Packaging
A column of soldiers in Swedish camouflage marching single file along a wet trail across open moorland under a grey sky

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operational.

Anti-chafe technology powered by Upsalite®, invented at Uppsala University, Sweden.

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01 / Product

Two formats. One protective film.

Barriär keeps skin intact — through heat, sweat, load and the long march. A water-free cream for the body's contact zones and a stick for the feet, both leaving a thin, dry film that reduces friction with no adhesives.

Our products
Barriär Anti-Chafe Stick 25 ml, a white stick with an olive label, and the wider, lower Anti-Chafe Cream 60 ml aluminium tin with an olive sticker, both printed in white with the Barriär by Upsalite wordmark, on a worn olive ammunition box in a sunlit pine forest with a camouflage rucksack behind
Barriär Anti-Chafe Stick 25 ml, a white stick with a white label, and the wider, lower Anti-Chafe Cream 60 ml aluminium tin with a clear sticker, both printed in olive with the Barriär by Upsalite wordmark, on a worn olive ammunition box in a sunlit pine forest with a camouflage rucksack behind
Barriär anti-chafe stick and jar in matte olive packaging on a scratched olive-green ammunition box in hard sunlight, both printed with the Barriär wordmark in Bitter slab-serif over Swedish Tactical Skin Defence
Barriär anti-chafe stick and jar in matte sand-beige packaging on a scratched olive-green ammunition box in hard sunlight, both printed with the Barriär wordmark in Bitter slab-serif over Swedish Tactical Skin Defence
Barriär anti-chafe stick and jar in matte olive packaging on a scratched olive-green ammunition box in hard sunlight, both printed with the Barriär wordmark in Barlow condensed over Swedish Tactical Skin Defence
Barriär anti-chafe stick and jar in matte sand-beige packaging on a scratched olive-green ammunition box in hard sunlight, both printed with the Barriär wordmark in Barlow condensed over Swedish Tactical Skin Defence
Barriär anti-chafe stick and jar in matte olive packaging on a scratched olive-green ammunition box in hard sunlight, both printed with the Barriär wordmark in Saira condensed over Swedish Tactical Skin Defence
Barriär anti-chafe stick and jar in matte sand-beige packaging on a scratched olive-green ammunition box in hard sunlight, both printed with the Barriär wordmark in Saira condensed over Swedish Tactical Skin Defence
First page of the U.S. Defense Health Agency fact sheet Injury Prevention: Blister Prevention

57% of recruits report foot blisters during basic military training.

U.S. Defense Health Agency · 2023

Close-up of a conscript's legs in Swedish camouflage trousers and black leather boots on gravel, a green reflective band around one ankle

The Swedish Armed Forces banned its issued blister tape after conscripts were taken out of service.

SVT Nyheter · Sweden · 2022 (In Swedish)

Title page of the Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps article on the incidence and prevention of foot problems among Phase One British Army recruits

Half of recruits reporting blisters, causing lost training days and financial loss.

J R Army Med Corps · British Army · 2015

Title page of the Military Medicine article on sock systems, foot blisters and overuse injuries of the knee

Foot blisters are predictive for the overuse injuries of the knee joint.

Military Medicine · Belgium · 2009

Still from an SVT news video: a soldier in Swedish camouflage being interviewed with a clip microphone in a military clothing store, the Swedish subtitle reading ”Då får man stora köttsår ibland på höfterna”

Female soldiers reject the Armed Forces’ briefs: ”You get big raw sores”.

SVT Nyheter · Sweden · 2023 (In Swedish)

Title page of the Acta Dermato-Venereologica article on colophonium-related contact dermatitis from medical adhesive tape in soldiers

77% of conscripts had contact allergy to the adhesive tape issued to prevent blisters after a field exercise.

Lund University with the Swedish Armed Forces · 2023

Title page of the Preventive Medicine article on injuries and risk factors in a 161 km infantry road march

8% could not finish a five-day, 161 km infantry march; blisters were half of all injuries.

Preventive Medicine · U.S. · 1999

A pair of black leather army-issue boots on a table in a military clothing store

Warning regarding blister plasters: ”Eczema all over the body”.

Nyheter24 · Lund University · Sweden · 2024 (In Swedish)

Still from an SVT news video: a conscript in camouflage face paint and a field cap being interviewed with an SVT microphone, soldiers on a forest road behind her

”Many get chafing sores from the underwear.”

SVT Nyheter · Sweden · 2023 (In Swedish)

02 / The science

Built with patented Upsalite® technology.

Upsalite® is the ingredient that makes Barriär different from every other anti-chafe product. Discovered at Uppsala University by Professor Maria Strömme, it is the world’s first mesoporous magnesium carbonate. Its pores absorb moisture and skin lipids, leaving a dry, stable film that holds under heat, sweat and mechanical load — with no adhesives.

The science
A hand holding up a glass petri dish of white Upsalite® powder against a grey background

03 / Compared

Barriär vs. Alternatives

CriterionBarriärcream + stickAdhesive tapepaper tape · moleskin · plastersAntiperspirant20% aluminium chloridePowderstalc · anti-blister powdersLubricantspetroleum jelly · balmsWicking sockssynthetic · double layer
No adhesive on the skin
No known irritation or allergy issue
Covers body zones — groin, underarm, chest, shoulders
Lasts a full march without reapplication
Holds under sweat and heatPartly
Keeps working soaked through — rain, river crossing—Partly
Washes off without residue—

Primary sources: Injury Prevention: Blister Prevention (U.S. Defense Health Agency fact sheet FS 026-1123) and Colophonium-related allergic contact dermatitis caused by medical adhesive tape used to prevent skin lesions in soldiers (Lund University, Acta Dermato-Venereologica 2023). All sources linked in the Evidence section.

04 / Applications

Supporting the soldier. From the skin up.

Friction, moisture and pressure control at the skin interface — the layer every other system depends on.

  • 01Shoulders / pack strapsCream
  • 02Underarm / chestCream
  • 03Groin / thighCream
  • 04Feet / bootStick
Our products
Side profile of a soldier standing in full kit — helmet, backpack, plate carrier, rifle and boots — against a dark studio background