Liquid Nicotine Overview

by Terrence Malgamoz

Liquid nicotine is a tasteless, odorless substance which is poisonous to human beings, animals and pets. The idea of nicotine in liquid form came about in the 90s through the extensive research work of Dr Frank Etscorn. Researchers looked into the idea of using nicotine to help people quit smoking instead of getting them addicted.

Nicotine is produced by tobacco plants and is found in tobacco leaf. It is said tobacco plants produce the poisonous substance to protect themselves against grazing animals in the ecosystem. Today there are two key industries which are consumers of nicotine namely quit smoking product industry and big tobacco.

Liquid nicotine is used in the manufacture of nicotine replacement therapies such as nicotine patches, nicotine chewing gums and nicotine lozenges. In recent years with the raise of electronic smoking, nicotine in liquid form is in demand in the manufacture of refills for electronic cigarette cartridges. E-cigarettes produce nicotine vapor to satisfy smoking cravings in smokers.

A few liquid nicotine drops in the palm of a human being's hand will cause death. Nicotine is so deadly it kills human beings, animals and pets from a phenomenon called nicotine poisoning. In recent years some scientists have been experimenting with using a nicotine solution offered in drops to help smokers gradually quit smoking.

In particular Duke University in the United States carried out a study on nicotine drops as a possibility to help smokers stop smoking. The overall long term possibility was to have liquid nicotine solution added to the list of stop smoking products possibly in the form of nicotine replacement products. Oral nicotine as it is also known would be used as a short term treatment added as a solution to a smoker's beverage such as coffee, drinks and even alcoholic beverages.

The concept behind oral nicotine is in some ways similar to nicotine water. According to the Duke research 20% of the participants in the study remained smoke free after 6 months of using oral nicotine in beverages and drinks.

What was remarkable is the flexibility with which the solution can be used.However, nicotine in liquid form creates one serious problem as a viable stop smoking solution - overdose and poisoning. Even though the solution may come with instructions, it is very difficult to ensure that patients do not mistakenly poison themselves. The strict regime of use and general administration is bound to confuse and even be a burden to many people trying to smoke leading to lethal mistakes.

In the university of Duke study, one of the participants complained of a burning sensation on the site of a dental work. Nicotine is harmful to the nervous system. This will be a side effect to some of oral nicotine users. People with pre-existing conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and cardiovascular ailments will also face serious limitation in the use of oral nicotine.

In its original purpose, nicotine in liquid form is a key ingredient in pesticides and other deadly poisons used in various industries. The original intent is never for human consumption. It seems highly unlikely that tough regulators such as the FDA in the United States will allow the substance to pass for a viable stop smoking solution. It seems likely instead that oral nicotine will suffer the same fate as nicotine water. It never really took off due to the many questions raised by the FDA in the United States. This damaged consumer confidence in the product to a large extent even though many others were still willing to try it.