The nicotine-free electronic cigarette is a genuine alternative to tobacco.
With this tool, it is entirely possible to control your consumption, your dependency, and therefore your tobacco withdrawal — and even to vape without nicotine.
Discover the dangers of nicotine and how a nicotine-free electronic cigarette works, on Le Vapoteur Discount.
What are the dangers of nicotine?
Whether a light or heavy smoker, the health dangers of nicotine are very real.
Nicotine is a chemical compound found in tobacco plants and belongs to the alkaloids family.
Originally used to repel garden pests, nicotine creates tobacco dependence in humans and reduces the stress associated with withdrawal. It binds in the body, particularly to nicotinic receptors.
According to tobacco specialist Bertrand Dautzenberg, nicotine would be more dangerous for a non-smoker, as they have fewer receptors than a smoker, which can cause nausea and vomiting.
Nevertheless, nicotine is still very toxic for those who are accustomed to smoking tobacco.
Health effects
Nicotine causes cardiovascular risks, meaning it accelerates heart rate and blood pressure.
It also causes neurological effects and can impair concentration and memory.
However, the main danger of nicotine is addiction. Dependence arises from the repetition of nicotine peaks, especially during adolescence, when the brain is not yet fully formed.
In young people, the brain builds synapses and nicotine changes the way they are formed during new learning experiences.
To be more precise, at the time when young people's brains are learning to manage stress, anger, frustration and so on, if this learning is built in the presence of this chemical compound, then the individual, when faced with these phenomena, will need nicotine to cope.
It is important to note that it is above all smoke produced by combustion that is lethal and can cause serious diseases such as cancer. Nicotine is primarily highly addictive. Its addictive potential is linked to the way it is absorbed.
It travels through the body following the same path as oxygen and therefore reaches the brain very quickly. This is precisely why electronic cigarettes are increasingly popular among smokers wishing to quit tobacco, as they effectively work in the same way without delivering any combustion.
Although smokers are aware of the risks associated with tobacco consumption, the same cannot be said for vaping products.
Indeed, the latter are less harmful than those produced by tobacco smoke, as combustion is excluded and replaced by high-temperature heating of the components, which are transformed into vapor.
Furthermore, the ingredients used in the manufacturing of e-liquids are components you will easily find in your everyday products.
Namely: propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, flavoring, additive, nicotine with and without.
However, the effects of vaping on health are still not fully understood.
It is entirely possible to vape e-cigarettes with or without nicotine to quit tobacco.
Electronic cigarette and nicotine: how does it work?
An electronic cigarette consists of 3 essential components for proper operation: a battery or accumulator, a clearomizer, and a coil.
Its operation is quite simple. Indeed, the battery supplies electricity expressed in volts to the coil, which in turn heats the e-liquid inside the clearomizer.
Simply press the battery switch button, then inhale the vapor through the clearomizer to use an e-cigarette.
This will heat the coil and the vapor can then be inhaled. The vapor created by drawing on this liquid will give you a different sensation from that produced by inhaling smoke from a traditional cigarette.
The scratching sensation at the back of the throat, also known as "throat hit", will vary depending on the nicotine dosage.
- Battery: equipped with a switch button, the battery capacity is expressed in mAh (milliampere/hour). The higher the mAh capacity, the less frequently the battery will need to be recharged. Depending on the clearomizer used, your coils will have a more or less powerful intensity range. The more powerful the coil, the more battery it will consume, since the power required to properly heat the coil will be higher, meaning the battery will be more heavily used than with a low-power coil.
- Clearomizer (Tank): the upper part of the electronic cigarette, it contains the tank and the coil. The battery is attached via a threaded fitting designed for this purpose. It also includes a drip tip (mouthpiece for inhaling vapor), and for some models an airflow (a lateral opening on the clearomizer that serves as an air intake for a more or less airy draw).
- Coil: it consists of cotton and one or more resistive wires that receive the electrical current directly from the battery, converting this current into a strong heat source that heats the liquid in the tank. Once the liquid is heated, during inhalation, the liquid is filtered through the cotton and you can pleasantly inhale the vapor.
Several electronic cigarettes are available on the market. We can mention disposable e-cigarettes (Puffs), tube-shaped ones, pods, and also box mods, which have a larger battery and are designed more for people seeking high vaping power.
Similarly, different draw types exist, namely indirect inhalation for a tight draw similar to a traditional cigarette, or direct inhalation for an airy draw, similar to a hookah-style draw.
It is possible to reduce nicotine consumption after heavy dependence by vaping nicotine-containing e-liquids, as various dosages exist, allowing for a gradual and gentle withdrawal.
Similarly, once the consumer is vaping a very low-nicotine e-liquid, they can switch to a nicotine-free e-liquid (0 mg/ml).
Nicotine dosages in e-liquids range from 3 mg/ml (low) to 18 mg/ml (high). 3 mg/ml and 6 mg/ml represent approximately 10 cigarettes per day; from 6 mg/ml to 12 mg/ml it is considered equivalent to 10 to 20 cigarettes per day; and finally from 12 mg/ml to 18 mg/ml, this equates to more than 20 cigarettes per day.
Legislation on the sale of nicotine
First of all, since 2016, the French Public Health Code has prohibited the sale of electronic cigarettes and vaping products (including nicotine-free e-liquids) to those under 18 years of age, just like the sale of tobacco (article L3513-5). In 2017, French law banned vaping in enclosed and public spaces as well as in the workplace.
Regarding the sale of nicotine, it is forbidden to sell a 10 ml bottle of e-liquid containing a nicotine level above 20 mg/ml. This is why all our 50ml e-liquid bottles are nicotine-free, and if you wish to add nicotine, simply purchase nicotine boosters as a supplement to adjust the nicotine level according to your needs.
Manufacturers of these nicotine-containing liquids are required, before (6 months) commercializing their products, to submit a notification file to the French National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety.
This file covers several points: composition, toxicological data, and the manufacturing process.
How to vape without nicotine?
A nicotine-free electronic cigarette is in reality an e-cigarette that is vaped using a nicotine-free e-liquid.
In this way, the vaper can purchase any e-cig, as long as the liquid used does not contain this addictive chemical compound.
For those who want to make their own custom e-liquid, they can do so thanks to DIY.
Vaping without nicotine poses no health risk and is not addictive, since this tobacco-derived compound is responsible for addiction.
Composition of a nicotine and nicotine-free e-liquid
Nicotine-containing e-liquids are composed most of the time of propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, food-grade flavorings, and nicotine. Some liquids nevertheless contain a few additional additives.
Propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin help fix the aromas and release vapor to produce sensations similar to those of a traditional cigarette.
Their quantities are generally balanced at 50-50, though not always.
By making the mixture fluid when combined with nicotine, propylene glycol enhances the throat hit, a sensation highly sought after by vapers. On its side, vegetable glycerin thickens the liquid and allows it to produce vapor.
Food-grade flavorings are of natural or synthetic origin and represent approximately 10 to 15% of the e-liquid mixture.
There are fruity, menthol, and classic tobacco-flavored ones.
Nicotine-free e-liquids have the same ingredients apart from nicotine, obviously.
Why vape without nicotine?
The benefit of vaping a nicotine-free e-liquid is to stop tobacco addiction and protect one's health from its negative effects. However, it is advisable to go through the various nicotine dosage levels found in standard e-liquids in order to achieve an effective and gradual withdrawal, as an abrupt cessation could have the opposite effect and lead to a relapse in tobacco consumption.
Nicotine-free e-liquids do not provide a throat hit, as this sensation is produced mainly by the nicotine dosage.
The higher the dosage, the more prominent the scratching sensation at the back of the throat will be. This is why e-liquids containing no trace of nicotine are not recommended at the start of tobacco withdrawal.
Once the vaper is using e-liquids with 3 mg/ml of nicotine, they can then move towards a nicotine-free e-liquid, which will allow them to break free from their addiction while keeping the hand-to-mouth gesture, a habit that smokers find hard to give up.
As for non-smokers who wish to try vaping, although it is not necessarily recommended, or former smokers who have completed their withdrawal, this nicotine-free vaping alternative is a great way to continue their journey with the electronic cigarette without any health risk.
Do you need a specific e-cigarette?
Although all electronic cigarettes allow you to vape a nicotine-free e-liquid, there are a few criteria to consider when choosing one that suits each vaper, whether beginner or experienced.
The consumer's profile, the power, the battery life, the device's capabilities and performance, and the desired draw type are the most important parameters to consider when choosing your e-cig.
Consumer profile
The consumer's profile — that is, whether they are a light smoker, a heavy smoker, a non-smoker, or a beginner or rather experienced vaper — is the most important criterion.
Indeed, for light smokers or beginner vapers, tube-style electronic cigarettes or pods will be the most suitable.
Easy to use, they have very few settings.
On the contrary, heavy smokers who are expert vapers and have already been vaping for several years can turn to box-style electronic cigarettes, which offer greater battery life and more precise, customizable settings.
Battery life
Using an electronic cigarette with a long battery life allows you to vape for more hours without necessarily needing to recharge the battery.
The higher the milliampere/hour (mAh) figure, the greater the battery life of the e-cigarette.
Take into account the power of your coil, as it will indicate the power at which you should set your battery; so if you have a high power setting, your battery will drain faster than if you have a low power setting.
For light vapers, an integrated battery of at least 2000 mAh will be sufficient; for average vapers, 3500 mAh should be enough; and finally, if you have a removable battery device, you will be looking at a minimum of 6000 mAh with a dual-battery setup.
Power
The power, expressed in watts (W), of an e-cigarette depends mainly on the vaping style.
The higher it is, the more prominent the throat tingling sensation will be and the airier the draw. When first starting out in the world of vaping, it is strongly advised not to exceed 100 watts.
An expert vaper can use whatever power they wish depending on what they are looking for. Bear in mind that the tingling sensation in the throat is a balance between nicotine and power, so if you are a beginner, combining high power with a high nicotine level is not necessarily advisable.
Draw type
The draw type can be indirect (MTL) or direct (DL).
An indirect inhalation provides a tight draw, meaning it will most closely replicate the sensation produced by tobacco cigarette smoke.
A direct or sub-ohm inhalation, on the contrary, allows for an airy and abundant draw. The vapor cloud will therefore be larger and denser.
The best electronic cigarettes for vaping without nicotine
You want to quit smoking tobacco or try vaping without nicotine, but you don't know which e-cigarette to turn to. Since it is never easy to navigate through so many choices, the experts at Le Vapoteur Discount have selected the best electronic cigarettes for vaping without nicotine, for beginners and experienced vapers alike.
Preferably, if you want to feel a throat hit sensation without nicotine, power will be your best alternative, so do not hesitate to look for models offering high power output.
If you are a beginner and are not sure whether vaping suits you, choose an electronic cigarette with an intermediate draw; this will allow you to vape lightly or heavily, test different power levels, and make your choice!
Don't forget, for vaping power it is the coil that will give you this information, so before choosing a model, look at the different power ranges available for your settings!
Nicotine-free e-cigarette for beginners
- Kit Ego Aio – Joyetech
- Kit PockeX Pocket Aio – Aspire
- Kit Q16 – Justfog
- Kit Zlide Tube – Innokin
- Kit Doric 20W – Voopoo
Nicotine-free e-cigarette for experienced vapers
- Pod Drag S – Voopoo
- Kit Kroma R – Innokin
- Kit Zelos X – Aspire
- Kit Luxe X 80 2500 mAh – Vaporesso
- Kit iStick T80 – Eleaf
Nicotine-free e-cigarette for experts
- Kit Dot Aio V2 – DotMod
- Kit Obelisk 120 Z Tank – Geek Vape
- Kit Aegis Max 2 – Geek Vape
- Kit Gen 80S – Vaporesso
- Kit Gen S – Vaporesso
