The Difference between Tobacco derived Nicotine and Synthetic Nicotine

 As you may or may not know, nicotine is the mildly stimulating molecule that we become addicted to when we smoke cigarettes. While high concentrations of nicotine can be found in tobacco (8 – 14%), the addictive alkaloid can also be found in some other unsuspecting items from the Nightshade family of plants, albeit at much lower levels. Common food items such as tomato, potato, green pepper, and aubergine, as well as the leaves of the coca plant all contain traces of nicotine within them.

Though it may be a common misconception, in small quantities, nicotine doesn’t present any untoward dangers to your health. It’s the burning of tobacco materials and the thousands of carcinogenic materials and carbon monoxide that is released into your body every time you smoke, that is the real killer.

While nicotine might be the thing that gets you hooked to smoking, there are safer ways to consume it. By switching from smoking to vaping, carbon monoxide and tar are eliminated from the equation. Available in a range of flavours, the great thing about vaping e-liquid is that you can pick and choose your strength of nicotine. If you typically smoke a strong cigarette or rolling tobacco, an e-liquid with a top-end nicotine strength of 1.8% will be a like-for-like experience. From then on, each time you need to replace your e-liquid, you can opt for a lower strength of 1.2%, followed by 0.6% and finally 0% nicotine-free.

When it comes to what goes in your e-cigarette, your e-liquid will typically contain pharmaceutical grade nicotine, also known as ‘freebase’ nicotine, that has been extracted from tobacco via a chemical process to distil a final product that is up to 99.9% pure. This nicotine is then combined with a liquid concentrate of propylene glycol (PG) and/or vegetable glycerin, as well as further flavourings that enhance the taste and experience of the vape itself.