With e-liquid available in delicious flavours like cake, apple pie, doughnuts, caramel, churros, and maple syrup, you probably wonder how many calories you inhale with every puff.
The truth?
Yes, e-liquids have calorific content, but you may be surprised by just how little.
Find out how many calories are in your vape juice and the truth behind this common myth.
The Main Ingredients in E-Liquids
E-liquids are all made using four primary ingredients: vegetable glycerin (VG), propylene glycol (PG), nicotine, and flavourings. Of these, VG and flavourings are the only elements that contribute calories. PG, nicotine, and the other additives used in e-liquids generally don’t.
-
Flavourings: These are used to create the various taste profiles in e-liquids. Some flavours, particularly those made to mimic dessert flavours, can add a small number of calories, though they’re not enough to affect your overall diet.
-
Nicotine: Nicotine is the substance in e-liquids primarily responsible for the stimulating effects of vaping. It has no caloric content and doesn’t contribute to the overall caloric value of e-liquid.
-
Vegetable Glycerin: VG is a plant-derived sugar alcohol that’s also often found in dairy products, condiments, ice cream, and baked goods. Its thick, syrup-like viscosity makes it perfect for vapour production, and it has a caloric value of around four calories per gram, similar to regular sugar. However, when it’s inhaled in vapour form rather than consumed orally, it doesn’t have the same effect on the body as food.
-
Propylene Glycol: PG is a thin, watery, slightly sweet liquid that produces less vapour than VG but is responsible for providing the intense flavour and strong throat hits associated with vaping. It doesn’t contribute to the calorie count because it’s metabolised differently from food.
How Many Calories Does E-Liquid Contain?
Let’s look at an average e-liquid to get an idea of calorie content.
A 60ml bottle of e-liquid theoretically contains approximately 240 calories in total (assuming it’s a high VG e-liquid). But if you break it down per puff, the calories are negligible.
A single puff from a vape will contain far fewer than one calorie. In fact, even if you vapourised an entire bottle of e-liquid, the caloric intake would still be lower than that of a snack.
For example, if you vape a bottle of e-liquid with a VG content of around 70% (which is common), you can expect it to contain roughly 140 to 180 calories. This amount is spread over several days or weeks, depending on how often you vape, meaning the impact on your daily caloric intake is essentially insignificant.
Do Vape Flavours Add Calories?
Flavourings in e-liquids are often made up of a combination of natural and artificial substances, such as sweeteners, extracts, and flavour compounds. These can contain trace amounts of calories, particularly those derived from sugar- or carbohydrate-based ingredients. However, the calorie contribution from flavourings is very small.
For instance, one of the e-liquids from our bakery range may have a few calories from the flavourings, but your body doesn't process them the same way you would if you ate a cake, cookie, or dessert with the same flavour.
As a result, the calories from flavourings don’t have the same effect on your caloric intake as they would if they were consumed as part of a food or beverage.
Additionally, some e-liquids use artificial sweeteners, such as sucralose, to enhance the flavour's sweetness without adding significant calories. These sweeteners are not metabolised in the same way as regular sugar, which means they don’t contribute meaningfully to your calorie intake.
Vaping and Weight Gain
The question of whether vaping can lead to weight gain or loss is complicated.
While vaping doesn’t directly contribute to significant calorie intake, nicotine’s appetite-suppressing effects can impact your eating habits.
What does science say?
Research from the National Library of Medicine shows that nicotine interacts with the brain’s reward system and changes hunger signals. It can trigger the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and reward. This dopamine release creates a sensation similar to what we experience when we eat, tricking the body into thinking that we have done so.
The result: You may find that you lose weight while using nicotine, either because you’re consuming fewer calories due to reduced hunger or because you’re replacing unhealthy eating habits with vaping.
Of course, if you use vape juice with a 0mg nicotine strength, there’s no nicotine content whatsoever, so this doesn’t factor into the equation.
The Truth About Vaping & Calorie Intake
While e-liquids contain some calories, so do most toothpastes and aromatherapy oils—and it's about the same amount!
In a nutshell, because e-liquid is vaporised and not ingested, the calories are not processed like those from food or drinks. The main contributor to any weight changes related to vaping is nicotine, which can suppress your appetite and alter metabolism. However, vaping itself is unlikely to contribute to weight gain or loss in any significant way.
Craving something sweet like cookie dough, macaroons, or crème brûlée? A dessert-flavoured vape might satisfy the urge without affecting your waistline!
