Guide · Last updated: October 2026

Shilajit, cholesterol and cortisol: the sober picture

Shilajit has no authorised EU claim relating to cholesterol, blood lipids or cortisol, and no such effect has been demonstrated in humans. For blood lipids there is a single small human study of 30 young adults from 2003; for cortisol there are only animal experiments and one case report. If you take cholesterol-lowering or other medication, talk to your doctor before taking it.

Two questions have been showing up in Shilajit searches for weeks: one about cholesterol and one about cortisol. Online you often find short answers with big promises. This article shows what the scientific literature actually contains, how much weight it carries, and what that means for you. It is about Shilajit in general, not about any particular product.

The short answer

No effect of Shilajit on cholesterol, blood lipids or cortisol has been demonstrated in humans. In the EU there is no authorised health claim for Shilajit, mumijo or fulvic acid under Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006, so none for these values either. If you have raised blood lipids or live with chronic stress, the right place is a doctor, not a food supplement.

Shilajit and cholesterol: what the studies show

A search for Shilajit and cholesterol in the PubMed literature database returns only three results; a search for Shilajit and lipids returns a few more. These are the papers that matter for humans:

Study	Who and how long	What was measured	Assessment
Sharma et al., 2003	30 students aged 16 to 30 without known conditions, 20 on Shilajit and 10 on placebo, 45 days	Blood lipids, liver and kidney values, blood count	small, short, only young people without known conditions; reports reduced triglyceride and cholesterol values
Martinez et al., 2025	166 adults with risk factors, 109 completed, 12 weeks alongside exercise and diet	Blood lipids, vascular markers, body composition	combination of chromium, amla and 6 to 12 mg Shilajit; effect cannot be attributed to Shilajit alone
Ghezelbash et al., 2020	Rats with fatty liver from a high-fat diet	Blood lipids, liver values	animal experiment, does not transfer to humans

The 2003 study is the only one that tested Shilajit alone in humans against placebo and analysed blood lipids. Participants took 2 g of purified Shilajit a day. That is several times the daily amounts usually stated on resin products (more in the article on dosage). The study appeared in a small Ayurvedic journal, and the preparation was made by one of the authors.

In the 2025 study, Shilajit was present only in milligram amounts within a blend, and all groups exercised and cut calories at the same time. How much of any change is down to Shilajit cannot be said. A few further small animal studies record blood lipids only as a side finding.

No effect can be derived from this data. There are no studies in people with high cholesterol values, in older people, or on intake over several months.

Shilajit and cortisol: what is known

Cortisol is the main human stress hormone. For Shilajit, the evidence here is even thinner than for blood lipids. A search for Shilajit and cortisol in PubMed returns two results; one further rat study measures the equivalent rodent stress hormone.

Study	What was studied	Relevance to humans
Surapaneni et al., 2012	Rats exhausted over 21 days, corticosterone measured	none, animal experiment with artificial stress
Agwaan, 2026	18 lambs in three groups during summer heat, blood cortisol	none, livestock study
Stavropoulos et al., 2018	Case report: a pregnant woman with high blood pressure and low potassium after 6 months of mumijo	single case, but a hint at possible side effects

Animal experiments do not transfer to humans, not least because dose, stress model and metabolism differ. We found no human study with cortisol as an outcome.

The case report is the only human finding related to cortisol metabolism. The doctors describe it as a liquorice-like syndrome, in which the breakdown of cortisol in the kidney is disturbed, leading to high blood pressure and potassium loss. Treatment was potassium and stopping the mumijo. One case does not prove a link, but it shows why pregnant women and people with high blood pressure should be cautious.

What authorities and consumer advocates say

The German consumer advice centre Verbraucherzentrale (in German) points out that there is no proof of effect for mumijo, that heavy metals have repeatedly been found, and that humic acids can bind medicines in the gut. That matters for anyone on regular medication, including cholesterol-lowering drugs. How doctors and authorities see Shilajit overall is summarised in What do doctors and authorities say about Shilajit?.

When to ask your doctor

Situation	Why	Recommendation
You take statins or other cholesterol-lowering drugs	interactions hardly studied	talk to a doctor or pharmacist first
You have raised blood lipids but no treatment yet	the cause needs to be clarified	have it checked first
You have high blood pressure or cardiovascular disease	case report on blood pressure and potassium	only after medical advice
You take corticosteroids or have an adrenal condition	effect on cortisol metabolism not studied	only after medical advice
You are pregnant or breastfeeding	no safety data	not without medical advice

Never stop prescribed medication on your own. More on risk groups is in the articles on possible side effects and on Shilajit and the liver.

What you can check instead

Whether Shilajit changes your blood values is not something you can judge reliably yourself. What you can check is the product:

Ask for batch values: individual results for lead, cadmium, mercury and arsenic with batch number and analysis date.
Ignore advertising promises. Promises about cholesterol, blood lipids or stress hormones are not authorised for Shilajit in the EU.
Do not exceed the stated daily amount.
Mention every product to the practice when blood is taken, and bring the batch number.

What we can state about our resin

About HimalayaFIT, only verifiable facts belong here: our 20 g jar carries batch number HM-SH-25-BLY-1159. The batch was tested for heavy metals and microbiology by an accredited food laboratory in Germany, and the values are on the lab results page and in the batch datasheet. We make no statement about cholesterol, blood lipids or cortisol. If you decide on Shilajit after talking to your doctor, the jar is in the shop, and more background is in the guide.

Food supplements are not a substitute for a balanced and varied diet.

Frequently asked questions

Does Shilajit affect cholesterol levels?

That has not been demonstrated, and it may not be claimed in the EU: no claim on cholesterol has been authorised for Shilajit. The only targeted human study dates from 2003, had 20 participants in the Shilajit group and 10 on placebo, and ran for 45 days. A result like that is an early observation, not proof. Raised blood lipids belong with a doctor.

Does Shilajit lower cortisol?

There is no evidence for that in humans. The papers that measure cortisol, or corticosterone, the rodent stress hormone, are animal experiments in rats and lambs under artificially induced stress. We found no human study in PubMed that looks at cortisol as an outcome. There is no authorised claim for cortisol either.

Are there studies on Shilajit and blood lipids?

Yes, but very few. In humans there is a small 2003 study using 2 g a day for 45 days, and a 2025 study of a combination product in which Shilajit was only a very small amount alongside chromium and amla, so no effect can be attributed to Shilajit alone. Beyond that there are animal experiments, for example in rats with diet-induced fatty liver. Large, robust studies are missing.

Can I take Shilajit with statins or other cholesterol medication?

Check with your doctor or pharmacist first. Interactions between Shilajit and medicines have hardly been studied, and humic substances may bind medicines in the gut. Never stop prescribed medication on your own or replace it with a food supplement.

Can Shilajit distort blood test results?

This has not been studied. If you take Shilajit and have blood taken, tell the practice anyway, as with any other product. A case report from Greece describes high blood pressure and low potassium in a pregnant woman after months of taking mumijo; she was treated with potassium and by stopping the product.