I get a lot of questions about the Himalayan Salt Lamp:

What’s the big deal about these Himalayan Salt Lamps?

Do they really do what everybody says they do?

So the primary thing that Himalayan Salt Lamps “do” is that they induce negative ions into your environment. (We’ll get to that in a moment).

I have one in my sacred crystal studio here. He’s super heavy & pretty darn oversized —

he comes up to my knee.

himalayan salt lamp

I really like to have a salt lamp in just about every room of our home (2 in the bedroom; we have one on each of our nightstands on either side of our bed.)  My husband, Frankie, and I really enjoy having them in our home due to how they restructure the energy of our environment. 🙂

Salt is a crystal, halite to be exact, and it’s well-known for its cleansing and purifying properties. It is a very “soft” mineral (only a 2-2.5 on the Mohs Hardness scale) and is exceptionally water-soluble.  So don’t wet your lamp to clean it off… ever.

GEOGRAPHY FACTOID: Did you know that Himalayan Salt doesn’t actually even come from the Himalayas… but mined from a nearby salt mine: the Khewra Salt Mine in Pakistan, ~ 300 miles west of the Himalayan Mountains?

Now, look at this salt mine gorgeousness!!!

salt mine himalayan salt lamp

This was shot from inside the Khewra Salt Mine! Shikari7 [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]

Science Geekery

Due to the nature of salt and its ability to draw moisture out of a substance, if you live in a high-humidity climate, your salt lamp may “sweat” a bit.

Keeping your lamp frequently lit helps prevent any possible sweating due to the heat from the bulb or candle. I have all of mine on timers, so they go on for about 6 hours daily.

himalayan salt lamp

They’re great to have in a sacred space or anywhere you want to pump up the number of negative ions in a space... and that is something you’ll WANT to do.

What’s a negative ion?

Basic idea of an atom. Image author: Fastfission at en.wikipedia

The basic idea of an atom. Image author: Fastfission at en.wikipedia

SALT LAMP GEEK ALERT!!: A negative ion is an atom where the number of electrons whizzing around the outside is more than the number of protons in the nucleus, giving the atom or molecule a net negative electrical charge. Got it?

Most agree that the negative ions generated by a salt lamp happen via the photoelectric effect (the salt lamp emits electrons when struck by light).

Nature

Now, there are things in nature that are much better and more efficient at putting out negative ions than salt lamps, like mountains, waterfalls, beaches, or forests. Ionic minerals such as Tourmaline also produce them!

Geeky factoid: Very old-growth forests have higher negative ion output than a newer forest or a man-made planted forest. They put out thousands and thousands of negative ions.

Those are the spaces you want to be in.

Then there are times when you’re in an office or a home that always has its windows closed and no plants or doesn’t have much connection to the outdoors… when you have very little or no negative ions.  Like those offices that are considered “sick buildings,” where you can never open the windows. You can never get fresh air.  Where there are UV lights, you know, blinking away down at people all day long. YUCK!

Those areas usually have zero negative ions but an excess of positive ions.

So, what’s the big deal about negative ions?

Who cares? Who wants more “negative” anything? Sounds like a bad thing because I’m saying “negative ions”, right?

Well, It’s not a bad thing at all. 😉

Negative ions are actually something that we need to help balance ourselves because we are bombarded with positive ions, especially from the electronics we’re surrounded by all day long.  Having more negative ions in your environment actually has beneficial biochemical effects for us and does a great job of de-stressing us.

Finding Balance with a Salt Lamp

The goal is to have a balance of both negative + positive ions. Not an overabundance of positive ions… which is how many of us now live today.

We want to have those negative ions within our space because it helps increase certain hormones in our physical body that actually benefit us in lots of ways; like Serotonin. Serotonin alleviates depression if you’re levels are balanced.

It’s also been said that a healthy balance of negative ions can:

  • relieve stress
  • boost your energy
  • boost your immune system
  • balance the air quality in a space by reducing dust, pollen & bacteria

Obvious benefits, right? Things that we’d like to have 🙂

What about EMF?

Some salt lamps use electricity to light their glow & some use candlelight. The bulbs used to light them from within are very low wattage, so I’m not concerned with the amount of EMF emitting from them, and you can insulate the wires with an EMF-blocking material if you’re worried about being too close to them.

As I said before, Himalayan Salt Lamps produce negative ions, but they are not like mega-producers. Nature is your BEST source! So, using them in an environment where you are really cut off from nature is most beneficial. Where you just don’t have a better option and can’t get a lot of energy from outdoors.

And, of course, use them wherever you just want the space to feel clearer, fresher, closer to nature or to create a more serene, sacred retreat space for yourself.

HM.Blog2.18

In my space, I can open up lots of windows. I also have big sliding glass doors to open up and be one with the outdoors.

I love to have that energy coming in.  But the salt lamp helps to really boost it.

And the bigger the better!

If you’re in the market for one, you can grab them here. 

Topaz is a smart cookie, you know!

Topaz is a smart cookie, you know! Our animals always know.

Evidence! Evidence! Give Me Evidence!

Himalayan Salt Lamps have been tested by negative ion measuring devices by various labs. Although the test results vary, many results show that they do produce negative ions, but not much.

Yeah, but they produce something, and I feel that something is so much better than nothing.

And many of us feel the differences, which is better than any lab test for me because the lab tests are so very limited in WHAT they can measure.

Overall, I enjoy having the lamps in my space and encourage using them in your space along with waterfalls and other things like that, which can also help boost the negative ions in your environment. In my experience, they’re unique crystals for neutralizing negative energy. So, go for it.

Here’s one that I really like and recommend (a relatively good size). 

Do you use Himalayan Salt Lamps in your space or around your home? Do you feel the benefits? Let me know in the comments below.

Crystal Blessings,