Issues with dry throat, need some advice

[lxskllr]

You don't want the ph below 7 cause that's getting into the acidic side, and it could be bad for your teeth. Stay away from starks, and you could try Pioneer lös. I don't know what the ph is, but the nicotine less than normal, so maybe it's lower than other brands.

[mattarios]

Right, only problem I have with the thought that it is the PH is that I used to dip grizzly and kodiak, both show a PH level of between 8-8.35 according to studies online (both brands are the highest for American dip). I dipped that stuff for years with no side effects what so ever.

It has to be the PG ...

[Ansel]

It has to be the PG ...

Could you make your own or buy snus that is made using vegetable glycerine?

[mattarios]

Was thinking that but how difficult is that? lol

Is there any company out there that doesn't use PG? LSX said only gellivare and they aren't producing currently. BTW I read a thread on them and it seems like they stopped b/c of issues with production, anyone know for sure if they are coming back?

[mattarios]

I have found like 4 brands that don't use PG, all from websites that are a bitch for me to buy from except pioneer but that stuff is so weak it won't do much for me.

Also I found Gellivare went under ... seems like the powers that be really don't want me to be able to enjoy the delicious snus. I wonder why ...

[mattarios]

Ok, update, went to the doc, and spoke to a few chemists in my family. It is definitely the PH and not the propylene glycol. Plus, the mouth wash I use (Biotene) the 2nd ingredient is propylene glycol, I use that stuff like 4-5 times a day and it does nothing but lubricate my mouth extremely well.

After not snusing for 4 days my throat started to create granulated tissue you can wiki it, it is basically what your skin or body does when you have a burn, therefore further proving the high PH basically burned my throat, when it was drying it, it was doing that because it was like a mini burn.

So, my question is what can I add to the cans to lower the PH that is safe to consume? I bought a can of grizzly which is what I used to use and i am going to test the PH with a PH tester I bought on ebay so I can at least know what PH i was ok with when I used grizzly. Then I can do a PH test on the various 15-20 cans i have of snus.

My ultimate goal is to be able to use a stark/xtra stark with a slightly lowered ph, by adding something. If i can't do that I will probably just buy the snus that has the lowest pH on the market with regular 8mg/g nicotine.

What I WILL do is once i find the snus that works with adding something to it, I will prob just buy rolls of it and mix 10 cans at a time to lower the variability and make mixing easier.

So, any help on what i can add to safely lower the PH? I will obviously test the snus with added ingredients on my ph tester to ensure it isn't too low which can also burn you and destroy your teeth. I will know more once my ph tester comes in and i test the grizzly.

I am in touch with gotlandssnus and am waiting for a response from them as to what I could add to it (they were the ones who said it was the PH from the start)

Any advice on what to add would be appreciated.

Thanks guys!

[Mr. Snuffleupagus]

Well I wish you luck! Drink a lot while you snus, stop using the American snus (if you haven't), and keep trying. Your body might adjust to it at some point.

[mattarios]

Thanks!

I found some articles etc. on PH, check out this link showing figure 2 of the decrease in PH over time in a can unopened I assume at room temperature:

http://www.harmreductionjournal.com/...1/11/figure/F2

Looks like I need to let my rotation sit out for 5 weeks and at the start of each rotation take the next set of cans out of the freezer (5 weeks worth) so when I finish my first rotation after 5 weeks i can start the next rotation. I found out grizzly has a PH of 8.2-8.3, so that is the range I am looking for.

V2 told me all of their stuff has a ph of 8.5, from what I am told .3 is a HUUUGE difference when dealing with PH.

So all V2 products should be tolerable for me after 5 weeks of sitting out of the fridge, sweedish match will be a pain in the ass as most of their stuff is 8.8, but v2, gotlandssnus, granit, and skruf should all be do-able from the info i got from them, which I am completely content with!

I think my throat needs another 5 days before it is 100% and then the testing will begin.

[EricHill78]

Matt I have to give you credit. It seems when you put your mind to something you don't give up. Kudos on that. I hope it works out so you can enjoy snus like the rest of us

[mattarios]

Eric, you've got that right and thanks for the kind words!

I know it is the PH as my throat is literally burned, nothing would do that in the snus other than the PH which is known to be much higher in SNUS than American dip.

The guy from Gotlandssnus said definitely .3 PH will make a huge impact and can make your throat KILL. According to the PH scale, every .1 = 10 times more alkaline or acidic then the previous or following number.

So 8.5 is 30 times more alkaline than 8.2 and 8.2 is 30 times more acidic than 8.5

Also the warmer the temperature, the quicker the PH is reduced.

BTW your beloved Ettan, is 8.8 on the PH scale I will be passing on that as I do not want to wait 10 weeks to use the damn stuff :-p

I enjoy flavors but not as much as most of you guys, I like just about anything as long as it has a decent nic kick. So whatever brands work out best for me in this trial will be the brands I stick with!

Although popular belief is that Sterk/ES has higher pH levels, it is actually not true. Most sweedish match regular strength has 8.8 PH where as thunder has 8.5 across the board and jakobsens ES has 8.3-8.5.

That chart is based on pouches, do you think it reduces quicker in the los since it has no barrier (the pouch)?

[Micheltn]

Drink more Water, seriously. All the time, every day. Don't taken medicine, just drink more water in general. And I mean Water. No tea, no coffe, no Soda. WATER. As an extra of course, you can still drink your Coffee etc. Read more on www.watercure.com I'm not in any way realted to that website at all. It's just that the books of Dr.B Changed my life.

[truthwolf1]

Tap water is in the range of 8-9 with 8.5 being ideal. So, what you are saying is that with a higher alkaline number like 8.8 SM there is more absorbtion? more burn?

[mattarios]

MICH: I do drink water all day. I preach it to everyone I know, I do not drink soda or anything else, just water and 1 glass of milk with dinner.

TRUTH: Water is actually around 7-7.5 PH What I am saying is the higher ph is causing my throat to become burned.

Low PH (Too acidic) as well as high ph (too alkaline) can both burn you.

My PH tester came in today and I am going to be doing some tests on various brands with distilled water.

[mattarios]

PH tester came in today, so I tested a few brands:

Gotlandssnus Julessnus : 7.0

Thunder Frosted Los : 8.3

A 2 gram pinch of thunder frosted los that I exposed to the air for 24 hours, moisture was still there and didn't dry out much : 8.0

General Onyx Portions : 8.6

Thunder Raw portions : 8.4

06 Portions 8.3-8.4

GBR No 2 : 8.55

Will test more once I know someone local who will buy these open cans from me or I can go through them and test them out myself

So far from research and my own tests it appears that portions generally have a higher PH than the loose and sweedish match is usually higher in PH than any other brand I have tested.

I will do Skruf, Granit, and Grovsnus when I am able to get rid of the open cans I already have and once my throat is 100%.

I hope this info will be able to benefit others who may have the same issue as me in the future.

[mattarios]

So the thoat is 90-95% healed. Do you think it is risky to try it again but not swallowing ? I would swallow from time to time but most of the time I wouldn't because it would make my throat feel gross so I started drinking water while snusing. Come to find out the water was just carrying the high ph down my throat which irritated it more. You guys think I should try it without drinking and swallowing ? Or should I wait til I'm 100%? Basically what I need to know is can the high ph somehow irritate my throat if the juices never touch it ? Thanks in advance