DIY E-Liquid?

[TropicalBob]

Found this today on E-Cig's forum:

As some of you reading this may recall, A few weeks ago I posted about placing the eliquid in either a gel or paste form.

Well, finally I got the nerve up to make a first test... for this test I simply placed a dab of lip balm mixed with a couple drops of eliquid on the end of a half dead cartridge and screwed it into my ecigar.

The results?

at least twice the vapor, twice the kick, twice the flavor (go figure on that one), AND the cartridge has lasted at this point over twice as long and is still going strong!

Before I was vaping at least 4 cartridges a day it seemed, now... Ive been puffing away on the same cartridge for 3 days with still no end in site!

[windblown]

Okay, I've gotta try this one! What kind of lip balm did you use?

WB
sucky-face

[TropicalBob]

That was from a post on e-Cig. I think that same question was asked. When it's answered, I'll post it. It does sound fascinating. Right now, I don't know what kind was used.

[Meltrex]

The results?

at least twice the vapor, twice the kick, twice the flavor (go figure on that one), AND the cartridge has lasted at this point over twice as long and is still going strong!

Before I was vaping at least 4 cartridges a day it seemed, now... Ive been puffing away on the same cartridge for 3 days with still no end in site!

Sounds far fetched to me. Maybe he should try vasoline or even better, vapor rub...lol J/K Interesting if it does work.

[TropicalBob]

Here's the problem I see: All lip balms are for external use only. The analgesics are external analgesics. And heaven forbid using a natural product like beeswax. We know that e-Liquid's residue in the lungs breaks down into lactic acid, which the body handles and excretes. But what if an ingredient in the home brew, lip balm vapor began coating the lungs? Could that lead to difficulty in breathing? Just as I have some concerns over the safety of the vapor, I'd have even more if we willy-nilly inhaled ingredients approved for external application or consumption but never tested for inhalation. My stomach lining is much tougher than my lungs', that's for sure. I think I'll hold off on personal experimenting.

[SmokeyJoe]

Quite right Bob, and I think it's a point we should all try to bear in mind throughout our experimenting - much of the body is very capable of regenerating, so as long as it is not exposed to mutagenic substances is usually quite capable of repairing itself. Unfortunately the lungs are almost entirely incapable of self-repair. In other words, once the damage is done, it is done.

I think as (ex) smokers we can often be a little more foolhardy about what we do with our health than we would had we not spent years inhaling toxins, but really this is new territory. If you were to end up with oxalic acid deposits in your lungs, for instance, you would be in serious trouble (oxalic acid is what other glycols are metabolised to in the body, as mentioned in a previous post).