Vaper’s Tongue: What Is It, and What Can You Do About It?

If you’ve ever experienced a sudden difficulty tasting your e-liquid when you vape, you’re not alone. This condition is so common, in fact, that the members of the vaping community have given it a nickname. People call it vaper’s tongue or vape tongue.

Vaper’s tongue:

• Is caused by olfactory fatigue and can make it seem as though your e-liquid has no flavor.
• Is usually preventable because it’s typically caused by something about the way you vape.
• Generally goes away on its own within a few days, although there may be some things that you can do to cure it faster.

Does your vape suddenly seem to have no flavor? Here are some ideas that may help you cure your case of vaper’s tongue.

Vaper’s Tongue Cures: Quick Summary

If you don’t have time to read about why the different cures for vaper’s tongue can work and just want to resolve the problem as quickly as possible, this section is for you. Here’s a quick summary if the things that you should try if you’re having trouble tasting your e-liquid.

• Stop changing e-liquid flavors so often. Pick one flavor and stick with it.
• If you’re a frequent flavor switcher, try devoting a separate tank or pod to each flavor.
• Try using an unflavored e-liquid until your vape tongue goes away.
• Reset your olfactory system with a palate cleanser like water, lemon wedges or black coffee.
• Make sure that you’re drinking plenty of water.
• Brush your teeth. You should also brush your tongue or use a tongue scraper.
• Replace your coil or pod.
• If you’re feeling unwell or taking a prescription medication, understand that it could affect your sense of taste temporarily.
• Wait for your vaper’s tongue to go away on its own.

Pick One Flavor and Stick with It

Vaper’s tongue is usually caused by the same type of olfactory fatigue that you’ve probably experienced if you’re ever shopped for perfume at a department store. After sampling a few different scents, it becomes hard to tell the differences between them because they all start to taste the same. You can experience the same issue with vaping if you’re the type of person who enjoys changing flavors often, so you should consider picking one favorite flavor and sticking with it until your vape tongue goes away.

Devote Separate Tanks or Pods to Different Flavors

Have you ever heard of flavor ghosting? This is another phenomenon that can make your e-liquid difficult to taste, although it’s not the same thing as vaper’s tongue because it’s actually caused by your equipment. If your tank or pod runs out of e-liquid – and you refill it with a different flavor – you’re still going to taste the remnants of the previous flavor because some of the e-liquid remains in the coil’s cotton wick.

If you change flavors every time your device is empty, you may eventually find that you have difficulty tasting any of the individual notes in your e-liquid. It’s a bit like going to a soda fountain and filling your cup with a little of each flavor. If you don’t want to experience flavor ghosting when changing flavors, consider devoting a separate tank or pod to each flavor.

Try an Unflavored E-Liquid

Vaper’s tongue doesn’t always happen because of switching between flavors constantly. It’s also possible to develop a case of vape tongue if you’re a heavy vaper and are using a single e-liquid with a very strong flavor – especially if your e-liquid is very sweetened. If you’re having trouble tasting your favorite vape juice, it might be time to take a break. Here are some options that you should consider trying instead.

• Try an unflavored e-liquid. You’re not really missing out on anything since you can’t taste your normal e-liquid anyway. In fact, some people really enjoy the interaction between the peppery nicotine and the subtle sweetness of vegetable glycerin.
• Try a plain menthol e-liquidif unsweetened vape juice isn’t really something that you enjoy. Even without any other added flavors, a menthol vape juice has a subtle minty flavor and aroma that you’ll probably find very refreshing.
• Try an unsweetened e-liquidif you’re not interested in using an unflavored or plain menthol e-liquid. A vape juice that doesn’t contain added sweeteners will often have a subtler flavor compared to e-liquid with sucralose.

Reset Your Olfactory System with a Palate Cleanser

If switching to a different e-liquid flavor isn’t high on the list of things you want to do, it may be possible to reset your olfactory system with a palate cleanser and cure your vaper’s tongue without changing your e-liquid. Did you know that some perfume counters keep containers of ground coffee for people to smell between sampling scents? You might want to consider sniffing some coffee and seeing if that helps you cure your case of vape tongue.

Here are some other popular palate cleansers that you can eat or drink.

• Still or carbonated water; add a squeeze of lemon or lime if you like
• Lemon or lime wedges
• Pickled vegetables such as ginger or sauerkraut
• Plainly flavored bread products such as white bread or unsalted water crackers
• Celery sticks
• Green apple slices
• Fresh herbs such as parsley
• Unsweetened coffee or tea
• Fruit sorbet, preferably with little or no added sugar

Drink Plenty of Water

Dehydration can affect your sense of taste, and it’s possible to experience dehydration from vaping if you aren’t drinking enough water. If you switched recently from smoking to vaping, inadequate hydration could be the cause of your vaper’s tongue – especially if you’re also experiencing other issues like headaches from vaping.

The reason why vaping can potentially contribute to dehydration is because the two primary ingredients in most e-liquids – propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin – absorb and retain water. That’s why they’re often used as ingredients in products like lotions, hair conditioners and eyedrops. That same ability can also potentially rob your body of moisture when you vape, though, so it’s important to ensure proper hydration by drinking plenty of extra water.

Brush Your Teeth

Proper oral hygiene is a major component of your ability to taste things properly, and that doesn’t just apply to foods and drinks – it also applies to your e-liquid. If you haven’t brushed your teeth in a while and are having trouble tasting your vape juice, the solution could be as simple as giving your teeth a good brushing. Don’t forget to brush your tongue or use a tongue scraper.

Replace Your Coil or Pod

There are some taste-related problems in vaping that may seem like vaper’s tongue but are actually unrelated to anything that’s going on in your body. If it’s been a long time since you last replaced the coil or pod in your vape, it’s possible that you don’t have vaper’s tongue at all because a vape coil that’s covered with e-liquid residue will have trouble producing crisp and detailed flavors. A vape coil typically lasts from a few days to about a week. Past that point, you may not be happy with the flavor quality.

The reason why the flavor quality of a vape coil degrades over time is because e-liquid leaves residue on the coil’s heating surface. Although all ingredients can contribute to residue formation to a certain extent, sweeteners like sucralose are the worst offenders.

If you use an e-liquid that’s sweetened, you’ll start to notice an exaggerated sweetness after you’ve used the same coil or pod for a while. The sweetness is caused by the sucralose residue on the coil, and it’ll start to cover the flavor of your e-liquid as the residue gets thicker. Eventually, the residue will become so thick that it’ll start to taste smoky and burnt. If you’ve noticed any of those symptoms when vaping, you probably don’t have vape tongue and simply need to replace your pod or coil.

Consider the Possibility of Illness or Medication Side Effects

As you’ve noticed from reading this article, a big part of curing a case of vaper’s tongue is figuring out whether the problem just affects your e-liquid or if you’re having trouble tasting foods and beverages as well. If nothing seems to taste normal to you, it’s possible that you’re actually ill. In that case, your sense of taste should return when the illness subsides.

Don’t forget that some prescription medications can also affect your sense of taste. Talk to your doctor about any side effects that you experience after taking a medication.

Wait for Your Vaper’s Tongue to Resolve Itself

Vaper’s tongue is certainly annoying, but the good news is that it’s nothing to worry about and usually goes away on its own. If you’ve tried some of the solutions in this article and found that they didn’t work for you – or you’re happy with your vaping setup as it is and don’t want to change anything – there’s no need to panic. Chances are that you can just continue vaping as you are for a few days, and you’ll find that your ability to taste your e-liquid will come back on its own.