Long-term use of an e-cigarette

Whether the use of vaporizing devices has an impact on the human body is still only speculation. There are no medically representative studies.

Electronic cigarettes have been on the market for over a decade, but serious research has only been conducted for a few years, so according to all scientific logic it is impossible to say anything definitively. So far, no reliable values have been obtained regarding the physiological effects of direct inhalation of nicotine vapor on the lungs, heart and the rest of the body. Any statements, whether they come from the World Health Organization, national authorities or individual doctors, are therefore currently speculative.

However, some issues can be summarized and presented as justified. First, there is the issue of fundamental differences between e-cigarettes and tobacco cigarettes. Secondly, looking at the history of the evaluation of nicotine as a toxin is interesting in itself.

Nicotine in E-liquids

Most vapers are convinced that electronic cigarettes cause less harm to them than tobacco cigarettes - because the latter, as scientifically proven after extensive and thorough research, are undoubtedly carcinogenic. In short, there is a reason and a trigger. The cause is the combustion of tobacco, and the result is the cocktail of harmful substances contained in each cigarette.

Tobacco cigarettes contain over 3,800 chemical compounds, almost all of which are inhalable particulates, over 200 considered toxic, at least 40 with proven effects and at least 80 suspected carcinogens. The combustion process initiates molecular change processes that may further intensify harmful effects. In addition, there are manufacturer-controlled substance interactions that make smoking so dangerous: some toxic ingredients hinder the body's self-detoxification, irritating substances prevent the lungs from self-cleaning. Thanks to the resulting low inhibition threshold, carcinogenic substances reach the lungs without inhibition and act there without hindrance.

It is obvious that none of these processes occur with vaporization devices. On the one hand, vaping cannot produce dangerous combustion products. The e-liquids used have a clear, well-defined list of ingredients if they come from a responsible source that can provide information about the country of production and manufacturer. It is therefore worth investing more in a product whose substances are identified. Many e-juices contain a mixture of propylene glycol USP (PG), vegetable glycerin USP (VG), distilled water, flavor and nicotine in various proportions.

The only truly dangerous substance when it comes to vaporization is nicotine (although they warn that propylene glycol, when burned, causes irritation of the upper respiratory tract and impairs lung function). Therefore, the key question is how nicotine in vaporized form is delivered to the body? The answer is that we don't know - because there isn't enough research yet. It may be undisputed that nicotine can also evaporate to a significant extent. In fact, it is possible to check pharmacological effects, such as increased heart rate and blood pressure, increased production of stomach acid or increased adrenaline levels, but so far there is little research in this area. It should be remembered that nicotine is a poison with addictive potential. However, it has not yet been investigated to what extent the risk of addiction depends on the mixture with other substances. That it would still be best not to take nicotine at all remains indisputable.

How toxic is nicotine

The question is, how toxic is it really? The following information can be found in almost every article, whether written scientifically or for amateurs: between 40 and 60 milligrams of pure nicotine are fatal for an adult if swallowed (this corresponds to about 10 ml of an appropriately diluted, nicotine-containing solution). All international and national institutions also refer to this figure and derive their anti-smoking regulations

The number itself is more than disputed. For on the other hand, this nicotine would lend a toxic effect comparable to that of cyanide. And on the other hand, there is an extensive literature on cases in which the consumption of well over 60 milligrams was survived. Not only that: Recent studies have shown that with intravenous administration of up to 5 milligrams of nicotine, a dose administered orally administered 25 milligrams (as half the lethal amount), only slightly unpleasant side effects such as cough and dizziness occurred. At the same time, the fatal dose can be calculated for the deaths actually caused by nicotine.

Professor Mayer has published an article titled "How much nicotine kills a human?" In the journal "Archives of Toxicology". Tracing back the most accepted lethal dose to dubious self-experiments in the nineteenth century "deals with the question how the stubbornly wrongly quoted value has come. He found that this was due to a single source, namely the "textbook of intoxications", published in 1906, by the famous toxicologist and pharmacologist Dr. Rudolf Kobert. The latter also writes that "the lethal dose of nicotine is also difficult to determine, since it is slightly decomposed in the air, and on the other hand is usually more or less water-bearing." But he still assumes that "after the bad accidents, which have already been 0.002-0.004 g in several experimenters, it is certainly not higher than 0.06 g." Again, he bases these statements on the reading of a dubious description Self-experiments published by the Austrian physician Dr. Karl Damian von Schroff in 1856.

So if you forget about everything that authorities such as WHO and other organizations have released into the world about nicotine and stick to the facts, the picture of pure nicotine consumption is as follows:

Conventional "18 e-Liquid" contains nicotine at 18 milligrams per milliliter. There is therefore a total of 180 milligrams or 0.18 grams of nicotine in a 10 ml tank. You can't kill yourself even if you drink it - and certainly not if you vape it in one day (This does not apply to children, of course, which is why e-cigarettes and vaping accessories should always be kept out of children's reach). As for all the other clear answers about the link between vaping nicotine and long-term, permanent health damage, you need to be patient - and probably for a few more years.