Modified on: 06/12/2022
What are American e-cig liquids?
American e liquids have become famous because of the composition: inside them there are high amounts of diacetyl, an alcoholic element used to enhance its flavor.
They are also defined as “Americans”, those very tasty e cig liquids which contain a higher percentage of vegetable glycerin than propylene glycol.
American e cigarette liquids are distinguished in rather than on the international market for some qualities of their own, which make them loved or hated by consumers. At first, American liquids have a significant aromatic intensity as their main characteristic.
This is clearly perceived in sweet liquids, such as bakery e liquid and fruity e liquid, and in tobacco e liquid too. The extreme sweetness of the former and the considerable persistence of the latter definitely leave their mark. While not particularly articulated or elaborate, American Styles e-liquid stand out for this from their European competitors.
Moreover, the American market turns its attention to consumer demand, and it is precisely in the tobacco and sweet liquids that Americans find comfort: these are the favourite aromas in all of the USA. The choice of consumers about tobacco products falls on classic and strong flavors, while among the sweets the most sugary mentholated and some fruity mentholates are the most popular.
In addition, American liquids prove to be particularly suitable for flavor chasing, a term that has become common in recent years, which indicates the practice of vaping to derive maximum aroma from its liquids.
Cloud chasing also lends itself well to the composition of American liquids, in fact the latter type of vaping is based on the use of liquids with a higher concentration of vegetable glycerin than standard solutions, such as American e-liquids.
The term cloud chasing indicates that vape mode that allows you to create large and dense clouds of vapor.
Composition of american liquids
As can be understood, American e liquids are often composed of high percentages of vegetable glycerin or, if they are e liquid concentrates, they are meant to be diluted with more glycerol than glycol. The reasons are as follows:
- glycerin is responsible for large vapor clouds (suitable for cloud chasing);
- glycol, which conveys flavors better, is not necessary for very intense and decisive aromas, just like American ones;
- the American consumers prefer a vaping experience that reminds them the traditional cigarette as much as possible, and therefore the creamy and dense smoke of glycerol is perfect for these e cig liquids.
It should be noted that most American liquids are sold with a high nicotine content inside them. This is due to habit, if we may say so (in the USA the consumption of tobacco and nicotine products has always been much more intense than in Europe), and to less restrictive market laws on nicotine, compared to those present in Europe .
A likely scenario is that US producers add diacetyl to their liquids, a natural substance present mainly in dairy products, which is added to many products (including e cigarette liquids) to give them a creamy sensation.
Read also: Vaping and coughing: 5 tips to permanently resolve it
Health alert in America: the cases of deaths related to electronic cigarettes
In the last year, several news outlets have followed on the dangers of electronic cigarettes and the onset of an increase in serious respiratory diseases. This topic is very close to us, therefore it is important to follow the developments to try and understand what is really happening.
First of all, it must be remembered and underlined that the American e-cig market has big differences compared to the European market.
Read also: Vaping only glycerol? These are the risks you have
Differences between the USA and EU “vape” market
In America, the vaping market is regulated by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) which has established a notification system for products on the market, as of yet this has not come into force.
So, in fact, there are no particular rules or limits to the products that are currently on the market in the United States. As a result, many federal states, including California, Michigan, New York, have autonomously legislated, thus creating an uneven and very difficult and confusing framework.
However, since 2014, the vaping market has already started a regulatory process within the TPD (Tobacco Products Directive). Since 2017 this legislation has also entered into force in Italy. If you want to learn more about the topic, you can still find numerous resources on the web.
Finally we schematically report the substantial differences between the US and EU market:
- USA → No limit to liquid nicotine concentration.
- EU → Maximum allowed nicotine concentration 20mg / ml.
- USA → No limit to maximum content per pre-loaded bottle or pod.
- EU → Liquids with liquid nicotine in 10ml bottles, pre-loaded pods maximum 2ml.
- USA → No restriction of ingredients or components in liquids.
- EU → Many ingredients are prohibited, including caffeine, diacetyl, taurine and vitamins.
