what is exactly in e-juice?

[tami]

ok, we all know there is PG/VG, nicotine and flavorings. But what else?

I read they also add something called "ethyl maltol", a sweetener to my understanding. How bad is that stuff for constant inhaling? Also, I read it is also used to create perfumes. Is it ethyl maltol that gives e-juices that "perfume" smell and tatse?

Another question: I read they also add alcoholic beverages (like cognac for example) to produce throat hit. Is it true? Isn't it bad to inhale alcohol? How do we know for sure what they put in our e-juices? Especially the smaller companies or even individuals who sell their creations on these forums? Is there any control over these products, does anybody ever test what are we actually inhaling?

And the last question: do e-juices with coffee contain caffeine?

 

[Zal42]

A general comment to address several of your questions at once: everything else is well studied, but the flavorings we use are food flavorings and have only been tested for safety with ingestion, not inhalation. We simply don't know what the long-term effects of most of these substance are. We are taking a risk. In my opinion, the risk is orders of magnitude below the known risks of smoking, but I have no scientific reason for me to believe this, merely anectodal and ancillary evidence (it has improved my short-term health).

I read they also add something called "ethyl maltol"

It's a commonly used flavor enhancer. It's not a sweetener per se, but it brings the sweet out in other foods and itself tastes a bit sugary/carmelly.

Many flavorings are also used in perfumes. This has always been so, so much that developing flavorings and scents are really the same field and done by the same companies. Our sense of taste and of scent are closely related. That the same ingredients are often used in both means nothing in terms of safety.

I read they also add alcoholic beverages (like cognac for example) to produce throat hit. Is it true? Isn't it bad to inhale alcohol?

Some juices might include alcoholic beverages to create a taste like alcoholic beverages, but I think it makes a better juice if you use the flavorings instead of the actual booze. For throat hit, if a commercial manufacturer were to use alcohol, they'd more likely use pure grain alcohol to avoid adding flavor. You can taste when alcohol is in a juice, and I've encountered only a couple amongst the many juices I've tried. As to safety, there appears to be no health issues inhaling alcohol fumes at these dosages. In very high amounts, alcohol fumes can cause hypoxia -- but the amount needed is so high that people would find it extremely unpleasant.

How do we know for sure what they put in our e-juices? Especially the smaller companies or even individuals who sell their creations on these forums? Is there any control over these products, does anybody ever test what are we actually inhaling?

We have to take their word for it, generally. There may exist companies who get their juices tested by an independent lab, but there isn't a large demand for this. There is little-to-no governmental oversight in the form of analysis and inspections, but this is also true for a large percentage of other things you use and ingest every day.

And the last question: do e-juices with coffee contain caffeine?

They might, I suppose, but it doesn't matter for a couple of reasons. First, caffeine doesn't vaporize at anywhere near the temperatures vaping happens at. Second, the amounts would be so tiny that they can be easily ignored. You can't make a juice intentionally caffeinated so as to get the effects of caffeine when vaping it, partly because of temperature and partly because you couldn't physically include enough caffeine to get a high enough dose.