سلاجیت · mumijo, mineral pitch
Weak evidence
Enormously popular here, thinly studied, and the contamination risk is the real story.
This is information, not medical advice. This page is information, not medical advice. Nothing here is a prescription, a diagnosis or a recommendation to take anything, and none of it replaces a doctor who knows your history. Supplements are not harmless because they are natural: they interact with prescription medicines, some are unsafe in pregnancy, and a few can cause real damage. Talk to a doctor or pharmacist before starting anything here, especially if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, under 18, have a liver, kidney or heart condition, or take any regular medication. Never stop a prescribed antidepressant to try a supplement instead.
A tar-like substance that seeps from rocks in the Himalaya and Karakoram, sold as a tonic for energy and vitality.
Human trials are few and mostly concern fatigue, testosterone and altitude performance rather than mood, and they are small. There is no good evidence it treats depression. What it is reliably associated with is a strong traditional reputation and very variable product quality.
Studies used roughly 250 to 500 mg daily of purified extract. Raw unpurified resin is not the same thing.
Recorded because a person who has decided to try something will find a number somewhere, and a forum's number is worse than a trial's. It is not a recommendation, and the right amount for you depends on things only a doctor who knows your history can weigh.
This is the important part. Raw shilajit can carry heavy metals including lead and arsenic, and fungal contamination; only purified, tested product should ever be taken. Avoid entirely in pregnancy, in children, and in anyone with haemochromatosis, since it contains iron. Avoid if you have gout, as it may raise uric acid.
Sold everywhere, often as unlabelled resin of unknown origin and purity, sometimes at very high prices. If you cannot see evidence of purification and testing, do not take it.
Tell your doctor or pharmacist about everything else you take, prescription and herbal both. If you are pregnant, breastfeeding, under 18, or have a liver, kidney, heart or thyroid condition, ask first. And if what brought you here is that you have been feeling low or frightened for weeks, that deserves more than a supplement — ask us anything, anonymously, or talk to us on WhatsApp.