A new study has identified a protein that nicotine-free vape fluid increases in the lung, causing damage including oxidative stress, inflammation and breakdown of the blood vessels.

The research, published in the journal Microvascular Research demonstrates a range of damaging pathways when an in vitro model of the human lung was exposed to a common brand of nicotine-free e-cigarette.

E-cigarettes have become increasingly popular in recent years and are often seen as harmless alternatives to cigarette smoking. It is estimated that there are almost five million ‘vapers’ in the UK, compared to around 700,000 in 2012.

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[–] [email protected] 26 points 9 months ago (3 children)

I really wish these articles would be more clear about what kind of vaping they are talking about. Vaping weed, for example, likely has a different chemical composition but might pose similar or very different risks that the article never acknowledges.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 9 months ago (1 children)

Weed vapes are typically just extracts from the cannabis plant, so their chemical composition should be completely different from the liquids used in nicotine vapes.

[–] pureness 3 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

As another commentor mentioned, it would be great for these studies to include the relative harm to for example smoking cigarettes or as you mentioned vaping cannabis. Yes it is common sense anything but air in the lungs is bad, but how harmful?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 9 months ago

I've seen previous studies about the flavoring used, as well. Something about how it's a food flavoring only approved for eating, not for inhaling.

I don't think I've ever heard of nicotine itself being a major contributor.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 9 months ago (1 children)

Three vapes, all watermelon flavour, were purchased from an online retailer and contained different concentrations of nicotine: 0mg, 10mg and 20mg in a 2ml solution

[–] [email protected] 3 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) (3 children)

Where the fuck can I buy 2ml of 20mg liquid? Standard these days since the dawn of mods is 3mg or 6mg, back around 2012ish you could get 3mg, 6mg, 12mg, 18mg, or 24mg, 10 or 20mg has never been a standard. On top of that the smallest bottle I've seen sold is 5ml testers, who the fuck sells 2ml?!

Even salt nic, it's usually 25-50mg. 20mg salt nic would make sense but where the dick do I buy a 2ml bottle? That's barely a bottle at that point it's a damn vial, nobody sells that shit. Salt nic bottles are usuall all 30ml, never seen a 5ml, 60ml, or 120ml.

I'm gonna need this study to link me to the online retailer, because frankly I'm not sure I believe them.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) (1 children)

Probably a European pod they're often around 2ml. Maximum nicotine concentration here is 20mg/ml independent of buying a nicotine shot for mixing liquid yourself, or buying a ready to use flavoured one. Yuul responded to this limit by increasing it's wick size and effectively increasing nicotine levels per hit above the American levels (of course using up pods much faster is a welcome side effect).

Edit: just look at the top sellers here for example https://www.dampfalarm.de/E-Zigaretten/Pod-Systeme/?p=1

[–] [email protected] 2 points 9 months ago (1 children)

Ah, that's dispos for ya, you'll have to pry my mod from my cold dead hands! I still question the voracity of this study, I still question if they used some weird chinese juice that isn't manufactured as it should be. I'd be interested to see how it compares with commercial freebase nic made well and with mine I make at home.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) (1 children)

Yeah, sadly those have become the norm since they started the ridiculous vaping tax here in Germany. It started at 16ct/ml for everything that goes into a liquid independent of nicotine content (base, flavour concentrate, everything...) and its supposed to go up to 32ct/ml in 2026. This has greatly harmed the mod scene while strengthening the pod market. This was done for 'health reasons' making vaping less appealing for the youth, but everyone suspects the tobacco lobby influenced how the tax was set up, to profit their disposable businesses...

[–] [email protected] 1 points 9 months ago (1 children)

Yeah the tobacco lobby is pushing bullshit over here too with moderate success, not that bad yet though. Also big pharma is helping because of their interest in products like chantix. Can you guys buy base and make your own juice? It sounds a lot harder than it is assuming you can get the components.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) (1 children)

You can still get them but prices are pretty outrageous compared to before. As a result of that a lot of the smaller companies have died and a lot of the small independent neighbourhood vaping shops have closed.

I have just checked my bulk order from before the tax... I paid 30€ for 1l 50:50 base. Today you pay 35€ for 100ml of the same (same shop of course).

Edit: the irony of the whole thing is that it's now more economic to use high nicotine ready made liquids and to not use sub ohm coils to reduce liquid throughput... Great work lawmakers!

[–] [email protected] 1 points 9 months ago

Damn that sucks. It'd be real cool if some foreign company would sell base as "not for human consumption" like people do with bath salts and shit in the states.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago)

Those are standard strengths for freebase nicotine. Nicotine salt comes in different strengths. 50mg/ml and 35mg/ml are standard where I live in the US. Elfbars usually come in 40mg/ml.

[–] dfc09 1 points 9 months ago (1 children)

I've been to shops that'll keep keep nicotine concentrate around mix into the liquid if you want. They can also mix the 0mg variant in to reduce nicotine concentration. It's possible something like that happened.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 9 months ago

Hell I make my own juice, and I make 4mg, I know how solutions work, but if I were doing a scientific study I'd try to study with something you're likely to find in the real world, and more than one type of juice. And more than one flavor, for all we know this is caused by something in Flavor Art's watermelon flavor that could have been in all three watermelon juices, I'm still questioning their methodology.