With the recent ban on menthol cigarette products, it’s likely that even more people will be turning away from cigarettes and looking for a menthol e-liquid solution to help them to quit.
At Vape Town, we believe it’s always a good time to quit smoking and start on the path to living a healthier life. Many of our customers are people beginning to vape as a method for cutting back on or quitting smoking.
The throat hit of inhaling on a vape is similar to the sensation of smoking but without the harmful chemicals that are present in tobacco cigarettes. This often makes vaping a more successful method for quitting than gum or patches.
So, if you’re a menthol tobacco smoker looking for help transitioning to vaping, we’ve got all the information you need.
Why was the menthol ban brought in?
In May 2020, the UK Government brought in a ban which prevented the sale of menthol cigarettes, menthol filters and papers, and skinny cigarettes throughout the UK and Europe.
The ban is part of a wider strategy to reduce the number of people smoking in the UK and to make England ‘smoke-free’ by 2030.
The cool, minty sensation of menthol tobacco products reduces the harshness of the tobacco and lessens the need to cough that is often felt when smoking tobacco.
Because of this less-harsh smoking experience, menthol products are often seen as a preferable ‘entry-level’ option for beginner smokers. Menthol tobacco products were also commonly thought to be healthier than regular tobacco products, although this has been proven not to be true.
Menthol tobacco products have been particularly targeted by the ban due to their appeal to young or new smokers.
With no flavoured tobacco products available for sale in the UK and Europe, it’s hoped that fewer people will take up smoking and existing flavoured tobacco smokers will attempt to quit rather.
Does the menthol ban affect menthol e-liquid?
If you have previously smoked menthol tobacco products you may be seeing the ban as a good opportunity to attempt to quit smoking rather than switch to non-menthol tobacco.
If that is the case, you’ll be glad to learn that the menthol ban in the UK has no impact on menthol e-liquid.
Menthol e-liquid is unaffected by the ban. Meaning we’re still able to sell menthol e-liquid containing nicotine, as well as other flavoured nicotine-free e-liquids, are still available for purchase from vape specialists like us at Vape Town.
Does menthol e-liquid work the same as menthol cigarettes?
The easiest way to identify a menthol tobacco product, when they were available, was from the cooling sensation and slightly minty taste as you inhaled. The higher level of menthol contained in these types of tobacco products had a slightly numbing effect on the smoker’s throat.
So, for people switching from menthol tobacco products to vape products as a way to quit smoking, it’s likely they will want to replicate that cooling and minty taste with their vape.
People are often drawn to vaping as a means to quit smoking because of the massive variety of flavours of e-liquid to choose from. There’s everything from coffee to candy flavoured e-liquids and bakery to berry tasting vape juices.
But, for ex-menthol smokers looking for an e-liquid alternative, there are two main groups of vape juice to choose from; menthol or minty.
Menthol e-liquid
Menthol e-liquids are generally best for people who want to replicate the cooling sensation of inhaling menthol tobacco products. Containing the same ingredient, menthol, these e-liquids will slightly numb the throat in a similar way to a menthol cigarette but without the damaging chemicals.
Menthol e-liquid can offer a smoother throat hit due to the numbing effect which makes it better for vaping a higher nicotine content if vaping with nicotine.
Menthol e-liquid offers the cooling inhalation sensation without the minty flavour, meaning that menthol vape juice can have additional flavours added such as lemon menthol or apple menthol.
Minty e-liquids
Minty e-liquids have the mint flavour associated with menthol cigarettes without the numbing menthol sensation. They can come in a wider variety of mint strengths, including spearmint and triple mint.
These e-liquids will still have some cooling sensation that comes from the mint flavourings, similar to taking a drink of water after eating a breath mint. But this sensation is from the flavouring rather than the menthol properties.
If you’re a menthol smoker looking to quit smoking and make the change to vaping, we at Vape Town can help.
Speak to us today for advice on vaping menthol e-liquid and any other concerns you may have with quitting smoking by switching to a vape.