Shilajit，一种在喜马拉雅山脉发现的焦油状黑色矿物质，正在经历显著的市场繁荣。自2018年以来，Shilajit产品的全球市场规模已增长一倍以上，达到2.21亿美元，其中仅北美地区就占了该需求的三分之一以上。虽然它在历史上被用于西藏和阿育吠陀印度医学，但由于现代健康趋势、外貌管理（looksmaxxing）社群以及像Joe Rogan这样将其视为天然类固醇的人士的代言，其受欢迎程度急剧上升。补充剂的范围从价格数百或数千美元的纯树脂，到大众市场的选择，例如Target售价9.99美元的软糖。

这种原料传统上是由被称为amchis的当地草药医生从喜马拉雅山陡峭的悬崖上采集，他们必须攀爬到4,876.8米（16,000英尺）的极端海拔进行采集。收割过程极其危险，需要团队使用绳索、滑轮、火绳枪或炸药来使黏稠的树脂脱落。Ladakh Naturals的共同创办人Tashi Gyaltsan和Majestic Ladakh的创办人Jikmet Nurbu指出，由于资源枯竭导致采集者被迫攀爬到更高的地方，致命坠落的物理风险已经加剧。

这种日益增长的全球商业化，加上全球变暖的影响，已严重损害了Shilajit的品质并威胁到当地的生态系统。随著供应量迅速萎缩，采集者报告称，可直接生吃的优质「黄金级」Shilajit已变得越来越罕见，使市场充斥著较低品质的产品。环境变化与过度收割的结合，已将寻找这种物质的过程转变为一项高度危险的任务，使得高品质的Shilajit比雪豹还要难以寻找。

Shilajit, a tarlike black mineral found in the Himalayas, is experiencing a significant market boom. The global market for shilajit products has more than doubled since 2018, reaching $221 million, with North America alone accounting for more than one-third of this demand. While historically used in Tibetan and Ayurvedic medicine, its popularity has surged due to modern wellness trends, looksmaxxing communities, and endorsements from figures like Joe Rogan, who views it as a natural steroid. Supplements range from pure resins costing hundreds or thousands of dollars to mass-market options like Target's $9.99 gummies.

The raw material is traditionally gathered from steep cliffs in the Himalayas by local medicine men known as amchis, who must climb to extreme elevations of 4,876.8 meters (16,000 feet) to forage. Harvesting is highly dangerous and requires teams using ropes, pulleys, and matchlock rifles or dynamite to dislodge the sticky resin. Tashi Gyaltsan, co-founder of Ladakh Naturals, and Jikmet Nurbu, founder of Majestic Ladakh, note that the physical risks of deadly falls have intensified as foragers are forced to climb higher due to depleted resources.

This growing global commercialization, coupled with the effects of global warming, has severely compromised the quality of shilajit and threatened the local ecosystem. With supplies shrinking rapidly, foragers report that the premium "gold grade" shilajit, which can be eaten raw, is increasingly rare, leaving the market saturated with lower-quality products. The combination of environmental changes and over-harvesting has transformed the search for this substance into a highly hazardous endeavor, making high-quality shilajit harder to find than a snow leopard.