do we know approximately what percentage of nicotine is absorbed by the lungs?

[Rob Vector]

I was thinking about how to quantify how much nicotine I am taking in per day. I'm assuming that since there is a visible cloud of vapor when I exhale, my lungs don't absorb 100 % of the nicotine in the juice? am i wrong?

or maybe a simpler way of asking what i'm trying to find out: if I vape between 2-3ml of 5mg juice per day, how much nicotine am I consuming per day?

if it is 100% and I'm consuming 10-15mg of nicotine per day, is that an amount to be concerned with? am I vaping too much?

 

[filter]

i think you absorb between 2 and 5% of the nicotine you vape, depending on the juice, the equipment, the type of hits and the person. but i could be wrong.

 

[bk78]

I would also like this confirmed.

 

[Baditude]

Technically, the nicotine in vapor is absorbed in the mouth and throat, not in the lungs.

Other than that, I can't give you a percentage that is absorbed by the body from vapor.

 

[Boden]

This might help

Nicotrol Inhaler Official FDA information, side effects and uses.

 

[bk78]

Thanks Boden

 

[filter]

that link suggests 40% but i dont think thats accurate. you absorb less than 10% of the nicotine in a cigarette and i think ecigs are even lower.

 

[FleetFoxes]

BIOAVAILABIlTY!

 

[YKruss]

According to this study, http://clearstream.flavourart.it/site/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/CSA_ItaEng.pdf,

Nicotine
Among all, the most interesting aspects
we observed was that nicotine was not detected in air
during the e-smoking session, although liquids used
for experiments contained it.

 

[yzer]

My info is based on anecdotal evidence but it's my evidence experienced during the transition from smoking to vaping. I use a 3.7V mod with LR cartos.

The nasal passages do the best job of absorbing nicotine from vapor, especially during a slow exhale. The mouth and throat are a second best at absorption and the lungs are the least effective at drawing nicotine from vapor.

I calculated the amount nicotine contained by my favorite brand at 24 mg nicotine per day. I needed over twice that amount (50 mg nicotine per day) contained in vapor to feel somewhat comfortable for the first few weeks. For me, vaping is about half as efficient at delivering a given amount of nicotine as smoking.

 

[Boden]

that link suggests 40% but i dont think thats accurate. you absorb less than 10% of the nicotine in a cigarette and i think ecigs are even lower.

Keep reading. Most of the nic in a cig is destroyed in the combustion process. With vaping none is destroyed.

"Absorption

Most of the nicotine released from the Nicotrol Inhaler is deposited in the mouth. Only a fraction of the dose released, less than 5%, reaches the lower respiratory tract. An intensive inhalation regimen (80 deep inhalations over 20 minutes) releases on the average 4 mg of the nicotine content of each cartridge of which about 2 mg is systemically absorbed."

"Elimination

About 10% of the nicotine absorbed is excreted unchanged in the urine. This may be increased to up to 30% with high urine flow rates and urinary acidification below pH 5. The average plasma clearance is about 1.2 L/min in a healthy adult smoker. The apparent elimination half-life of nicotine is 1 to 2 hours."

That would work out to ~ 15-18% from 1ml of 10mg/ml solution or 1.5-1.8mg/ml

 

[Boden]

I was thinking about how to quantify how much nicotine I am taking in per day. I'm assuming that since there is a visible cloud of vapor when I exhale, my lungs don't absorb 100 % of the nicotine in the juice? am i wrong?

or maybe a simpler way of asking what i'm trying to find out: if I vape between 2-3ml of 5mg juice per day, how much nicotine am I consuming per day?

if it is 100% and I'm consuming 10-15mg of nicotine per day, is that an amount to be concerned with? am I vaping too much?

Lets say it's 18% absorption (if you don't drink much water) at 2-3ml of juice a day you'd be absorbing ~1.8-2.7mg which is about the same as ~4 cigs. If this math is correct (I'm pretty sure it's close) I wouldn't worry much.

 

[Boden]

Just for fun I ramped this up to the average I've seen around here for heavy smokers who switched to vaping 3ml of 24mg/ml per day works out to 12.96mg absorbed or about 15 cigs. Which seems about right.