It's possible to develop sensitivities to flavouring compounds, which really fucking sucks because it has happened to me.
This is more likely to happen to you if you:
-
Are exposed to too much at once by doing things like tasting undiluted flavour concentrates, not washing/rinsing any spills straight away, using individual flavours at really high percentages or combining multiple flavours that contain the same compounds (vanilla is a big one to watch for)
-
Are already prone to sensitivities/allergies, eczema/contact dermatitis or are asthmatic
Symptoms of sensitivities vary depending on the individual flavour compounds but can be any (not necessarily all) of the following:
- Swollen/inflamed gums (red or bloodshot)
- Sores in the mouth (anywhere)
- Sore throat
- Chest pain/tightness
- Receding gums if 1 OR 2 happens and you don't notice and STOP, it's basically like having gum disease
- Swollen taste buds (tongue will feel dry or gritty/lumpy)
Symptoms can happen instantly (especially 3, 4 and 6) or can slowly appear the more you vape (minutes to hours).
To avoid these problems:
- NEVER taste flavour concentrates undiluted
- ALWAYS single flavour test new flavours
- ALWAYS check your gums/mouth before and after vaping an SFT to check for changes/symptoms
- ALWAYS rinse and wash your skin immediately after any spills
- AVOID high amounts of similar flavours in combination, if they smell similar or like they contain similar flavourings try to cut them out or reduce the percentages (vanilla is the biggest offender here)
- TRY not to vape with a dry mouth, saliva is protective
Three big ones to watch out for are:
Vanilla: Custards, cheesecakes, cookies, (ice) creams, bakeries in general
Acetyl pyrazine: bakeries, biscuits, cakes, tobaccos
Limonene: lemon, lime, orange, other citrus
Geraniol: lemongrass
Tips:
If you have or develop a sensitivity to vanilla it could be "vanillin" or "ethyl vanillin". These can be bought individually from TFA so you can check which you're having issues with. Unfortunately most vanilla flavours contain both in varying amounts so you would have to use the individual ones to add vanilla notes and cut out a lot of concentrates.
Lemon: some lemon flavours use geraniol (lemongrass) for the lemon note. If you're having issues with lemons try Zesty Lemongrass from Molinberry as an alternative, or just a different lemon. Likewise if you're aiming for lemongrass but have a geraniol sensitivity try a lemon instead.
P.S. If you REALLY don't want to SFT just check yourself after vaping a new mix. The gums are important to check because you may not feel any discomfort but if it goes on too long the damage can be permanent or require surgery to fix (just like regular gum disease).
Stay safe mixers, cheers.
I feel this post. I've said before that when I have bakery flavored e-juice I noticed my mouth has some kind of reaction. Doing a little digging it's AP that does something to me. Also, peach juicy. When I first tried it it was like a little scratch in my throat. I put it aside and forgot about it for a while. About a year later having forgotten all about it I mixed up a few juices with it in it. It started out as that throat tickle/scratch. I pushed on and went on to a sore tongue and gums and then next thing I knew my throat had closed up almost entirely. It took a few days of Benadryl to get the reaction to go down. I'm allergic to all things with lavender also. I definitely did not have allergies as a kid so getting older is to blame.
Cinnamons deff mess me up and i get that tight chest feeling
I havehad side effects since i started vaping, like a dry, swollen scabbed up nose - turns out it was Liquid nicotinewholesale's nicotine
I still get minor side effects from some flavors too though so i stopped doing lung hits and vape kind of like its a cigar, your mouth and tongue actually do a great job at absorbing nicotine
you can also add linalool to your offender list, it's used in peach flavoring namely TPA juicy peach and causes contact dermatitis in some people
- hand shoots up from the back of the class *
What does SFT stand for?
TIA~
Hm... I'll have to do an experiment... For science of course. I had some chest tightness that I thought was from sleeping weird but coincidence or not I was vaping what I consider the best custard I'd ever made. Had vanilla custard obviously but also had AP. Going to vape it tomorrow and see if there's any correlation.
Funny how everyone now is tight chested in the comments lol ummm what about nic? Doesn't that give ya throaty hit lol I'm not here to argue or debate I'm just observing. Aren't we using these flavours like in a minute amount? Obviously inhaling stuff into our lungs is never a good idea according to life and biology but we do it. Carry on.
Good advice.
But, reading this post has kicked my hypochondriac senses into overdrive. lol
You'll be fine. Just worth being vigilant. Plus if you do have a sensitivity to something it's better to find out doing DIY than after spending a fortune on premade juice! Saves you money and you have more of a chance of figuring out what it is!
Well the paranoia has sub sided (I think) and I have been STFing all of my flavors.
I've tried Cap Blueberry (as low as 1%) a couple times and I keep get the a throat tightness that lingers for a couple hours, but feel fine other wise. Looking at the SDS, I'm wondering if I might be getting the throat tightness form the Ethyl Alcohol , because Juicy peach has Ethyl butyrate in it's SDS... I'm not a chemist, but looking around on line, being as they are both part of the Ethyl Group makes me wonder...
Edit I take that back, It might be effecting my tongue. As when I switch to a one of my normal vapes, I can feel the nicotine hit my throat harder and I can feel the same throat hit sensation in the middle to back of my my tongue...