Sorry for the long post. I didn't start out to put all this in, but.....
Nic salts do 2 main things, as compared to freebase. The adjusted pH reduces the harshness, making higher nic content tolerable. It also dramatically increases the speed and efficiency in blood absorption. A third effect is that nicotine, when compounded with acids, is a more shelf stable product.
If you read the patent application by Pax Labs for Juul, you'll see that they tested about a half dozen different acid compound formulations vs. cigarettes, and did a pretty exhaustive study, including testing blood plasma nic levels over time, and satisfaction level surveys of participants. The goal was, of course, to replicate the smoking experience. Their test results showed that benzoate was the most effective acid. Here's their comparison chart of blood plasma nic levels over time. You can see that 4% benzoate (red line) is dramatically faster and higher than freebase (yellow).
View attachment 860773
Some may dismiss this as being overstated marketing by Juul. But Blu has been tested by 3rd parties. They use a lactate formula, and although the results are a little different, the overall curves are similar. Here's their chart (note that the time - x axis, is shorter). The top line is a cigarette, green is 25 mg salt, and yellow is 25 mg freebase.
View attachment 860775
Personally, I don't care for nic salts. I have no doubt that it gets into the bloodstream quicker, as I felt the same effect when making my own juice with nic salts. But a big part of the reason I continue to vape is for the throat hit, and salts remove that. I can see the benefit for those that want the nic, but only want the flavor of non-tobacco juices.
I don't believe nic is any more harmful than caffeine, and has many benefits in moderation. Studies show improved cognitive abilities, antioxidant properties, reduced brain cellular loss, and far lower incidence of Parkinson's Disease. You can look it up yourself, and there are many articles, but this is one of the first I found:
Nicotine, the Wonder Drug?
And believe it or not, there's not a single credible study -
ever - that proves
nicotine without combusted tobacco is addictive at all. I found this link when I first started researching it.
Nicotine Propaganda It's a good starting point, but I spent many hours beyond this searching for a conclusive study, and could find none. There were many studies done, but since have been rejected due to faulty methodology. Most found it impossible to get the mice/subjects addicted without the smoking aspect. This study, done in 2010 comes closest to actual proof. It involved genetically mutated mice. And while it showed some addictive markings, it also showed that the mice with modified genes no longer acted naturally in other respects, casting doubt on it being actual proof. And it included this statement comparing nic to other drugs:
"...comparatively miniscule withdrawal, no decreased sensitivity/escalating usage, only fractionally as addictive as opiates, alcohol, ........ As an addictive drug, it seems to stand alone in those respects."
https://www.researchgate.net/profil...588874000000/Changeux-2010-NatRevNeurosci.pdf
I believe this is why so many on this forum can gradually decrease nic, even down to zero, yet still find it difficult to quit vaping entirely. Yes, we're all different, but I know for myself, the act/feeling of inhalation is the strongest "addiction" I have. I've quit many times in my life, and was over the need for nic after a couple of days. But after taking millions of hits off of a cigarette over the decades, that's what my brain is programmed to want the most.
