In 2020, approximately 31 million people smoked cigarettes in the United States. That’s about an 8% decrease in smokers since 2005. Most people would agree that’s a good thing. Smoking can lead to deadly illnesses like emphysema or lung cancer. Some people quit by switching to electronic cigarettes— (also known as e-cigs or vapes). A vape turns oily liquids (called vape juice) into a vapor and you inhale it. The mixture usually contains nicotine. So it acts like a regular cigarette, except there’s no combustion reaction to generate a harmful particulate matter, which coats the inside of your lungs.
Nicotine is an active compound found in tobacco. There are plenty of other plants that have psychoactive alkaloids. Take Kratom, for instance. The alkaloids in Kratom produce a wide range of therapeutic effects. Like nicotine, you can also add Kratom alkaloids into vape juice.
Can You Vape Kratom?
There are various ways to get the active compounds of Kratom in your system. As most know, the quickest and most reliable way is to ingest it. However, there are other ways to feel the effects of Kratom much quicker. One of those ways is to absorb the compounds through the tissues of our lungs. The most common process is by smoking a substance—and we’ll touch upon that a bit later. But a newer, safer way to inhale active compounds in the lung is to use a vape. Now, there are two different versions of vaping. You can either use an herbal vaporizer or a liquid vape. We’ll discuss both. Then you can determine which form of vaping works best for you.
Vaping Kratom With Herbal Vaporizers
Frank William Wood, better known as Eagle Bill Amato, was a cannabis pioneer who invented the modern version of the dry herbal vaporizer around 1993. He called it the Shake and Vape. Rather than putting a flame directly to the weed, he promoted heating the bottom of the glass bowl. Therefore, no combustion occurred. Instead, the heat vaporized the herb.
Since then, companies have invented updated versions. These electronic herbal vaporizers use electricity. You can place Kratom powder or leaf inside them. The heating coils transfer the plant compounds into a gaseous form that you inhale.
You can also vape Kratom using Kratom vape juice.
Vaping Kratom With Kratom Vape Juice
Years later, a Chinese pharmacist named Hon Lik invented a commercially successful vaporizer. It was dubbed the electronic cigarette or E-cig. The device replicated the appearance of a cigarette. Instead of inhaling burnt tobacco, a liquid nicotine mixture was heated into an aerosol form. The vape cloud mimics the appearance and sensation of smoke. So it’s the preferred method to quit smoking.
Lately, companies have used other herbal mixtures to make vape juices. You can find CBD vape juice. They even sell THC vape juice.
The newest version is Kratom vape juice. It’s a simple-to-use Kratom product that works instantly.
The Kratom alkaloids enter your bloodstream within a minute. And that’s much faster than ingesting it.
What Is Kratom Vape Juice?
All vape juice contains two primary ingredients.
The first ingredient is vegetable glycerin (VG). It’s a natural chemical derived from vegetable oil.
They mix VG with a substance called propylene glycol (PG), a light synthetic liquid. The addition of PG thins the VG, and that allows any flavoring to mix naturally.
PG creates a thicker throat hit from the vape, while the VG allows a much smoother one. Together, they form the perfect balance for mimicking cigarette smoke. Vape flavorings are added to create unique flavor profiles. For those who smoke cigarettes, there are several tobacco flavors available. But for those who would prefer something more palatable, numerous fruit and spice flavors are offered, too.
Vape juice is sometimes called e-liquid, e-juice, or simply juice. Before purchasing any vape products, get acquainted with the vape community lingo.
Kratom vape juice is identical except for one thing: it also contains Kratom extract. That allows you to absorb Kratom compounds through vaping.
Are Commercially Available Vape Juices Expensive?
Most people buy vape juice directly from a company that specializes in vaping. Some make vape juices right on the spot. You can specify the flavors or potency of nicotine included. However, nicotine isn’t mandatory. They sell vape juice without it, too.
Vape juice is commonly sold in 15ml, 30ml, 60ml, and 120ml bottle sizes. The price increases with the volume. Prices can range from $10 to $30. But some cost much more. A few companies offer premium and organic selections and they charge accordingly. Use whichever variety works for you.
You can also buy commercially prepared Kratom vape juice. These will cost you a bit more. They already include the Kratom extract. The advertised potency might not be accurate. Plus, they may use harmful additives. So you’re much safer off making your own.
The Easiest Way to Make Vape Juice
You can either buy commercially prepared Kratom vape juice or make it. Some people prefer making homemade Kratom vape juice. It allows them to know every ingredient.
Vape companies sometimes use harmful chemicals, and that can lead to health problems.
Luckily, you only need a few ingredients and supplies to make it yourself. Before you start the process, read over the material and make sure you have everything.
Whenever you prepare your Kratom vape juice, try not to go overboard with the concentration of Kratom alkaloids. The inhalation of Kratom compounds hits you much faster. So remember that as you vape. Start with a few puffs. Wait a couple of minutes to feel the effects.
The effects wear off much quicker when vaping: an hour at most. So consider that, too.
Here are some items you’ll need and the directions to make Kratom vape juice at home.
What You’ll Need to Make Kratom Vape Juice:
To start, you need to buy some specialty ingredients to make your Kratom vape juice. You can buy these online or directly from a vape store. Some local vape companies make in-house vape juices on site. So they can mix everything for you, too—outside of the Kratom ingredients.
Ingredients Needed:
- Propylene Glycol (PG)
- Vegetable Glycerin (VG)
- Liquid Kratom Extract
- Vape Juice Flavoring (optional)
Supplies Needed:
- Storage Bottles with Dropper
- Mixing Syringes
You want to mix the PG and VG using a 50/50 ratio. The recommended ratio for vape juice flavoring is between 20% and 30% to the volume of the vape juice solution. Don’t over-flavor it. That can clog your vape coils.
When adding the liquid Kratom extract, start with a smaller serving size. Experiment to find the right concentration. Keep in mind that Kratom vape hits much quicker.
Now, it’s possible to make Kratom vape juice using regular Kratom powder instead. When using powder, it takes longer to make. You’ll have to follow some additional steps. The Kratom powder must sit in the vape juice for several hours. Then you’ll need a cheesecloth to strain the plant material from the oil: the powder can mess up your vaporizer. So using Kratom extract oil works much better.
Ingredients to Avoid Using when Making Kratom Vape Juice:
There are a few ingredients you should avoid using when making Kratom vape juice. We will go over each of them now.
- Essential Oils
Essential oils have great flavors and aromas. There are health benefits to taking the various oils, too. Vaping them can lead to serious health complications. Some studies indicate several associated risks from vaping essential oils. Plus, heating essential oils past 150-180 degrees Fahrenheit can convert the compounds inside to possibly toxic conditions.
- Household Flavorings
Mixing a natural flavoring from your kitchen might sound like a great idea. But some natural flavors become carcinogenic when vaped. Vanilla, cinnamon, and mint have toxic properties when smoked or vaped. Stay away from those store-bought vape flavors, too.
- High Concentrations of Nicotine
Most people that vape use it as a nicotine delivery method. If you already use nicotine, remember mixing both compounds could lead to long-term health complications. There are no studies on the effects of mixing both concentrated compounds. So doing it is risky. Never use high concentrations of nicotine.
People can get nicotine poisoning from using too much nicotine. The substances could potentiate one another. Don’t risk pushing the limits.
What Happens When You Vape Kratom?
The heating element inside a vaporizer increases the temperature of the vape juice until it turns into an aerosol mist. Those temperatures are not suitable for the active compounds found in Kratom. According to one study, temperatures as low as 176 degrees Fahrenheit can cause the degradation of Kratom alkaloids over an extended period. A vaporizer heats vape juice well past that point. Keep that in mind when vaping.
Regardless, vaping still creates a unique method for transferring Kratom alkaloids into your body. First, the vape cartridge (or vape pen) heats the vape juice into a vapor that you inhale. It contains particles of Kratom compounds. Once it travels down to your lungs, the millions of tiny air sacs, known as Alveoli, absorb the vape particles. They quickly enter your bloodstream and travel to your central nervous system (CNS).
Once the metabolites reach the brain, they react with various receptors and neurotransmitters to create several types of calming Kratom effects. You should feel them almost instantaneously. However, the effects wear off rather quickly compared to other methods.
Is Vaping Kratom the Best Way to Use Kratom?
First off, vaping Kratom transfers foreign particles into your lungs. Those ingredients can irritate your respiratory tract, eyes, mouth, and skin. There are a few side effects associated with regular use of a vape. Plus, there are long-term health risks from vaping as well. And we’ll talk about that shortly. As we just pointed out, a vaporizer damages Kratom compounds, too.
Electronic vapes use electricity from a battery to heat coils. That heat transfers to the oil mixture and turns it into a gaseous form you inhale. But it takes a lot of heat for that to happen. Most common e-vapes heat the vape juice between 300 to 500 degrees Fahrenheit. Unfortunately, that temperature is much too hot for kratom compounds.
You see, the alkaloids found inside Kratom start degrading in high temps. An electronic vape would degrade the compounds in the mixture. But it happens so quickly that the degradation of Kratom alkaloids would be minimal.
There are other ways to use Kratom that keep the Kratom alkaloids intact. We should cover some of them right now.
Better Ways to Use Kratom
The healthiest ways to use Kratom revolve around ingesting the alkaloids. That avoids the risks of damaging your lungs. There are several ways to take Kratom that way. Here are a few of the most popular methods.
- Kratom Powder (Tea) — The most common method to take kratom is to make a tea using the Kratom powder.
- Kratom Powder (Toss & Wash) — Some people prefer tossing the powder in their mouth and immediately chasing it with a beverage. They call it a toss and wash.
- Kratom Capsules — These gelatin capsules contain Kratom powder. You take them like a pill. Kratom capsules eliminate the bitter taste associated with kratom.
- Kratom Extracts — The alkaloids are extracted from Kratom using an extraction process, leaving a heavily concentrated version of compounds. Kratom extracts are more potent than powder.
- Kratom Shots — These flavored shots have Kratom extracts as an ingredient.
- Kratom Extract Softgels — Softgels are like capsules. Instead of powder, the gels contain an oil-based version of Kratom extract.
- Kratom Taffy — A toffee flavored taffy made with Kratom extracts. These treats allow you to take your Kratom serving and snack simultaneously.
Besides vaping Kratom, there are other ways to introduce Kratom through the lungs.
Herbal Vaporizer
As we pointed out at the beginning of the article, you could also use an herbal vaporizer instead. Rather than turning liquid Kratom vape into aerosol form, this electronic device vaporizes the dry plant material of Kratom. You can mix the Kratom with other herbs using this method. Some herbs act as Kratom potentiators. A few you can use are cat’s claw, valerian root, and cannabis (For those of you who prefer staying clear of THC, you can use industrial hemp as a substitute). But all three herbs amplify the effects of Kratom.
Here is a long list of well-known herbs that you can use in an herbal vaporizer. The device works wonderfully with other botanical products. Individual herbs provide unique therapeutic benefits for the user. Make sure you research them all before use because some have known side effects. Consort with your doctor before trying new supplements, especially if you have prescription medications.
Smoking Kratom
Vaping nicotine is an alternative to smoking cigarettes. Consumers vape Kratom as a substitute for smoking it. People’s preferences depend on the individual.
There are other health risks associated with smoking. Smoking can damage your lungs. Long-term smoking can cause cancer, heart diseases, diabetes, lung diseases, or even lead to strokes. Besides, it can damage your throat, mouth, and teeth. Ulcers can develop in your mouth from prolonged use of smoking. It can also lead to gum disease. So it’s best if you choose a different way to use Kratom.
Smoking kratom leads to the degradation of Kratom alkaloids. A lit cigarette burns at about 1300 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s more than four times the temp associated with vaping. We just covered how the vaping temperature destroys some of the potency of the Kratom compounds. Well, smoking Kratom makes it four times worse. For that reason alone, smoking Kratom should be your last resort.
Health risks aren’t limited to smoking Kratom. Several dangers exist from vaping Kratom as well.
Possible Risks Associated with Vaping
In the United States, the Surgeon General is the head of the US Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps. The mission of the USPHS is to protect, promote, and advance the health of our nation. That starts with our youth. The Surgeon General warns about the dangers of nicotine addiction. Vaping is considered safer than smoking, yet there are known risks.
Any foreign substances in your lungs can damage them. We don’t have enough long-term studies on the effects of vaping yet. Vaping is relatively new. Vapes didn’t enter the US marketplace until around 2007. It took another five years to catch on. Some studies indicate some of the ingredients used in vape flavorings lead to health complications. For instance, daily e-cigarette use elevated inflammatory markers across multiple organ systems. Scientists discovered increased inflammation within the brain’s reward pathway that varied depending on the flavor of vape juice.
Some store-bought vape juices contain dangerous additives—some deadly.
There are cases where companies used Vitamin E acetate as an ingredient. And vitamin E acetate is dangerous to inhale. It can lead to e-cigarette or vaping product use associated with lung injuries (EVALI). So it’s much safer to make your Kratom vape juice.
Where to Buy Quality Kratom Extract
Making Kratom vape juice eliminates the risks associated with purchasing it. You know all the ingredients included.
Still, you want to make sure those ingredients are the safest and most reliable on the market. To do that, you must find a reputable Kratom vendor that sells only the finest Kratom extracts. At Kratom Geek, we recommend Happy Hippo.
Happy Hippo Herbals has a premium selection of liquid kratom extract for sale. It’s by far the best in the business. And they have a few flavors available. You can choose from the coffee flavor, pina colada, or a berry mixture. Flavored Kratom extracts reduce the need to add vape juice flavorings. But Happy Hippo also has an unflavored Kratom extract should you rather use your favorite vape flavor instead. So the company has you covered from multiple angles.
They’re liquid Kratom extracts that come in a 12ml vial. But it packs a punch. Each bottle contains the same concentration of alkaloids in 9 grams of leaf. So use it sparingly. Vaping Kratom hits much harder.
