# Sadeghi 2020: shilajit and fracture healing trial

Source: https://shilajit.uk/research/sadeghi-2020-fracture-healing/
Author: Sam Rowan · Updated 2026-10-16

**Short answer:** In a randomised, double-blind trial at three Tehran hospitals, 160 adults with a broken shin bone took two 500 mg capsules of momiai (shilajit) or placebo daily for 28 days after surgery. Average healing time was 129 days on shilajit and 153 days on placebo. Side effects were no more common than with placebo.

In Persian medicine, shilajit is called momiai and has a long reputation for mending broken bones. This trial, run across three hospitals in Tehran, put that tradition to a proper test. It is the largest randomised trial of shilajit on its own, and the only one with a clinical outcome that patients care about directly: how long it takes a broken bone to heal.

Bones healed about three and a half weeks sooner on momiai than on placebo. The result is promising, but it only just reached statistical significance and has not been repeated.

## What did the Sadeghi 2020 study do?

Adults aged 18 to 60 admitted with a new fracture of the tibia (shin bone) were randomly split into two equal groups. After surgery, one group took two 500 mg capsules of momiai a day for 28 days and the other took placebo capsules. Neither patients nor researchers knew who had which. Healing was tracked with repeated X-rays, and side effects were recorded (Sadeghi et al., 2020).

| Detail | What the study reports |
| --- | --- |
| Design | Randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, two groups |
| Participants | 160 adults aged 18 to 60 with a new tibial fracture, in two equal groups |
| Setting | Three hospitals in Tehran, Iran |
| Dose | Two 500 mg capsules a day (1,000 mg a day) |
| Product | Momiai capsules; the source and processing are not described in the abstract |
| Length | 28 days of supplementation; followed until the bone healed |
| Outcomes | Time to bone union on X-ray; side effects |
| Results | Mean time to union 129 days on momiai vs 153 days on placebo (p < 0.049) |
| Side effects | No significant difference between groups (p = 0.839) |
| Funding and conflicts | Not stated in the PubMed record |
| Dropouts | Not reported in the abstract |
| Main limitations | Borderline significance, product not described, not repeated, X-ray judgement of healing |

## What did it find?

On average, the shin bone reached union, meaning it had knitted back together on X-ray, in 129 days in the momiai group and 153 days in the placebo group. That is a difference of 24 days, or about 16%. The two groups were similar at the start in age and other characteristics.

Side effects were reported about equally in both groups, with no significant difference (p = 0.839). The abstract does not list what the side effects were.

## What does this mean?

It is meaningful evidence that shilajit might speed bone healing. In this trial healing took four to five months on average, so three weeks sooner would matter to patients. The trial is large by shilajit standards, the outcome is practical rather than a blood marker, and the double-blind design limits bias.

It also sits alongside a separate 48-week trial in which shilajit slowed bone loss in postmenopausal women (see [Pingali 2022](/research/pingali-2022-bone-density/)). Two trials in different people, using different products, pointing the same way is more convincing than either alone. That is why we grade shilajit for [bone health](/benefits/bone-health/) as moderate.

## What doesn't it show?

- **A clear-cut effect.** The p-value was just under the conventional 0.05 cut-off. Results this close to the line are more likely than others to disappear when a study is repeated.
- **Fewer complications.** The abstract does not report non-union, re-operations or return to work, which matter as much as average healing time.
- **What product to use.** The abstract does not say where the momiai came from, how it was processed or whether it was tested for heavy metals. Shilajit can contain lead, arsenic and mercury, and one analysis of Indian and Pakistani samples found levels above permissible limits (Aldakheel et al., 2022).
- **That it helps other fractures.** Only shin bone fractures treated with surgery were studied.

## How much should we trust it?

Reasonably, for a single trial. It is randomised, blinded and large enough to detect a real difference, and its outcome is one that patients care about. Against that, the result is borderline, the product is not described in the abstract, no funding statement appears in the PubMed record, and no other team has repeated it.

If you have a broken bone, don't add any supplement without checking with your surgeon or GP, who will know what other medicines you are taking. See [is shilajit safe?](/safety/) and our guide to [heavy metals in shilajit](/safety/heavy-metals/).

## Where does this study fit?

This trial is one of two moderate-quality studies on our [shilajit and bone health](/benefits/bone-health/) page. It used the highest daily dose of the main trials, 1,000 mg, which you can compare on our [dosage](/how-to-take-shilajit/dosage/) page. For the full list of human trials, see the [research library](/research/).

## Frequently asked questions

### How much faster did bones heal on shilajit?

On average 24 days faster: 129 days to bone union on momiai compared with 153 days on placebo. The difference was only just statistically significant (p < 0.049).

### Is momiai the same as shilajit?

Yes. Momiai is the name used in Persian medicine. The study authors list shilajit, mummy, mumie and mineral pitch as other names for the same substance.

### Should I take shilajit after breaking a bone?

Talk to your surgeon or GP first. This is one trial, the product used isn't identified in the abstract, and shilajit hasn't been tested alongside the painkillers and other medicines often used after surgery.

## References

1. [Sadeghi SMH et al. Efficacy of Momiai in Tibia Fracture Repair: A Randomized Double-Blinded Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial. J Altern Complement Med. 2020;26(6):521-528.](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32310691/)
2. [Pingali U, Nutalapati C. Shilajit extract reduces oxidative stress, inflammation, and bone loss to dose-dependently preserve bone mineral density in postmenopausal women with osteopenia. Phytomedicine. 2022;105:154334.](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35933897/)
3. [Aldakheel RK et al. Rapid Determination and Quantification of Nutritional and Poisonous Metals in Vastly Consumed Ayurvedic Herbal Medicine (Rejuvenator Shilajit). Biol Trace Elem Res. 2022;200(9):4199-4216.](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34800280/)