What Is E-liquid Made From & Is It Harmful?

For a beginner of vaping, one of the most confusing questions may be what the heck is e-liquid? First of all, I want you to know that e-liquid, e-juice, vape juice, and juice all refer to one thing, they are all the same, an indispensable part of vaping bringing vapers different tastes and feelings according to different vape juice recipes.

Now you know e-liquid, e-juice, vape juice, and juice are the same thing, but what is it mainly composed of? Unlike cigarette and tobacco which contains over 4,000 chemicals, including 43 carcinogenic compounds and 400 other toxins. These include nicotine, tar, carbon monoxide, as well as formaldehyde, ammonia, hydrogen cyanide, arsenic, and DDT.

IMAGE: PEXELS

The ingredients of e-liquid are rather simple and food-grade: PG (Propylene Glycol), VG (Vegetable Glycerin), Nicotine (Optional), and flavoring. Those terms seem technical, while you just need to know that PG and VG can make mass cloud/vapor, and more specifically, PG carries the flavor and VG is thicker and produces more vapor than PG. And it would bring you more “throat hit” feeling if it contains more PG in the juice.

There are two types of nicotine used in e-liquid, freebase nicotine, and nicotine salt. Nicotine salt is more commonly used for its numerous advantages. The most used nicotine strength ratio in a vape juice is between 0mg-50mg, it differs from the appetite and demand of vapers.

One last thing is flavoring, over seven thousand flavorings exist including cherry, coconut, berry blast, fresh apple, sweet tarts, cinnamon, and even tobacco. The flavors used in e-liquid are food-grade, while not all food-grade flavors will work in a vape liquid.

PG (Propylene Glycol)

Basic Feature

1. The ingredient that make the vapor. No odor or color.
2. Organic substances that our civilization has been using for over a century: toothpaste, shampoo, medications.
3. The vaporized form of propylene glycol looks like smoke: fake mist or smoke in stage.
4. Carry flavor in vape juice (carry more flavor than VG). Less viscous than VG.
5. Provide throat hit. (sensation of smoking tobacco)

Pros And Cons

1. FDA has deemed it GRAS safe to be used in food additive.
2. The CDC says that there is no risk of long term health damage as a result.
3. E-liquid with too much PG to be too harsh: dehydrating effect. (SOLVED)
   (Today, PG e-liquids are largely balanced by vegetable glycerin, or VG.)
4. A few people is allergic to PG.

VG (Vegetable Glycerin)

Basic Feature

1.Thick, viscous substance that is extracted from the palm plant.

2.Used in food production, Cosmetics, Medicine, preservative, etc. VG can be used as a sweetener because it has a sweet taste.

3. Make mass of clouds of vapor in comparison to PG.
4. VG does not carry flavor as well but PG does.

Pros And Cons

1. FDA has deemed it GRAS safe to be used in food additive.
2. The SIDS assessment profile show it to have low toxicity when consumed and of low potential to irritate the skin or eye.
3. If you are allergic to palm oil or coconut oil then VG could prove a problem.(uncommon)
4. The increased thickness of VG means it can reduce the life of atomizers quicker than PG-based juice. High VG liquid clog up coils more rapidly

Nicotine (Optional)

Basic Feature:

1. The nicotine used in e-cig liquid is pharmaceutical grade and extracted from tobacco plants. Also called freebase.
2. It is considered an addictive substance but it is not the chemical in cigarettes that causes disease.
3. A new type of nicotine: Nic Salt (smoother than regular pharmaceutical grade nicotine)

Differences Between Free Base Nicotine And Nicotine Salt

Free Base Nicotine

1. Traditional vape liquids contain freebase nicotine.
2. Extremely harsh in high doses (higher pH value)
3. The throat hit from a high mg dose of freebase nicotine is found to be too severe for most vapers to enjoy, or even endure.
4. choose to take more hits from their vape to satisfy the cravings, thereby increasing the amount of e-liquid they burn through and not seeing the cost savings they were promised.

• Contains Benzoic or Citric acid
• It’s absorbed faster into the bloodstream
• It’s smooth at high doses
• Can’t handle high flavor complexity
• Does not enable large cloud production
• Suited to mouth-to-lung vaping style
• More expensive by volume
• Suitable for high nicotine strengths
• Ideal for new vapers, or mixed users
• Well suited to pod vapes and lower power vape devices
• Less liquid needed for a comparable nicotine hit
• Slow oxidation means longer shelf life

Nicotine Salt

1. The natural state that nicotine is in tobacco leaves.
2. Smoother throat hit (Lower PH), vape comfortably at high nicotine levels.
3. More absorbable like free base nicotine.
4. Deal with your cravings more effectively than regular vape juices.

• Contains no additives
• Has a slower absorption rate
• It’s harsh at high doses
• Can handle high flavour complexity
• Enables large cloud production
• Suited to mouth-to-lung or direct-to-lung vaping styles
• Less expensive by volume
• More suited to low and medium nicotine strengths
• Suited to vapers with lower nicotine requirements
• Higher power devices needed for maximum vaporising
• More liquid needed for comparable nicotine hit
• Faster oxidation means shorter shelf life

However, it is optional for choosing the nicotine strength in vape juice.

Here are the most common nicotine levels：

• PG and 50/50 E-Liquid: 0 mg, 6 mg, 12 mg, 18 mg
• VG Vape Juice: 0 mg, 3 mg, 6 mg
• Nicotine Salt E-Juice: 25 mg, 35 mg, 50 mg

Flavorings

The flavors used in e-liquid are food-grade. But not all food-grade flavors will work in a vape liquid. Over seven thousand flavors exist including cherry, coconut, berry blast, fresh apple, sweet tarts, cinnamon, and even tobacco.

Is It Harmful?

After exactly learning what is e-liquid made from, we know that the ingredients in a qualified vape juice are food and civilian-grade. To be honest, for short period it hardly brings any harm to people; Long-term effects are almost guaranteed. Shortly, it’s 95% less harmful than that in cigarettes. What they are exactly cannot be defined just yet. Whereas, qualified e-liquids must be compliant to TPD compliance.

NewVaping, one of the top online vape shop in the UK, who puts safety first thus NewVaping only provide TPD compliant and tested products for customers. From solid and compact vape device to a series of vape juice, NewVaping is sure to bring customers with what exactly they want which are convenient and quality certified products.

If you are interested in even more lifestyle-related articles and information from us here at Bit Rebels, then we have a lot to choose from.

IMAGE: PEXELS