Are you worried about being around a person who is vaping, using an e cigarette or a personal vaporizer? Are you concerned that you are breathing in second-hand smoke and are in danger the same way you are when a person is smoking a cigarette around you? Now you can have a clear understanding of what you are being exposed to, and put to rest the concerns that second-hand vapor poses the same health risks as smoke.  Vapor produced by a personal vaporizer is not smoke, and has nearly none of the same ingredients as smoke.  In fact, it contains none of the carcinogens involved in smoke because it is not the product of something being burned.  It is in fact vaporized liquid, the same kind of vapor that is produced when you put a pot of water on a stove and apply heat to it.  It is produced when a heating element in the form of a battery is applied to a specific amount of a liquid known as e juice.  E juice is a blend of specific ingredients that are taken in to the body by breathing them into the lungs, the same way that an inhaler is used when a person is suffering an asthma attack.

Now that we have established that vapor is not smoke and contains none of the harmful carcinogens that smoke contains, we need to clarify exactly what is in e juice.  This is important to understand because if you are exposed to the vapor being expelled by a person who is vaping near you, you can understand exactly what you are breathing.  There is nothing additional that is added to the vapor between the point of the person inhaling it and expelling it, so the ingredients of the e liquid are all that you are being exposed to, nothing more, nothing less.

E juices contain about 5 ingredients, and all reputable e liquid manufacturers list all ingredients used in the blend on the label.  Additionally, all reputable e juice manufacturers use only food grade or pharmaceutical grade ingredients, thus making the blend contain nothing that isn’t used in foods we all eat or medicine we all take.  The ingredients of e liquid are as follows:

1. VG (Vegetable Glycerin)This is the base of e liquids and is contained in many foods we all eat or personal products we all use.  It is used in order to act as a mechanism to transfer the flavorings and nicotine to the lungs.  It is the majority of the vapor that is produced when the heating element is applied to the liquid, making up about 80% -90% of the liquid.
2. PG (Propylene glycol) This is an ingredient that is commonly mixed with VG in order to produce a better and thicker vapor.  It is commonly used as a solvent and is the fase of the liquid used in fog machines.  It can sometimes cause an allergic reaction or dry a person’s throat, so it is generally used sparingly.
3. Flavorings.  About 10% – 20% of e liquids are flavorings that are food grade and are commonly found in baking and cooking products.  All flavorings are safe to consume and pose no health risk whatsoever.
4. Nicotine.  Somewhere between 0%-2.4% of the e liquid is pharmaceutical grade nicotine.  Not all e liquids contain nicotine, and as a matter of fact the majority of e liquids sold contain no nicotine at all.
5. Distilled water.  Sometimes used to thin the e liquid.  Poses absolutely no health risk.

Understanding the ingredients of e liquids puts it into perspective as far as the dangers they pose to people’s health when they are vaporized and breathed in.  The makeups of e liquids is the same as the foods we eat and the medicines we take.  There is no additional dangers associated with the carcinogens that are involved in smoking because there is no smoke involved.  Nothing is being burned and therefor there is no health risk associated with smoke.