Thank you so much for the incredible nebulizer education. I was wondering if one was to make the saline solution could they use a canna infused salt in the solution?
Hi John - thank you for reading, and for the question .... I don't know anything about canna-infused salt (yet!). let me go learn more about it and I'll report back to you here! Love a new challenge, thank you!
Hi John: Basically, the short answer: homemade infused saline isn't safe to inhale.
1. Cannabinoids Aren’t Water-Soluble
• THC, CBD, CBG are lipophilic—they don’t dissolve in saline
• At home, the best you can do is suspend oils, but that just creates a dangerous aerosol of fat droplets
• Result: High risk of lipoid pneumonia, airway inflammation, or equipment damage
2. Nebulizers Are Meant for Aqueous, Sterile Solutions
• Designed to deliver ultra-fine mist (<5 microns) for deep lung penetration
• If oil or large particles are present:
• They don’t atomize properly
• They deposit in the alveoli where the lungs cannot clear them
• This leads to chronic inflammation, especially if unfiltered or contaminated
3. You Can’t Guarantee Sterility at Home
• Even using distilled water and boiling equipment, you can’t achieve aseptic technique
• Cannabis extract and emulsifiers can harbor bacteria, spores, or endotoxins
• Inhaled contamination = serious infection risk, including pneumonia or sepsis
4. You Can’t Control Particle Size
• Even if you emulsify the oil with lecithin or polysorbate, you have no way to confirm nano-sizing
• Without dynamic light scattering (DLS) or equivalent analysis, the mist you inhale may contain oversized particles or oil globules
What I've shared in this post is how to create alcohol-based tinctures. The reality is, however, that this is not a standardized method of consumption, and there is much that we still don't know in terms of its safety and efficacy across large populations. So, even though this shares information about how (in theory) in can be done, this is just information share - not advice or recommendations for individuals to interpret as medical advice.
After spending some time using the nebulizer for myself and letting my mother try it (can’t handle vaping or smoking cannabinoids without coughing heavily), I find it to be a great method of administration. She was able to sit with the nebulizer for 5 minutes or so with no lingering distress, and balance relief and effects. I look forward to encouraging it use at our cannabis boutique in a cannabis consultant for here in Lincolnton NC, and will report back any additional feedback from customers. Thanks again.
Really appreciate you sharing this! So glad to hear the nebulizer made a difference for your mother—finding a method that works without discomfort is huge. Excited to hear how it goes with your customers in Lincolnton. Keep me posted! 🌿
If you think there might be interest, I’ve done webinars for companies with medical patients who appreciate the learning. If that sounds like something your customers might enjoy, feel free to reach out! (info@CEDclinic.com)
Got a comment about nebulizers that others may have had...
> Hi Dr. Caplan,
> Would a cannabis tincture like this work (or if it doesn’t, would a mix of flower and tincture be good > for anything else)? Or should I try to track down everclear alcohol and try again?
Unfortunately, the oil-based tinctures won’t work, no - the cannabis parts are tightly wound up in the oil base that dominates oil tinctures, so the oil literally gums up the possibility of simple evaporation into the lungs. Whole grain alcohol, on the other hand, evaporates easily and quickly, and so with a neb system, you’re then just left with cannabis + saline in a liquid mixtures. The cannabis parts of the mixture are still a type of oil, so you’ll get gummy residue on the neb machine that need to be wiped out (protip: use rubbing alcohol when cleaning) but you won’t get any effect from oil tinctures because they just don't evaporate!
Hello Dr Caplan,
Thank you so much for the incredible nebulizer education. I was wondering if one was to make the saline solution could they use a canna infused salt in the solution?
Hi John - thank you for reading, and for the question .... I don't know anything about canna-infused salt (yet!). let me go learn more about it and I'll report back to you here! Love a new challenge, thank you!
Hi John: Basically, the short answer: homemade infused saline isn't safe to inhale.
1. Cannabinoids Aren’t Water-Soluble
• THC, CBD, CBG are lipophilic—they don’t dissolve in saline
• At home, the best you can do is suspend oils, but that just creates a dangerous aerosol of fat droplets
• Result: High risk of lipoid pneumonia, airway inflammation, or equipment damage
2. Nebulizers Are Meant for Aqueous, Sterile Solutions
• Designed to deliver ultra-fine mist (<5 microns) for deep lung penetration
• If oil or large particles are present:
• They don’t atomize properly
• They deposit in the alveoli where the lungs cannot clear them
• This leads to chronic inflammation, especially if unfiltered or contaminated
3. You Can’t Guarantee Sterility at Home
• Even using distilled water and boiling equipment, you can’t achieve aseptic technique
• Cannabis extract and emulsifiers can harbor bacteria, spores, or endotoxins
• Inhaled contamination = serious infection risk, including pneumonia or sepsis
4. You Can’t Control Particle Size
• Even if you emulsify the oil with lecithin or polysorbate, you have no way to confirm nano-sizing
• Without dynamic light scattering (DLS) or equivalent analysis, the mist you inhale may contain oversized particles or oil globules
What I've shared in this post is how to create alcohol-based tinctures. The reality is, however, that this is not a standardized method of consumption, and there is much that we still don't know in terms of its safety and efficacy across large populations. So, even though this shares information about how (in theory) in can be done, this is just information share - not advice or recommendations for individuals to interpret as medical advice.
Excited to give this a go this weekend.
Looking forward to it- please report back, and snap picture if any questions come up!
After spending some time using the nebulizer for myself and letting my mother try it (can’t handle vaping or smoking cannabinoids without coughing heavily), I find it to be a great method of administration. She was able to sit with the nebulizer for 5 minutes or so with no lingering distress, and balance relief and effects. I look forward to encouraging it use at our cannabis boutique in a cannabis consultant for here in Lincolnton NC, and will report back any additional feedback from customers. Thanks again.
Really appreciate you sharing this! So glad to hear the nebulizer made a difference for your mother—finding a method that works without discomfort is huge. Excited to hear how it goes with your customers in Lincolnton. Keep me posted! 🌿
If you think there might be interest, I’ve done webinars for companies with medical patients who appreciate the learning. If that sounds like something your customers might enjoy, feel free to reach out! (info@CEDclinic.com)
Got a comment about nebulizers that others may have had...
> Hi Dr. Caplan,
> Would a cannabis tincture like this work (or if it doesn’t, would a mix of flower and tincture be good > for anything else)? Or should I try to track down everclear alcohol and try again?
Unfortunately, the oil-based tinctures won’t work, no - the cannabis parts are tightly wound up in the oil base that dominates oil tinctures, so the oil literally gums up the possibility of simple evaporation into the lungs. Whole grain alcohol, on the other hand, evaporates easily and quickly, and so with a neb system, you’re then just left with cannabis + saline in a liquid mixtures. The cannabis parts of the mixture are still a type of oil, so you’ll get gummy residue on the neb machine that need to be wiped out (protip: use rubbing alcohol when cleaning) but you won’t get any effect from oil tinctures because they just don't evaporate!