Dry Mouth

[Kati]

For years I have seen commercials that mention "dry mouth" as one of the possible side- effects of taking a prescription drug. The term didn't really mean much to me since I had never experienced it. I thought it likely that it was the same as being thirsty. Now that I have experienced it, it isn't exactly the same.

More to the point, I'm pretty sure there is a connection between my dry mouth and vaping since I am not taking any prescription drugs. Is dry mouth a common occurrence for vapers? Any solutions or work-arounds?

All the best,

Kati

 

[dennism]

Drink some water!!!!

 

[Kati]

I have been drinking seemingly buckets of water.

 

[DaveP]

PG absorbs water, so you need to drink a little more to offset the dry mouth you can experience with vaping. your body will adjust to vaping. For me, smoking gave me a dry mouth. I always stopped at the water cooler on the way inside from the smoking area at work.

The combination of moisture in your mouth and the PG/VG you inhale work together to make vapor. When you exhale, some of the moisture in your mouth and lungs becomes a component of the vapor you exhale.

As you vape your body begins to accommodate the dry mouth by increasing saliva output. I don't experience that or at least it's not that noticeable anymore. I guess I've learned to drink more often.

 

[Coyote628]

Yes, vaping causes dry mouth. I woke up once in the middle of the night and felt like i had a dried toad glued in my mouth. Keep water by the bed now.

 

[Kati]

One other factor is that I am trying to step down the nicotine level. My latest e-juice is 4.5% vs. 6%. The net result, thus far at least, is that I am vaping a lot more. In a 36 hour period I had 225 puffs which seems an astronomical amount to me. I already purchased the next step down, 3%. Perhaps I am getting ahead of myself in my quest to give up smoking.

 

[Eskie]

I wouldn't rush lowering the nic. You will risk nic craving, vape more, and be at risk of picking up a cigarette out of frustration. I started at 24 mg nic in a mtl setup and didn't change for like 6 months.

As to dry mouth, yes, vaping does. See about something like Biotene lozenges, they can help if you don't have water around.

 

[dennism]

Don't be in a hurry to lower your nicotine, it took me 5 years to get to 3mg. Seems like at the lower levels you are vaping quite a bit, I would up my nic and see if this cuts down the amount of puffs you are doing, and helps with the dry mouth situation. As far as I know nicotine is not really bad, except it's addictive.

 

[Kati]

Just out curiosity is 225 puffs in 36 hour period extremely excessive? I really don't have a point of comparison. What constitutes a typical puff per day ratio, if indeed such a ratio actually exists except in the recesses of my muddled mind?

 

[Kati]

Dear me, I just plucked down $50 on my e-juice step down program. Thinking out loud, does this mean another trip to the vape store?

 

[Letitia]

One other factor is that I am trying to step down the nicotine level. My latest e-juice is 4.5% vs. 6%. The net result, thus far at least, is that I am vaping a lot more. In a 36 hour period I had 225 puffs which seems an astronomical amount to me. I already purchased the next step down, 3%. Perhaps I am getting ahead of myself in my quest to give up smoking.

Stepping down nic and not going high enough to begin with is one of the most common new vaper mistakes. Nicotine in and of itself isn't the problem with smoking, the additives are. The nic in juice just makes quitting smoking a touch easier. You keep the comfort of hand to mouth and nic intake.

 

[tailland]

Is dry mouth a common occurrence for vapers? Any solutions or work-arounds?

It would be a miracle if vaping didn't cause dry mouth.

Our liquids contain glycerin and propylene glycol. Both are hygroscopic, meaning they attract and bind water from their surroundings. If you inhale them, that source of water would be your mouth, throat, lung.

You could drink more water to keep your mouth moist, AND/OR you could try adding 5-10% destilled water to your liquid (preferably as a replacement for PG alltogether).

 

[Kati]

And the moral of the story is that when ignorant or when in doubt, ask at ECF. You are amazingly knowledgeable and amazingly kind!

All the best,

Kati

 

[ScottP]

Just out curiosity is 225 puffs in 36 hour period extremely excessive? I really don't have a point of comparison. What constitutes a typical puff per day ratio, if indeed such a ratio actually exists except in the recesses of my muddled mind?

225 / 36 = average of 6.25 puffs per hour which is a bit less than 1 cigarette per hour in terms of puffs. So no it's not excessive at all.

Really though the ONLY puff counter that matters is your cigarette puff counter. As long as that stays at 0, then the rest doesn't matter.

 

[stols001]

I've had dry mouth forever from a med (vaping didn't really necessarily worsen it, but that would be kind of a feat.) Dry mouth lozenges (biotene and other makers) do somewhat help, if you can find one that you can actually tolerate the taste of, and I actually think most (sugar free might be best) hard candy is just going to start saliva production in your mouth, chewing gum would give you the same general effect.

Biotene mouthwash BEFORE bed can be useful, I'm not sure how useful it is during the day (maybe a bit) but it does kind of wear off as you eat and drink etc. It MAY prevent waking up in the middle of the night with cotton mouth if you use it before bed. Etc.

Drinks like chamomile tea with honey and lemon in them can also sometimes help, the lemon is kind of mildly astringent and takes away that "ick" feeling and honey coats your mouth and throat (to a moderate degree, I guess) and chamomile well if you are stepping down your nic, I am of the personal opinion that chamomile tea is more calming than most OTC products have any right to be.. Your mileage may vary.

You can increase the nic in your "step down" juices if you want to use them. Either go to the DIY forum and./or find a good nic calculator and start inputting your amounts of juice and the strength of whatever nic you get, and you should be good to go. You may just want to wait, honestly, if you do plan on stepping down but slower, they should be perfectly fine if stored in a cool dark place for a while. But, if you want to use them immediately, you'd need to acquire a (fairly small amount) of nic in whatever way you acquire it and just doctor your mixes a bit. Good luck,

Anna

 

[Baditude]

One other factor is that I am trying to step down the nicotine level. My latest e-juice is 4.5% vs. 6%. The net result, thus far at least, is that I am vaping a lot more. In a 36 hour period I had 225 puffs which seems an astronomical amount to me. I already purchased the next step down, 3%. Perhaps I am getting ahead of myself in my quest to give up smoking.

In addition to drinking more water, suck on some hard candy or chew gum to encourage your salivary glands to make more spit. That sounded kinda gross. To make more saliva.

You are moving too fast! Why are you so obsessed with lowering your nic consumption? Just chill. You just started vaping. Get off and stay off of the cigs first and foremost, then consider dropping your nic consumption down SLOWLY in TINY STEPS.

And don't worry about that puff counter! It's a totally useless feature which can make novices paranoid. Vape as much and as frequently as you need to.