Saffron: The Mental Health Herb
Saffron has established itself as a leading herb for mental health, benefitting everything from depression and anxiety to insomnia, Alzheimer’s, OCD and ADHD. Now, a massive review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses on saffron’s effect on neurological and psychiatric disorders has reinforced the evidence.
The systematic review of systematic reviews included 23 studies. 13 of them looked at the effect of saffron on depression. Every one of them found a positive effect compared to both placebo and antidepressant drugs.
Three reviews of anxiety all found that saffron improved symptoms in mild to moderate anxiety.
Three systematic reviews looked at saffron’s effect on cognition. Two showed saffron was better than placebo and as good as pharmaceutical drugs for Alzheimer’s, while another found that saffron is better than placebo for both Alzheimer’s and mild cognitive impairment.
Six systematic reviews had sexual dysfunction as their area of investigation. Five of the six had positive results, helping everything from erectile dysfunction and sperm quantity and motility to female sexual dysfunction.
Several other conditions were shown by the systematic reviews to benefit from saffron, including, the depression and anxiety of PMS, postpartum depression, social phobia, separation anxiety, stress and tension. Saffron can also curb binge snacking and aid weight loss. It improves sleep, decreases fatigue, mood disturbances and confusion, while increasing vigor.
This systematic review of systematic reviews gathered all the information together. It found that saffron safely benefits a host of mental health and neurological disorders, firmly establishing saffron as an important herb for mental health.
Avicenna J Phytomed. 2022;12(5):475-488.
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