One gripe the electronic cigarette community has always had is "vaper's tongue". If you're new to electronic cigarettes and don't know what vaper's tongue is, not to worry - you'll find out soon enough. It happens just like that; you realize there is something wrong when that velvety vanilla bourbon flavor you’ve been enjoying for weeks is now a distant memory. All you get now is a lungful of velvety...air?! And that's when the questions start coming up. “What's going on? Has my eliquid gone off? Did that last vaping site I bought from pass me a weak batch? Am I vaping pure nicotine base?" There's no need to worry! Your ecig still works right, and the juice is still good. You're only going through what electronic cigarette enthusiasts call “vaper’s tongue”. So, what exactly is it?
The shocker upfront for less scientifically inclined vapers: Vaper's tongue has more to do with the receptors in your nose than your taste buds. This is because your sense of smell is the main physical factor in being able to accurately identify tastes in food, drinks and, yup, e liquid! It's the same notion behind little kids pinching their nose when they have to eat something they don't like. Or like why food tastes like nothing when you have a cold. When the receptors in your nose are blocked off, the way you register flavors is severely impaired. This, in turn, prevents you from tasting things the way you always do.
Ok, enough with the science. So, what are some things that impair our senses of smell and taste and lead to vaper's tongue?
- Vaping the same e juice for too long
- Blocked nose
- Medication
- Dry mouth
- Smoking
- Dehydration
- Old e liquid
All these factors are known to contribute to vaper's tongue by blocking the receptors in the nose and mouth. So, what to do about it?
Drink lots of water
Honestly, you need to hydrate. It's healthy to stay hydrated, period. When vaping, the ingredients in eliquids (especially PG) has a tendency to dry out your airways. You can, and should, fight this by drinking large amounts of water.
Change/Rotate the flavors you vape
Every now and then your senses need a little shock to start working right again. Switch to a different eliquid (we suggest menthol) for a couple of days before going back to your favorite e-juice. Another method is to start rotating e-liquids; don't vape the same eliquid over and over again, instead, try to vape with two or three different eliquids every day.
Shock your senses
This one is quite interesting; some vapers claim they get rid of vaper's tongue by sniffing coffee beans or sucking on lemon slices. Both of these methods act as a reset button for your senses. Also, both are commonly practiced by professional wine tasters when they need to jolt their smell/taste abilities.
Complete dental hygiene
We all brush our teeth, but you should also try dental floss and mouthwash. There are many vapers doing this to increase their ability to smell and taste; so should you.
Scrape your tongue
The tongue accumulates so much gunk over time, it needs to be cleaned manually. Use a tongue scraper; there are quite a few vapers that swear by this method to end the dreaded vaper’s tongue.
Hopefully this post will help you understand and get rid of the common nuisance called vaper's tongue. Happy vaping everyone!