Vaping is a safe and fun way to transition from cigarette smoking and has given people another option to continue their nicotine use. It expands your enjoyment by mixing nicotine with a large variety of flavours to enhance the experience and get some nostalgic and novel tastes.
One important aspect of vaping is the different amounts of nicotine in the juices. You probably have scoured the walls in your favourite vape shop, looking for the blends most appealing to you, only to find out you now have to decide on nicotine strength. How do you know the best amount of e juice for you, so the experience is still enjoyable?
Let’s go over how to choose levels in nicotine vape juice.
What is Nicotine Anyway?
You may be a smoker transitioning off cigarettes or a new vape user wondering what nicotine is. Nightshade plants, including the tobacco plant, contain a naturally occurring alkaloid, a nitrogen-containing chemical, called nicotine that produces pharmacologic and psychodynamic effects in the human body, including:
- Increased heart rate
- Increased heart muscle usage rate
- Euphoria
- Relaxation
- Raised alertness
While cigarettes have many chemicals and substances, nicotine is usually blamed for being addictive and producing negative health effects. It’s hard to isolate just one component, but nicotine is among the other chemicals.
Finding Your Nictoine Level
The first step in choosing your nicotine level in vape juice is understanding that nicotine is highly regulated in vape juice, so you know exactly what you are getting, unlike cigarettes. Remember, not all vape juice contains nicotine, but it is a common additive because of the need for it when transitioning off cigarettes. Finding the right amount for you is personal and considers your previous nicotine usage and tolerance. You need to consider the following:
- The Type Of Throat Hit You Want Higher nicotine levels to come with a harsher throat hit and taste. Lower ones allow for a stronger flavour taste.
- A Cigarette Comparison If you are transitioning off cigarettes, you probably want a nicotine level to match your tobacco brand, so you don’t have the desire to smoke. Vaping differs from smoking, so you may prefer a lighter nicotine level.
- Frequency Of Use If you vape sparingly, you may need a heavier nicotine level to satisfy you during the day. For a regular user or a chain vaper, too much nicotine can cause negative effects.
Nicotine Strengths
Vape juice nicotine strengths come in various percentages, measured in milligrams on the bottles; the lower the number, the lower the nicotine. Commercial vape juice will be in strengths of:
Freebase
- 0mg
- 3mg
- 6mg
- 12mg
- 18mg
- 20mg
Nic Salts
- 0mg
- 36mg
- 50mg
Freebase is regular nicotine that gives you a strong throat hit, while nicotine salts are smoother.
Omg, this level is zero nicotine and is great for those who have slowly worked their way down to eliminate nicotine or those who may have never smoked and don’t want nicotine.
3mg For a person that was a light smoker of 10 or fewer cigarettes per day, this nicotine level will give you a light hit comparison.
6mg People that smoked light cigarettes or were moderate smokers will find 6mg the perfect substitute.
12mg This level works best for the average smoker, around 20 or so a day and unfiltered smoked cigarettes.
18/20mg For those that prefer 18/20mg nicotine levels they were heavy users of over a pack a day and need this strong hit to satisfy their cravings.
If you are using vaping to try to quit smoking cigarettes, remember that you are getting nicotine from two sources simultaneously, so your vape nicotine level can be much lower.
Listen To Your Body
Only you know how much nicotine is right for you, and you can easily determine this by your enjoyment level and how your body reacts to it. The best part about vaping is that you can immediately increase or decrease your nicotine amount.
Test the waters with different nicotine levels and find what you prefer. Different devices will change how it feels; even different flavour types often affect it. You can also get a higher nicotine to feel on a lower strength by going with a 50:50 vg/pg ratio because the more PV in the juice, the more similar it is to cigarettes.
Nicotine Overdose
It is easy to overdo it because those who smoke and vape are consuming a lot of nicotine, plus the allure of vaping may have you chain vaping. Vaping nicotine also delays the effects, so you may not realize immediately that you’ve consumed too much. Nicotine overdose will present as:
- Nausea
- Rapid breathing
- Dizziness
- Headache
- Muscle twitches
- Restlessness
You can calm these effects by avoiding smoking and vaping and immediately drinking lots of water.
Wrapping things up, you control your vaping experience, including selecting your nicotine level. Use this as a guide to understanding nicotine and then try, try, try until you find what works best for you.