Himalayan salt and salt lamps

The pink salt sold as “Himalayan salt” does not come from the Himalayas but from the Salt Range in the Punjab region of Pakistan, above all from the Khewra salt mine. It comes from thick salt beds left by seas that dried up some 600 to 540 million years ago. Its mineral name is halite; 96–99 percent of it is sodium chloride, the same as table salt, and its pink and reddish colours come from trace minerals in some veins. A salt lamp is an ornament made by placing a light bulb inside a hollowed-out block of this salt. Claims that it cleans the air, gives off “negative ions” or benefits health have no scientific basis.

Cooking salt: It is ground and used like table salt; nutritionally it is no different from table salt. Ornaments: Hollowed-out blocks fitted with a bulb are sold as salt lamps, and the salt is also made into candle holders, serving plates and wall bricks. Livestock: Blocks of rock salt are used as salt licks for animals.

Its best-known localities: Khewra, Salt Range, Punjab, Pakistan.

Real rock salt tastes salty and dissolves in water; in humid air its surface slowly becomes wet. When broken, it tends to split into cube-shaped pieces, because halite cleaves in three directions at right angles. It is soft: it can be scratched with difficulty by a fingernail and easily by a copper coin. Some cheap “salt lamps” are not rock salt at all but glass or plastic imitations tinted orange. A real salt lamp tastes salty, sweats in humid air and leaves a trace of salt on your fingers.

On the “street to diamond” value ladder it sits on step 2 of nine: Raw material by the tonne. Himalayan salt is the same mineral as ordinary table salt; it sells for more because of its colour, origin and marketing, not its chemistry. For salt lamps, the size, colour and workmanship of the block and the quality of the electrical parts determine the value. Nutritionally, Himalayan salt is no better than table salt: its sodium content is similar, and its trace minerals are not present in amounts that matter for health.

According to salt lamp sellers, the lamp gives off “negative ions” when it warms up; these ions are said to clean the air and neutralise “harmful radiation” from electronic devices. The same sources claim that salt lamps relieve allergies and asthma, improve sleep, reduce stress and lift the mood. In some countries of Central and Eastern Europe, spending time in salt caves (speleotherapy, halotherapy) is believed to help asthma and respiratory diseases. Claims that salt lamps release health-giving ions or clean the air have no scientific basis; the lamp is simply a block of salt warmed by the bulb inside, and its light can make a room feel cosy. The idea that it “absorbs” radiation from electronic devices also contradicts physics. A Cochrane systematic review of salt-cave therapy concluded that the available evidence does not allow a reliable conclusion as to whether it works for asthma. Salt lamps or salt caves should never replace asthma or allergy medicines. This section reports beliefs; it is not health information. There is no scientific evidence for these claims and no stone replaces medical treatment.

In humid air a salt lamp absorbs moisture and can drip; the salty water can damage the electrical parts and furniture. Use the lamp in a dry place on a sturdy base, and check its cable and bulb holder regularly. Cats and dogs that lick the lamp can suffer salt poisoning, so keep it out of pets’ reach. Himalayan salt is usually not iodised; using only this salt in place of table salt can increase the risk of iodine deficiency.