Blood test lab results for nicotine levels!!!

[Brewster 59]

Okay, you guys and gals can pat yourself on the back all you want, but I'm still not buying it.

It appears as if you have to chain vap the strongest liquid out there to get your nicotine level up to 2 mg nicotine gum. That sounds a whole lot more like a smoking cessation program rather then a smoking replacement program. It's the real achilles heal of e-cigs.

It would also point to a high rate of failure. It's just not enough nicotine to be a good long term replacement for cigarettes.

Try not to take this the wrong way, though you already have, I'm not against e-cigs. I just don't think it's a good smoking replacement for the masses. The average Jane and Joe just doesn't have the time to suck on an e-cig for 8 hours a day to try and keep there nicotine levels up to acceptable levels. Most people actually have to work for a living.

If anyone actually took the time to read the link I posted above you can see that I'm not alone in this. Until the manufactures can make some liquid that has a much higher absorption rate e-cigs are doomed to a second rate niche product. Not-quite-ready-for-prime-time. It's very easy to cut back on nicotine if that's what you want to do, just cut your nicotine level or use it less often. Unfortunately, with the current state of the art in e-cigs, you can't push it any higher if need be.

I think the e-liquid manufactures need to get on the ball and give the rest of us what is needed.

I dont know why ecig works for me and it does for a lot of others as well. If ecig doesnt work for you thats a bummer. I guess you could try snus with the ecig or gum or just smoke analogs but that doesn't make ecigs a second rate niche product for those who are happy with it.

[Kurt]

Stubby, I am curious as to your statement that ecigs have a high failure rate. I had not heard this, in fact I have read the opposite. However, the success rate for NRTs is generally in terms of how many users go back to smoking after a year. Has there been enough time with ecigs, at least here in the States, to be able show statistically meaningful data supporting or refuting this statement? You may be right, but if you know of any data or papers you could post, I would love to see them. My own personal success with ecigs is of course not necessarily indicative of the entire user population, and I've only been vaping 7 weeks or so, so the jury is still out for me, anyway.

Thanks!

[Stubby]

I dont know why ecig works for me and it does for a lot of others as well. If ecig doesnt work for you thats a bummer. I guess you could try snus with the ecig or gum or just smoke analogs but that doesn't make ecigs a second rate niche product for those who are happy with it.

Of geeez, that was posted nearly 3 months ago. So it goes.

The conversation has moved on since then. It looks as if some people on the forum may have figured out why e-cigs work for some and not for others. The anecdotal evidence looks very good that it has to do with the lack of MOAI's in e-cigs.

For some of us there is more to it then stuffing more nicotine in our bloodstream.

I would suggest reading this thread for info.

So - are we getting it or are we not - nicotine

[Brewster 59]

Of geeez, that was posted nearly 3 months ago. So it goes.

The conversation has moved on since then. It looks as if some people on the forum may have figured out why e-cigs work for some and not for others. The anecdotal evidence looks very good that it has to do with the lack of MOAI's in e-cigs.

For some of us there is more to it then stuffing more nicotine in our bloodstream.

I would suggest reading this thread for info.

So - are we getting it or are we not - nicotine

Well another lesson learned for me I actually found this thread in todays posts. I did read the the link you provided and found it very interesting. So did you find an alternative to analogs that worked for you?

[Stubby]

Well another lesson learned for me I actually found this thread in todays posts. I did read the the link you provided and found it very interesting. So did you find an alternative to analogs that worked for you?

Of course. I've been smoke free using snus for nearly 6 months.

I'm the resident devils advocate.

[Brewster 59]

Of course. I've been smoke free using snus for nearly 6 months.

I'm the resident devils advocate.

Actually I don't think you are the devils advocate you provide information for people that the ecig doesn't work for and an explaination of why it doesn't work for them. I think I'm going to try some snus. I actually liked the nic gum but missed smoking and didn't want to use both the gum and smoke.

[bassn99]

I'm interested in the testing that was discussed earlier in this thread of the nicotine levels found while vaping from bloodtests. I recently asked my personal doctor to perform this test when I was getting all my bloodwork done. He stated Nicotine levels are not tested with a bloodtest but through a urine specimen...
I'm not doctor and I'm sure he knows best, I did not pay the extra monies to have the extra test run because my body is telling me I am NOT getting as much nicotine while vaping. So I do it more to satisfy my cravings and it WORKS FOR ME. I feel like I can stay away from analogs from now on. Three months is the longest I have ever been able to be off analogs in over thirty years. To each their own, I will advocate them only because the have worked for me. I'm sure they WILL NOT for some hardcore smokers due to the lack of nicotine IMHO we are not really getting.
Just my 3 cents...............

[RobertY]

Yesterday I had my yearly exam. I told my MD about the ecig and that I had quit regular smoking over eight months ago. He was happy (he has been harping on me for years) and at the same time very interested in the ecig. He even brought his 2 colleges into the exam room for me to give my spiel again and a demonstration. LOL!

More to the point of this thread I asked about nicotine levels. At first I was told it was just a urine test and I told him that I think that is just a test for yes/no if you are a smoker or a nicotine user. He called the lab and found out that there was a blood test and so he had the nurse draw an extra vial of blood just for this test. When I get the results I will post them.

[Kate51]

Just another note to all curious about nicotine use out there....I make my own juice, and had started out at 24mg/ml juice. This level kept me pretty happily comfortable without withdrawal pains for the first couple months after quitting smoking to vape. At about 3 months in, I cut my juice to 18mg/ml, that's a 25% reduction. No withdrawal symptoms. A little increase in juice consumption for about a week, but gradually slowed back to before. I use about 2ml liquid per day.
After 8 months vaping, I have cut down again, from 18mg/ml down to 12 mg/ml. That's another 25% reduction! No withdrawal symptoms. Nothing. No noticable increased juice use. Still at about 2ml per day.
So will in a couple weeks do another urine test (Nymox) just to see how my Cotinine levels are progressing. This is just fantastic, it's so ridiculously easy and pain free. Just wanted to share some progress reporting.
Just do it. Would like to hear from others who have reduced nicotine usage since starting vaping. Give us a picture of your comfort zone!

[IANAN]

Hmmm... you are assuming that Nicotine is only coming from tobacco ...

Nicotine has consistently been found in other sources such as tea (Most likely residual from the insecticides) and potatoes (French Fries), Tomatoes (Highest in Ketchup)... and so forth-

This report has tables and is from NZ;

http://www.foodstandards.gov.au/_src..._FAR_Final.pdf

So how much is in your diet... It varies from country to country and by person to person but it is estimated to be ;

respective food consumption data for different countries, a distributive analysis of the results suggests that the mean daily dietary nicotine intake for the population of the countries for which consumption data were available is approximately 1.4 ug/day, 2.25 ug/day at the 95th percentile.

Siegmund, B., Leitner, E., & Pfannhauser, W. (1999). Determination of the nicotine content of various edible nightshades (solanaceae) and their products and estimation of the associated dietary nicotine intake. J. Agric. Food Chem. , 47 (8), 3113-3120.

URL Determination of the Nicotine Content of Various Edible Nightshades (Solanaceae) and Their Products and Estimation of the Associated Dietary Nicotine Intake - Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (ACS Publications)