When you read about vaping online, “throat hit” is a term that you’re going to see regularly. That’s because throat hit is something that’s core to the vaping experience and has a strong influence over how satisfying you perceive an e-cigarette to be – especially when you’re new to vaping and are still in the process of transitioning to a completely tobacco-free lifestyle.
Because throat hit is so important to the quality of your vaping experience, it’s something that you’ll want to fully understand before you go to a vape shop like V2 Cigs UK and start stocking up on vaping hardware and e-liquid. You might be the type of vaper who wants a more assertive throat hit – or perhaps you prefer things a bit on the smoother side. Your preferences will influence the type of vape gear that you should buy, and in this article, we’re going to explain the details. Here is everything you ever wanted to know about throat hit.
What Is Throat Hit?
Throat hit is the sensation that you feel in your throat and in the back of your mouth when you inhale nicotine. It’s actually a form of irritation caused by the nicotine and the smoke, and it’s one of the reasons why you probably coughed when you smoked a cigarette for the first time. It’s also one of the reasons why some of the world’s governments are trying to ban – or have already banned – menthol cigarettes. Menthol numbs the throat, thus making it easier for new smokers to initiate nicotine use. Without menthol, some people might try cigarettes for the first time, cough violently and never smoke again.
The fact that you’re reading this article, though, means you made it through the initial coughing and continued to smoke. Along the way, throat hit changed from an irritation to something that you actually enjoyed and anticipated. You’ve probably especially grown to love that sensation in your throat when you light up after going without a cigarette for several hours.
When people talk about throat hit in vaping, they’re talking about replicating the sensation that they feel when smoking. Some people find it difficult to derive any real sense of satisfaction from vaping if they don’t feel an assertive throat hit, and that’s why choosing the right e-liquid and vaping equipment for your needs is so important. While two different e-liquids may deliver the same amount of nicotine to your body, using those e-liquids could feel entirely different from the standpoint of throat hit.
Flavour Is a Major Influence on an E-Liquid’s Throat Hit
So, why is it that two e-liquids with the same nicotine strength can be so different in terms of throat hit? Mostly, it depends on the flavouring compounds and additives used in those e-liquids. As you choose the e-liquid flavours that you want to try, these are the things you should keep in mind if throat hit is a priority for you.
- In general, an e-liquid with a savory flavor profile such as tobacco will produce a stronger throat hit than one with a sweet flavor profile. That’s because sweet e-liquids often include the sweetener sucralose, which tends to reduce throat hit.
- Fruit-and-ice and candy-and-ice flavors are extremely popular in the vaping industry today. An e-liquid with one of those flavor profiles will contain a small amount of menthol that adds a touch of coolness without altering the e-liquid’s overall flavor. You’ll find that this type of e-liquid produces a very muted throat hit.
- A few e-liquids use flavoring compounds set in grain alcohol. An e-liquid that uses alcohol-based flavors will tend to have a hotter and scratchier throat hit, which some people enjoy.
What Are Some Other Factors That Contribute to a Strong or Weak Throat Hit?
When you’re comparing two e-liquids that have the same nicotine strength, the flavour profiles of those e-liquids will be the biggest influence on throat hit. Flavour, however, isn’t the only factor contributing to a strong or weak throat hit. Here are some of the other things you should consider as you determine your ideal vaping setup.
- Nicotine strength is, by far, the biggest influence on an e-liquid’s throat hit. A higher-strength e-liquid will always produce a stronger throat hit.
- The type of nicotine used in an e-liquid will also influence its throat hit. If the nicotine strength is the same, you’ll find that a freebase nicotine e-liquid will produce a more assertive throat hit, while a nicotine salt e-liquid will be smoother.
- The inhaling style that you use when vaping will influence throat hit. The mouth-to-lung inhaling style – which works best with smaller vaping devices and higher-nicotine e-liquids – contributes to a stronger throat hit. Direct-to-lung inhaling, on the other hand, works best with lower-nicotine e-liquids. The ideal nicotine strength for direct-to-lung inhaling is usually 3 mg/ml, which produces almost no throat hit at all.
- The way in which you configure your vaping hardware will influence throat hit. Increasing the wattage of your vaping device or closing your tank’s airflow vent will increase the warmth and volume of the vapor, which will make the throat hit feel stronger.
Your Preferences for Throat Hit and Flavour May Change Over Time
If you’re a newer vaper, you may have read this article and wondered why anyone would ever use the direct-to-lung inhaling style – and e-liquids with nicotine strengths as low as 3 mg/ml – if doing so would mean eliminating almost all throat hit from the equation. The answer is that, as you gain vaping experience, you may eventually decide that throat hit simply isn’t very important to you anymore.
Once you reach the point at which you’re vaping simply for the pleasure of it rather than to keep your cigarette cravings at bay, you may want to begin vaping in a way that emphasizes flavour rather than throat hit. That’s exactly what you get when you switch to a lower-nicotine e-liquid and begin using a vaping device designed for direct-to-lung inhaling.