Study Result: Third Party Toxicology Study

In 2023, VGA conducted a preliminary safety determination in the form of a toxicology report regarding the potential exposure to constituents present in FÜM Cores, based off of the results from two third-party conducted exposure tests. The analytical test results show that, coupled with the results of the studies and applicable safety limits, that FÜM Cores do not contain unsafe intake levels of any of the components or ingredients present in the products. 

For the sake of caution, several of the following safety values below have been rounded up to provide added assurance to maximize the consumer exposure estimate covering a variety of use occasions and heavy users.

The test results show that the essential oil mixtures content > 90% moisture.  However, considering the high moisture content the microbe counts were low or absent.  Perhaps these low microbe counts are the result of the anti-microbial activity of essential oils (Osaili et al. 2023).  Arsenic and cadmium levels were below the detection limit of the assay (i.e., their levels were undetectable).

NSF (2023) conducted experiments to characterize the potential consumer exposure to essential oil mixtures infused into FÜM cores.  NSF (2023) reported that the cores contained a volume of 380 μL (0.380 mL) of essential oils.  Based on test results, NSF (2023) reports a loss of 6-8% of the essential oil mixture for reduction in core weight after 30 air purges per hour (i.e., comparable to a draw by a consumer) per hour.  NSF (2023) determined that the essential oil exposure from each draw of the core is less than 1 μL.  VGA will use the 1 μL value to conservatively estimate essential oil exposure during FÜM product use.

Heavy users of the FÜM product take 20 draws per hour, or 200 draws daily when used for a period of 10 hours per day.  The density (ρ) of the essential oil is 0.898 mg/mL, or 0.898 μg/μL (NSF 2023).  Thus, the weight of each draw is 0.898 μg.  When 0.898 μg/draw is multiplied by 200 draws daily, a heavy consumer could inhale 179.6 μg (rounded up to 180 μg) of essential oil daily.  It is also assumed that all of the essential oil infused in the core is ingested by the consumer from FÜM product use.

Within this study, it is shown that FÜM products do not contain unsafe levels of harmful toxins, and that the exposure of the user to the components of the ingredients present in the products are within safe maximum levels.