heat it® for Mosquito Bites: Our Experience in France

On our summer holiday in France, Edgar and I kept reaching for the same small item: heat it®. Whenever a mosquito bite started itching, we reached for our keys, detached the heat it® device, plugged it into a phone, opened the app and treated the bite. For us, relief came within seconds. By the end of the trip, it was undoubtedly our favourite must-have tech gadget.

What is heat it®, you may ask? Well, it’s a small, smartphone-powered device that uses concentrated heat to help relieve itching and pain from insect bites and stings.

Why heat it® is my personal favourite tech gadget for 2026

Whether we were walking along the Loire River or enjoying a glass of wine in Saint-Émilion, whenever we felt that itch, we could simply reach into our bag and treat the bite within seconds. That meant we could get our minds off the itch and back to enjoying France.

What made it so useful was how practical it was. Small, lightweight, no separate battery needed, and always at hand—we kept ours attached to our backpack with a keyring. And, in our experience, super effective. We always had our phones with us while out exploring, so this tiny device was the only extra thing we needed. No bottles of cream to carry and no sticky hands afterwards. Simple and effective.

We weren’t the only ones praising this little tech gadget. Edgar’s son, Daan, took one along on his trip to Indonesia, where he was travelling with his girlfriend for a family wedding. Whenever someone had an itchy bite, Daan was there to save the day with his heat it®. It wasn’t long before the whole family was asking for it by name.

The science behind heat it®

heat it® briefly warms a small area of skin using concentrated heat, around 51 °C depending on the setting. Research suggests this heat stimulus reduces the transmission of itch signals through the nerves in the skin.

The treatment is chemical-free: it uses heat rather than an ingredient applied to the skin. It is designed to help relieve itching and pain after bites and stings, including those from mosquitoes, horseflies, bees and wasps. heat it® does not prevent bites or stings, but can help relieve the discomfort afterwards.

For a fuller explanation, you can read how heat it® works on the manufacturer’s website.

Using the device and app

The app gives you control over treatment duration and temperature, with 12 combinations of settings. There are options for children and sensitive skin, so you do not have to start with the strongest setting.

1. Connect heat it® to a compatible smartphone and open the app.
2. Choose the appropriate setting and start the warm-up.
3. Apply the device when the app prompts you, and remove it when the treatment finishes.

The treatment itself lasts 4, 7 or 9 seconds.

Worth noting: although the device doesn’t need an internet connection to work, you do need one to download the app. We’d recommend downloading it before travelling.

A few things to know before buying

Check compatibility before buying. The model we offer at KOYA Life is the heat it® classic USB-C, for compatible Android smartphones with USB-C and iPhone 15 or newer. Older iPhones with a Lightning connection need a different version.

heat it® can be used on children aged 3 and older with adult assistance and the appropriate settings. Independent use is permitted from age 12. For safe use, please follow the manufacturer’s instructions.

Use it only on intact external skin. Do not apply it to broken skin, eyes or mucous membranes, and remove a bee’s stinger before treatment. Stop if you experience severe pain; incorrect use can cause burns.

It is not a treatment for tick bites or allergic reactions. Seek urgent medical help for signs of a severe allergic reaction rather than relying on this device. Read the complete instructions for use before your first treatment.

Why we decided to add heat it® to the KOYA Life collection

Our philosophy at KOYA Life is to develop and offer lifestyle products with a clear purpose: to make everyday life better. Our holiday convinced us that heat it® does exactly that.

Since our holiday, I don’t go anywhere without my heat it®. The only thing that has changed is where I keep it – it’s moved from the keyring on my backpack to my house keys. Always at hand!