The Benefit of Nicotine Salts

-Authored by Randi Sprintis

One of the greatest parts about the vape industry is the fact that it’s constantly reinventing itself. There are innovative and cutting-edge ideas that will consistently appear out of nowhere. If you look at the way the vape device alone has changed and expanded, you can see how the industry is constantly transforming into something new. Nicotine salts are part of that transformation. If you’ve been mingling around in the vape world for a while, you may have heard about nicotine salts and their increasing popularity. If you’re curious to learn more, you’ve come to the right place. Below we explain what nicotine salts are and their potential benefits.

What are Nicotine Salts?

In order to understand what nicotine salts are, it’s important to understand the current and most common form of nicotine. The form of nicotine that’s in the majority of the e-juices that you purchase is referred to as “freebase nicotine”. Freebase nicotine goes through a process of utilizing ammonia to strip away protons to transform into its purest form. It’s this solution of nicotine that is added to e-juices that you’ve been enjoying ever since your first vaping experience. It is also this formula of nicotine, freebase nicotine, that is found in many of the cigarette replacement products like gums, candies, sprays, and patches. So, if freebase nicotine is basically the finest, purest form of nicotine out there, why would you want to mess with it? Leave it up to the vape moguls and entrepreneurs to figure out a new and exciting way to experience vaping through a simple twist in chemistry.

Nicotine salts actually reflect same exact nicotine chemical breakdown that is found in a natural tobacco leaf and is reported to be more stable than the freebase form of nicotine. Of course, this discovery didn’t happen overnight. Companies are still trying to find the perfect formula of nicotine salts to add to e-juice. They also wanted to offer ex-smokers a similar but advanced version of a “throat hit” that they used to get with cigarettes. Turns out, their answer lies with benzoic acid. Basically, adding benzoic acid to the nicotine salt formula lowers both pH levels and alkalinity in the process. This means that nicotine salts can now burn at much lower temperatures and offer a much smoother vaping experience.

How Are Nicotine Salts Beneficial?

• Better nicotine blood absorption: Since nicotine salts are a representation of nicotine in its most natural state, your body will absorb it faster. For those trying to quit smoking, getting a nicotine fix faster can mean a lot.
• Doesn’t mess with your flavor: While freebase nicotine that’s commonly used in e-liquid can have an effect on the flavor, nicotine salts have zero effect. This means you have smoother, cleaner, and more flavorful hits.
• More Satisfaction: At the end of the day, as an ex-smoker, the satisfying experience from nicotine salts is much more emphasized than it is from freebase nicotine products. Because nicotine salts are more satisfying, you’re less likely to return to your former life as a smoker.
• More Discreet: Because nicotine salts are mainly there for a satisfying fix, they’re mainly packaged in small and convenient devices.  You don’t need to carry around a box mod or huge sub-ohm tank around. Nicotine salts are cheaper and come in a more discreet form.