Is vaping really healthier?

[Altaire Versailles]

I was looking at peoples physical reactions to vaping on threads and im wondering about peoples thoughts on the health factor?

It does seem on a common sense level to be a lot safer than cigarettes, but being honest we really don't know what vaping is doing to us. I'm sure nobody wants to hear this but for all we know inhaling vg or pg or whatever they're putting in the cheaper e juices could have worse effects down the line than tar and ash. It would be counter intuitive but not impossible by any means. The difference between burning leaves to get nic and inhaling nic extract could be drastically different...or the amount were getting this way, we really don't know without any evidence garnered through controlled scientific process. Were pretty much going by only a small time periods worth of experiential data and projections based on what we know about cigarettes.

I know it seems that the FDA is the devil in this case and I'll grant their ulterior motives are questionable but they are supposed to do this. Make sure were not killing ourselves. At least not too quickly lol

I mean i definitely feel way better than when i smoked cigs. My throat and chest don't feel swollen and raw all the time, and not constantly coughing up brown thick mucus is priceless. But for a week or so when i started vaping my chest was red around my lungs (which may have just been me adjusting or the stale carts smokeless image gave me and when i vape heavy at night i wake up kind of shaky like i would when i would party and binge out on like 2 packs in a night. Made me think maybe im getting way to much nic. Others?

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

The difference between burning leaves to get nic and inhaling nic extract could be drastically different...

There have been a few minor studies done but no clinical trials- too much $$. My GP, Surgeon, Dentist and Dental Hygienist all support my vaping, are very glad I quit smoking and have seen the many positive health benefits. They've actually called me in to help convert some of their patients.

when i vape heavy at night i wake up kind of shaky like i would when i would party and binge out on like 2 packs in a night. Made me think maybe im getting way to much nic. Others?

I vape a lower mg in the evening otherwise it affects my sleep.

 

[abasm]

This is a really good question and I have asked it of myself. Like you said we don't know long term effects. All I really know is I personally do feel better vaping then smoking. A lot less lung and throat soreness vaping. I guess either way I gotta die somehow and the vaping for me is a lot less painful both to my health and my wallet.

 

[2nd chance]

I was looking at peoples physical reactions to vaping on threads and im wondering about peoples thoughts on the health factor?

It does seem on a common sense level to be a lot safer than cigarettes, but being honest we really don't know what vaping is doing to us. I'm sure nobody wants to hear this but for all we know inhaling vg or pg or whatever they're putting in the cheaper e juices could have worse effects down the line than tar and ash. It would be counter intuitive but not impossible by any means. The difference between burning leaves to get nic and inhaling nic extract could be drastically different...or the amount were getting this way, we really don't know without any evidence garnered through controlled scientific process. Were pretty much going by only a small time periods worth of experiential data and projections based on what we know about cigarettes.

I know it seems that the FDA is the devil in this case and I'll grant their ulterior motives are questionable but they are supposed to do this. Make sure were not killing ourselves. At least not too quickly lol

I mean i definitely feel way better than when i smoked cigs. My throat and chest don't feel swollen and raw all the time, and not constantly coughing up brown thick mucus is priceless. But for a week or so when i started vaping my chest was red around my lungs (which may have just been me adjusting or the stale carts smokeless image gave me and when i vape heavy at night i wake up kind of shaky like i would when i would party and binge out on like 2 packs in a night. Made me think maybe im getting way to much nic. Others?

Check out this forum, some good reading

Health, Safety and E-Smoking

 

[hvac999]

From the studies that have been done it appears to be MUCH better than smoking in the short term. This would lead me to believe the long term affects are MUCH better than smoking. This is why I vape and NOT smoke.

 

[Boiler]

As I was already inhaling nicotine previously, whether it is safer now than before is incidental. What has changed is that I am inhaling vapor rather than smoke. The vapor from Pg/Vg has been used in medical inhalers and in hospitals. Since they don't use smoke I will assume "vapor is safer." I am concerned about the flavors, for that reason I do not use them. I am also concerned about the particulates in wicking materials, for that reason I will use cotton.

 

[Faylool]

If you study up it's a definite yes and probably after further study an even more definite yes yes. It's kind of a weird question if you ask me. But it's purposeful for newbies and I welcome any more food for thought on it

 

[1950 HAM]

I was looking at peoples physical reactions to vaping on threads and im wondering about peoples thoughts on the health factor?

Not trying to be a SA here, but I after 48 years of smoking, I don't really care if it's any healthier, can't possibly be worse.
At least it tastes a heck of a lot better, doesn't stink or leave the brown tar all over everything.
I quit thinking about living forever a loooooong time ago and know something is gonna get me eventually so I'm gonna vape and damn the consequences!

 

[peanutt27794]

I was looking at peoples physical reactions to vaping on threads and im wondering about peoples thoughts on the health factor?

It does seem on a common sense level to be a lot safer than cigarettes, but being honest we really don't know what vaping is doing to us. I'm sure nobody wants to hear this but for all we know inhaling vg or pg or whatever they're putting in the cheaper e juices could have worse effects down the line than tar and ash. It would be counter intuitive but not impossible by any means. The difference between burning leaves to get nic and inhaling nic extract could be drastically different...or the amount were getting this way, we really don't know without any evidence garnered through controlled scientific process. Were pretty much going by only a small time periods worth of experiential data and projections based on what we know about cigarettes.

I know it seems that the FDA is the devil in this case and I'll grant their ulterior motives are questionable but they are supposed to do this. Make sure were not killing ourselves. At least not too quickly lol

I mean i definitely feel way better than when i smoked cigs. My throat and chest don't feel swollen and raw all the time, and not constantly coughing up brown thick mucus is priceless. But for a week or so when i started vaping my chest was red around my lungs (which may have just been me adjusting or the stale carts smokeless image gave me and when i vape heavy at night i wake up kind of shaky like i would when i would party and binge out on like 2 packs in a night. Made me think maybe im getting way to much nic. Others?

Hi! Love your post! I was a pack a day smoker for 15 yrs. I used to only smoke name brand until the gov't got greedy with taxes so I was forced to switch to pall malls. Now I chose this brand bc of the "slow burn paper" biggest mistake I made! I started on the lights about 2yrs ago and noticed they were too harsh so I went for ultra lights (Orange pack) ! A yr ago started my lung probs! The nasty coughing up mucus that you mentioned! I also had trouble breathing. Even though I was a smoker my docs told me my lungs were the 1 organ workin right in my body! I did research an it turns out I was not the only 1 gettin sick from pall malls! Myself along with others all over the world were showing very early stages of emphysema! Now ever since I started vaping (6-8wks) no more coughing up an I threw my inhaler out! But your right it doesn't mean E Cigs are totally safe as there is much to be researched. What I know for sure like you, is that since the switch I feel so much healthier! Our bodies do undergo many changes when switching from analogs to E Cigs (could be reason for your redness)?? Also you mentioned the cartos from SI.....I learned the hard way bout "dry hits" Sometimes the cartos get dry either from the way they are stored (battery thread down is best so gravity takes the juice to the atty)OR simply you are taking too long of a hit (I was doin this and it really burns the back of your throat)! Vaping is a lifestyle an it Def takes time to master! Sorry this was long. I hope I was of some help! Vape on!

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

Here's a presentation by Dr. Konstantinos Farsalinos- Effects of electronic cigarettes on myocardial function



The study compared 20 smokers, who smoked at least 15 cigarettes a day for at least 5 years, to 22 experienced electronic cigarette users, who had previously smoked at least as much, but had quit smoking and used electronic cigarettes for at least one month prior to the study. The study compared baseline measurements taken after a 4 hour abstinence period from food, caffeine, or nicotine, to measurements taken after smoking one cigarette, or using an e-cig for 7 minutes.

Besides showing less effect on heart rate and blood pressure than smoking, and no adverse impact on heart function, another interesting finding noted in Dr. Farsalinos' presentation was that the electronic cigarette users, who averaged 95 days of e-cig use each, had been heavier smokers than the smoking group in the study, averaging 44% greater lifetime smoke exposure. Despite this, the e-cig user groups experience with switching from cigarettes to e-cigs was very rapid, with a mean average of only 2.5 days to make the transition.

Although the study size was small, making the findings suggestive rather than definitive, the careful protocols and detailed readings of recognized cardiac health indicators make this a very valuable study in the growing body of data supporting the relative safety of e-cig use compared to tobacco smoking. And it avoided several flaws in previous studies' methods, such as ensuring that all e-cig users were experienced users, because experienced e-cig users use their e-cigs more intensively and efficiently than beginning users, a fact that skewed the results in several earlier studies. Hopefully, this study's results will be published soon in a peer reviewed journal, and will be followed up on with larger studies involving much larger numbers of subjects so the results will have greater statistical significance.

http://www.west-info.eu/files/Slides27.pdf

 

[Altaire Versailles]

I get a 12mg level which seems to be a medium amount? I dunno i smoked kool mild, a pack a day and the 12mg count was sufficient for me to stop smoking, and that comfortably...is there a way to guage how much the dosage is compared to with an analogue?

 

[Faylool]

Heck yeah! I hear you! One of the few enjoyable parts about aging for crying out loud good lord almighty! And if you just only gage if it's healthier by one thing, and that's how much better you feel once some of the damage of smoke inhalation is reversed. Even a year later people report still getting healthier

Not trying to be a SA here, but I after 48 years of smoking, I don't really care if it's any

healthier, can't possibly be worse.
At least it tastes a heck of a lot better, doesn't stink or leave the brown tar all over everything.
I quit thinking about living forever a loooooong time ago and know something is gonna get me eventually so I'm gonna vape and damn the consequences!

 

[calan]

...so I was forced to switch to pall malls...so I went for ultra lights (Orange pack)

I posted this in another thread, but you may find it interesting. Pall Mall orange 100's were the cigarettes I was smoking.

While I understand that everyone is different, these "accepted" generalizations for vaping and smoking equivalency don't hold up for me at all. I've come to the realization that in the two weeks I've been vaping, I've overdosed on nicotine several times...at only 12mg levels.

I was smoking ultra-light cigarettes, with .4mg tar each. While that number sounds very light, it was actually even less once I started thinking about it. For one thing, very few people actually smoke an entire cigarette; for me, 2/3 of it's length was more common. Second, of that 2/3 length only a portion of that was inhaled, since I usually stood around standing and talking more than smoking. . Finally, what did get inhaled was usually about 10 somewhat shallow drags passed through a filter.

So with all that said, my actual nicotine intake was probably much lower than what it would seem at first glance. A little conservative number crunching puts it closer to .15 mg per cigarette. Assuming I was smoking a little less than a pack per day depending on how much I slept, I came up with about 6mg of nicotine inhaled in a 48-hour period on average, through 400 drags. (10 drags per cigarette... 40 cigarettes * .15mg each = 6mg).

For a comparison, I monitored my vaping over a 48 hour period, and ended up at about 400 drags (coincidence?) and 1ml of 12mg juice used. So I was vaping about the same as far as drags and the physical aspect, but the over-simplified math shows that I was taking in twice the amount of nicotine.

My body's reaction supported that theory. I had headaches and a general feeling of something just not being right. Not to mention, after the first few days I was "needing" to vape more often than I "needed" to go have a smoke. I believe that was my body starting to react to the higher nicotine levels.

Since I now mix my own juice, I'm cutting to 6mg or less; I may even try 3mg and see how that works.

*******

Our bodies do undergo many changes when switching from analogs to E Cigs (could be reason for your redness)?

So true.

Like most long time smokers, I "quit" for 9 months or so a couple of years ago. No drugs or anything; just flat stopped, cold turkey. One thing I noticed was that for the first few weeks, I felt HORRIBLE. Not from nicotine withdrawal, but from my body trying to rid itself of all the toxins and the drastic changes in metabolism. I had teenage acne all over again, frequent headaches, nauseousness, and a complete lack of energy. After a few weeks, these effects wore off and I started feeling better than I ever did while smoking.

I'm seeing something similar since switching to e-cigs a little over a week ago, though not to the same extent. In addition to finding the right nicotine balance for a smooth transition, I think you just have to expect that it will take your body a little while to get used to not having countless deadly poisons to deal with daily.

 

[fozzinop]

No idea about the long term effects, but short term it's much better. My lungs are doing better (when exercising), I went through the usual 2-3 weeks of

 

[jfalbanese]

all i know is i feel better in body, mind, and spirit. . you can listen to the crap on the 24 hour puke fest till your ears drop off. it comes down to the individual choice. our body's are the greatest health meter on the planet. it has a way to let us know if we are doing bad or good. providing we listen to what our bodies tell us. as a person who made all the wrong choices, i can tell you, i feel 100 times better at 53, than how i felt at 35. once i removed the tobacco from the equation, i feel i can go out on the ocean and go crab fishing again. a job i was barely able to do because i was a smoker. i am ready to eat my plate of razor blades for breakfast.. so for this individual i have no problem with vaping to quit smoking. the next logical step is to quit vaping as soon as possible. not because i'm scared of what a paid entertainer told me on tv, but because i don't want to trade 1 form of slavery for another. no matter how cool it is, and how many toys i could have if i wanted. if you read the posts from long term vapers most report no ill effects in upwards of 6 years. imagine what 6 yrs of tobacco can do to your body. the only reason why people have a problem with this, especially the FDA, Government, democrats, republicans, big tobacco,big pharma, and fox news, is if we all stop smoking, then there is the ordeal of finding the next group of people we are going to treat like crap.

if you vape and it gives you no problems by all means keep vaping. if you have a bad experience, then for gods sake stop vaping. it's ironic. a smoker worried about the side effects of something that contains upwards of 4000 less toxic chemicals. if no one thinks that's funny then i apologize. everyone has to learn to listen to what their bodies are telling them, any doubts at all?, see a doctor. not an idiot like me on one of these sites.

 

[sk8r]

For me, even though it's only been a few days, the positive changes from not smoking are fantastic! Only problem has been that i had to have my car completely detailed, twice ($$$ !!!), coz for the first time EVER I realised it smelled like crap!

 

[WickedSick]

I realize that I can't add something new to the general, but I read an article somewhere in which one of the interviewed doctors said: " I support anything that will make people stop smoking." As for the health effects I am sure that we have all felt them almost immediately upond stopping smoking .

 

[barbee865]

All i can say is, I get up every morning and don't cough a bit, my truck and house smell mighty fine, and i don't get winded walking down the hall. As far as being healthier, we don't know for sure. But, it sure as hell can't be any worse for us.

 

[adamtheegreat]

Scientifically, we are not exactly sure. But personally, YES! My physical condition has boosted. It takes a lot longer for me fatigue when I'm running, and I can overall breath a lot better.

 

[Altaire Versailles]

all i know is i feel better in body, mind, and spirit. . you can listen to the crap on the 24 hour puke fest till your ears drop off. it comes down to the individual choice. our body's are the greatest health meter on the planet. it has a way to let us know if we are doing bad or good. providing we listen to what our bodies tell us. as a person who made all the wrong choices, i can tell you, i feel 100 times better at 53, than how i felt at 35. once i removed the tobacco from the equation, i feel i can go out on the ocean and go crab fishing again. a job i was barely able to do because i was a smoker. i am ready to eat my plate of razor blades for breakfast.. so for this individual i have no problem with vaping to quit smoking. the next logical step is to quit vaping as soon as possible. not because i'm scared of what a paid entertainer told me on tv, but because i don't want to trade 1 form of slavery for another. no matter how cool it is, and how many toys i could have if i wanted. if you read the posts from long term vapers most report no ill effects in upwards of 6 years. imagine what 6 yrs of tobacco can do to your body. the only reason why people have a problem with this, especially the FDA, Government, democrats, republicans, big tobacco,big pharma, and fox news, is if we all stop smoking, then there is the ordeal of finding the next group of people we are going to treat like crap.

if you vape and it gives you no problems by all means keep vaping. if you have a bad experience, then for gods sake stop vaping. it's ironic. a smoker worried about the side effects of something that contains upwards of 4000 less toxic chemicals. if no one thinks that's funny then i apologize. everyone has to learn to listen to what their bodies are telling them, any doubts at all?, see a doctor. not an idiot like me on one of these sites.

I totally hear you, and maybe part of my apprehension is knowing if something seems to be too good to be true it usually is...at least with cigarettes I could see the end result and if i ended up there somewhere down the line I could eat responsibility but I at least knew. I mean what if vaping makes your eyes glaze over or your legs develop a stabbing sensation or who knows, but its a cumulative thing. I guess I just don't like being the canary in the coal mine on something.