolerance and absorption issues in a proven delivery system. POWER UP is the perfect natural way to absorb these natural energy ingredients for a consistent release throughout the day.'
As to the current state of the evidence? When it comes to patches versus pills as delivery systems for vitamins, the authors of a 2021 paper published in the journal Metabolism Open wrote that the research is currently in 'premature stages'.
So, jury's out. But if you already take supplements and know you won't take yours away? Then a patch could be a convenient way to keep it up.