VG vs. USP glycerin HELP!

[markarich159]

This would be a question to the pharmacist, I have Humco PG, which I love!

The question/ problem i have is trying to figure out whether the PG is being absorbed through the lungs, or settling there..

If it's the latter, it could prove pretty harmful.

Note: I am not trying to raise caution, or scare anyone! I Love my PG, just a general question concerning the absorption of it into the body!

Again, there have been no proven side effects of digested or inhaled PG, just curious is all...

Great Question!!! And I've actually answered this in another thread somewhere. The PG and the VG do NOT just stick there in the alveolar space of the lung and gunk up your lungs. The PG is absorbed into your alveolar capillaries(then into your systemic circulation) and eventually is degraded by your body into pyruvic acid which enters your normal glucose metabolism pathway and is eventually just excreted as either lactic acid or water and carbon dioxide. Glycerine(Glycerol) is even more benign. The Glycerine is again absorbed into your alveolar capillaries and enters your systemic circulation. Glycerine(glycerol) is actually the backbone of ALL fatty acids(you can't get more organic and benign then that) so it actually enters your bodies fat burning pathway(called Beta-Oxidation) and is ultimately converted into CO2 and H2O(or carbon dioxide and water) and again, excreted thru your lungs or kidneys.

 

[WonderfulMe]

Glycerine(glycerol) is actually the backbone of ALL fatty acids(you can't get more organic and benign then that) so it actually enters your bodies fat burning pathway(called Beta-Oxidation) and is ultimately converted into CO2 and H2O(or carbon dioxide and water) and again, excreted thru your lungs or kidneys.

Does this mean glycerine when vaped a lot can count as part of your fat intake? If you could explain how/if this would affect someone who is either overweight and/or consuming more fat than they need already that would be great. Thanks

 

[Darmeen]

Does this mean glycerine when vaped a lot can count as part of your fat intake? If you could explain how/if this would affect someone who is either overweight and/or consuming more fat than they need already that would be great. Thanks

I could very well be wrong, but from what I remember, your body needs fatty acids and produces most of them by itself...now whether a heavy vapor is drastically altering the balance of fatty acids in his/her body is a question beyond my knowledge...but I know that fatty acids aren't neccessarily bad.

 

[markarich159]

I could very well be wrong, but from what I remember, your body needs fatty acids and produces most of them by itself...now whether a heavy vapor is drastically altering the balance of fatty acids in his/her body is a question beyond my knowledge...but I know that fatty acids aren't neccessarily bad.

Glycerol isn't the Fatty Acid portion of the fat it's the backbone that the fatty acids attach to through ester bonds.(each glycerol can accomdate up to 3 fatty acids, therefore, the term triglycerides). The Glycerol provides relatively small amounts of energy as compared to the fatty acids themselves. Also, the amount of glycerine(glycerol) that is actually vaped and uptaken is so small as to be negligible.

 

[WonderfulMe]

Markarich159- thank you, that makes sense.

 

[texasvol]

Excellent post, Mark. It should remove all doubts. BTW, WalMart sells the 6 oz. HUMCO USP glycerin for $2.99 + tax.

 

[ctruth]

From original post:

"This is my dilimma:
Can there possibly be that much of a difference between Vegetable Glycerin and plain USP glycerin?
Or would the culprit in fact be some other ingredient in the VG/PG bottle"

markarich159 you answered that question in a very, very complete and professional manner.

My confusion has been obliterated, and I rest in peace.

Thank you

 

[markarich159]

From original post:

"This is my dilimma:
Can there possibly be that much of a difference between Vegetable Glycerin and plain USP glycerin?
Or would the culprit in fact be some other ingredient in the VG/PG bottle"

markarich159 you answered that question in a very, very complete and professional manner.

My confusion has been obliterated, and I rest in peace.

Thank you

No problem; I'm glad I could help. If anyone ever has any vaping questions that may be pharmacy/healthcare related, feel free to PM with it. I may not get back to you right away(as I don't check my PM's every single day) but I certainly will respond when I get a chance. If I don't know the answer immediately , I'll try to do some research(as vaping is a relatively new phenomena some questions have yet to even be asked) and If I still can't find an appropriate response, I'll, at the very least, try to point you in the right direction.

 

[Beer Man]

No problem; I'm glad I could help. If anyone ever has any vaping questions that may be pharmacy/healthcare related, feel free to PM with it. I may not get back to you right away(as I don't check my PM's every single day) but I certainly will respond when I get a chance. If I don't know the answer immediately , I'll try to do some research(as vaping is a relatively new phenomena some questions have yet to even be asked) and If I still can't find an appropriate response, I'll, at the very least, try to point you in the right direction.

If you come across any new or interesting research be sure and share it with us. Or if you get a good question to answer. Love your posts here.

 

[markarich159]

If you come across any new or interesting research be sure and share it with us. Or if you get a good question to answer. Love your posts here.

Will do.

 

[MargotA575]

They should make this a sticky because the newbies always ask this question. I'm a pharmacist in PA. I'm going to copy and paste a post I wrote in another subforum:

Go to the skin care aisle of most any pharmacy and you'll find a small(usually 6oz) bottle labled Glycerine, USP(Some pharmacies don't carry outright , but will special order for you). The label may have it listed as CVS Glycerine, USP or Rite Aid Glycerine, USP or Humco Glycerine, USP or Family Pharmacy Glycerine, USP etc.. you get my point. Whatever it's labeled, it's Glycerine, USP 99.5% anhydrous(meaning 0.5% water). It will cost anywhere from $3 to $6 for 6oz.(CHEAP) This is vegetable glycerine, absolutely, positively, no doubt. How do I know this? I'm a pharmacist. All OTCglycerine,USP is made by 1 single manufacturer, HUMCO. It is then contract packaged into the different pharmacy labeled bottles. I've personally called HUMCO and spoke with their QA(quality assurance) person. He assured me that HUMCO's Glycerine is in fact Vegetable source Glycerine. The reason it's labeled Glycerine and not Vegetable Glycerine is because #1 it is listed in the USP as Glycerine, USP and therefore(in order to keep the USP certification) must be labeled as it's listed in the USP. #2 it would cause confusion as Glycerine is Glycerine(regardless of the source - chemically 1,2,3-propane triol also sometimes referred to as Glycerol), to add the moniker VEGETABLE, makes it sound like it's two different and distinct products, it isn't. Also, USP grade Glycerine is the purest you can get. Food Grade "vegetable Glycerine" you get in health food store saying 99.9% is BS. Since they do not have to meet any standard(such as USP standards) they could say anything, they could say 10000% pure. If you get USP grade, you know you are getting exactly what is labeled(within allowable USP limits) and it is made to most stringent requirements available in the US. (i.e. USP stands for United States Pharmacopeia- drugs have meet higher standards then foods do). Kashrut(kosher) laws are Jewish religious dietary laws having to do with the preparation of food products and really have nothing to do with the labeled purity of the product. Also, Kashrut(kosher) laws are jurisdictional(handled differently in different places). In some cases a rabbi must come to the manufacturer and verify processes and equipment conform to kosher law and in some places it's enough that the manufacturer says or thinks he is conforming to the kosher laws. In any case USP and Kosher are 2 different things. There is no such listing in the USP for "Kosher Glycerine". To the people who are feeling naseous using pharmacy bought Glycerine, USP, it may be a placebo effect(thinking your not using the real VG) or you may have a sensitivity to Glycerine(unlikely). But it is not because the Pharmacy bought Glycerine,USP is inferior or NOT Vegetable Glycerine.

I did some checking on th internet too and there is more than 1 company that makes glycerin. They ALL make biodiesel, which uses vegatable oil as it's base. The sites give comparisons of the different grades including USP grading. To make it simple, USP grade has more to do with the impurities in the glycerin than it's source. But, because of the glycerin is a by-product of biodiesel, petroleum shouldn't be an issue. These sites also warn about glycerin being sold without really being true, certified USP grade. The company actually has to be registered with the USP and submit to testing and inspections to be able to use USP on the labeling. Even if it meets USP specs, unless the company is registered, it isn't USP grade.

Now, in reference to ORGANIC glycerin, that is another issue. USP has nothing to do with that. The USDA governs that. AND all that means the ingredients in it are certfied as organic. You can have technical grade that is organic but that grade has enough impurities in it to cause problems if used as food grade.

I'm just agreeing with you. I'm a newbie (August, 2009) and if I can find this all out in less than 1/2 hour, why aren't people checking this out BEFORE they use it? The reason I had to find this out is because I get a bad reaction from PG. Know what the pro's and con's are, check your suppliers and check out any problems before you make assumptions.