CAN VAPING CAUSE A NICOTINE OVERDOSE?
Vaping can cause a nicotine overdose, but in the UK the maximum available strength for retail e-liquids is a 2.0% strength. This is 20mg nicotine per ml of liquid, indicating that you would need to use over 50 SMOKO E-Cigarette refills to get close to consuming 50mg of nicotine (approaching the deadly dose) but you will likely experience nicotine poisoning symptoms way before this which will prevent you consuming more.
INTRODUCTION
It is fact that smoking increases the risk of getting more than fifty different serious health conditions and when we talk about cigarettes, nicotine is the chemical that is more than likely always mentioned.
Nicotine has always been closely linked with smoking as it is the highly addictive chemical that is found in cigarettes. However, it is not the nicotine that can kill you but rather the 4,000 other chemicals and 50 known carcinogens that are found in each cigarette that you smoke.
The chemical nicotine speeds up the central nervous system to increase neural activity in the brain, otherwise known as a stimulant. Nicotine is a simulant just like caffeine that is found in your cup of tea or coffee. This chemical receives bad press due to its connection with cigarettes and yes there are an abundance of myths that are are still circulating. Yes, nicotine can raise blood pressure and raise your heart rate, but the substance itself has been proven NOT to kill you.
Presently, research is under way in the US to help prove that nicotine may be good for slowing the aging process of the brain and retaining memory.
Recently, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said:
“It is also now widely recognized that, though it is the nicotine that causes dependence, tobacco products (which can be characterized as particularly ‘dirty’ drug delivery devices) are responsible for the vast majority of the damage to health.”
It's highly unlikely that you will ever overdose on nicotine. It is nearly impossible to do so as we will explain in greater depth in this article.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF NICOTINE POISONING?
The symptoms of nicotine poisoning depend on the amount you inhale and there are a number of symptoms that you can look for when you think you have overdosed on nicotine poisoning.
These symptoms can start to occur within the first fifteen minutes to an hour of being exposed to high amounts of the chemical.
Nausea and vomiting
Stomach ache and loss of appetite
Increased heart rate and blood pressure
Headache
Mouth-watering
Quick, heavy breathing
Dizziness or tremors
Confusion and anxiety
Within thirty minutes to four hours later, symptoms can shift and also include:
Shallow breathing
Slower heartbeat and blood pressure
Extreme fatigue
Weakness, slow reflexes, or unable to control muscles
Pale skin
In some very extreme cases when you have inhaled high nicotine levels, symptoms can include:
Seizures
Breathing difficulties
Respiratory failure
Here are SMOKO, we would advise that if you experience any of these symptoms, please seek medical advice (call 999 UK)
WHAT CAUSES NIC SICK?
In layman's terms, nic sick (nicotine sickness) refers to non-specific symptoms of overdosing with nicotine. Poisoning of this kind only occurs when nicotine begins to show more toxic effects.
The CDC (Centre for Disease Control) state that 50 to 60 milligrams of nicotine is a deadly dose for an adult who weighs around 150 pounds (10 stone, 7 pounds). But the easiest way to calculate this is to work out how much nicotine you’d actually have to vaporise in the space of 30 minutes.
If you decide to select another brand of electronic cigarettes other than SMOKO, then please check the measurements that they place on their refills:
1 SMOKO e cigarette refill = 1ml of nicotine
1 SMOKO vape refill = 2ml of nicotine
This would mean that you would need to inhale 50 e-cigarette refills or 25 Vape refills in the space of 30 minutes to get anywhere close to dangerous levels of nicotine. Realistically, this isn’t going to happen as your body will let you know way before you get to that stage.
Everyone’s body has a way of telling you that it has had enough nicotine (making you feel light headed and nauseous). So after having symptoms like these, the likelihood of you wanting to inhale more of your e-cigarette is very much slim to none.
A nicotine overdose is most commonly known with regards to the younger cigarette smoker, who are inexperienced with the use of tobacco.
TYPES OF POISONS AND CHEMICALS IN CIGARETTES
Smoking tobacco consists of over 4,000 other chemicals (other than nicotine) and 50 known carcinogens. At least 69 of these chemicals are known to cause cancer and many are toxic.
Other than in cigarettes, many of these chemicals are also found in consumer products around the house/garage and they come with highlighted warning labels.
While you are warned about the danger of the poisons in these products, there is no such warning for the chemicals in a cigarette.
Here are a few of the chemicals which are found in tobacco smoke:
Acetone—found in nail polish remover
Acetic acid—an ingredient in hair dye
Ammonia—a common household cleaner
Arsenic—used in rat poison
Benzene—found in rubber cement and petrol
Butane—used in lighter fluid
Cadmium—active component in battery acid
Carbon monoxide—released in car exhaust fumes
Formaldehyde—embalming fluid
Hexamine—found in barbecue lighter fluid
Lead—used in batteries
Naphthalene—an ingredient in mothballs
Methanol—a main component in rocket fuel
Tar—material used for paving roads
Toluene—used to manufacture paint
It is important to note that e-cigarettes DO NOT CONTAIN any of these or the other 4,000 chemicals that are found in traditional cigarettes.
CAN YOU GET NICOTINE POISONING BY VAPING?
As discussed before, being able to get nicotine poisoning is nearly impossible, especially if you use an e-cigarette like SMOKO’s. Our E-Cigarettes are prefilled with the e-liquid to make it easier and safer for you the customer.
If you do manage to get nicotine poisoning through ingesting large quantities of e-liquids , you will more than likely be given Activated Charcoal at A&E to help absorb the chemicals and this is commonly taken by mouth to treat poisonings.
This drug should be given within the first hour after inhaling all the nicotine as it does not seem to be beneficial if taken after two hours.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU’RE VAPING
Smoking and vaping both involve heating a substance and inhaling the resulting fumes. With traditional cigarettes, you inhale smoke from burning tobacco. With vaping, your device heats up an e-liquid (also called vape juice) until it turns into a vapor that you inhale.
“Vaping is a delivery system similar to a nebulizer, which people with asthma or other lung conditions may be familiar with,” says Broderick. “A nebulizer turns liquid medicine into a mist that patients breathe in. It’s a highly effective way of delivering medicine to the lungs”, according to Hopkins Medicine
THE RISKS OF INGESTING NICOTINE
In an E-Cigarette, the e-liquid (or vape juice) contains the flavour, and this is what is vapourised in your device. When you smoke an e-cigarette you inhale vapor which consists of 4 ingredients:
Propylene Glycol and Vegetable Glycerine (ingredients found in chewing gum, candy, ice cream, cake mixes and soft drinks), Food flavouring (found in most of our food we now eat) and nicotine – if included (due to its addictive nature, is the only reason that we smoke).
The only chemical that is in both cigarettes and e-cigarettes is nicotine, and this cannot normally harm you.
RISKS OF GETTING NICOTINE ON YOUR SKIN
If you order a SMOKO product then there is no risk of being able to get nicotine on the skin as all of our E-Cigarettes are prefilled and ready to use – no messing about. Unlike other larger e-cigarettes and vape mod that are prone to leaking and are messy to refill, the chance of getting nicotine on your skin using a SMOKO product is very slim as the cartridges are not easily broken. This is why we prefer to sell pre filled refills as we feel they are much safer for the consumer.
If you are vaping juices that contain liquid nicotine, please be aware that if the cartridge is broken, then nicotine can pass through the skin.
WHAT TO DO IF YOU SUSPECT A NICOTINE OVERDOSE
As we discussed earlier, having a nicotine overdose from vaping an e-cigarette is nearly impossible, but if you do suspect that you have inhaled too much nicotine within a one hour period, then you should stop vaping, drink lots of water and if you are still feeling nauseous, should seek medical advice.
NICOTINE OVERDOSING AND VAPING - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW - CONCLUSION
We want to deliver all the facts on smoking to the people who visit our site and let them make their own decision.
It is a known and proven fact that if you smoke cigarettes, you increase the risk of causing long term medical conditions like stroke, heart attacks, respiratory problems and cancers. When you inhale tobacco smoke, you are breathing in over 4,000 poisonous chemicals and 50 carcinogens.
Nicotine is the known chemical in cigarettes and yes, it is an addictive substance. However, nicotine within pre-filled vaping products like SMOKO and Nicotine Replacement Therapy poses the least minimal risk to you and limits the risk of nicotine poisoning.
This is why you are able to purchase products which contain nicotine, such as e – cigarettes and Nicotine Replacement Therapy products (NRT), which are designed to help you stop smoking.
If after reading this article, you feel that you have the determination and drive to kick the habit of smoking, why not try one of our e-cigarette or VAPE starter kits.
