saffron for anxiety usage and side effects
Written by Vahid Epagloo, Food Consultant

Ancient saffron users believe that this spice could boost mood. They called it as sunshine spice. Due to this effect, experts claim that this spice could be a great treatment for stress, depression and anxiety.

Anxiety the problem of these days

Nowadays, life is full of anxiety and stress. Experts claim that one out of four people experience anxiety and its bad effect like depression and other mental disorders. These problems have medical treatments like psychotherapy, electroconvulsive therapy and antidepressant drugs. Unfortunately, all these treatments have harmful effects on the body. All patients avoid using these treatments because of the harms.

It has been proved that using saffron could be as effective as antidepressant and anti-anxiety drugs like Citalopram and Fluoxetine. In addition, using this spice the safe extent should not have any harm effects. Doctors prescribe using the sunshine spice instead of chemical drugs.

Saffron for anxiety reviews

According to the effect of red gold on mood and anxiety, the scientists decide to do experiments on this herb and its effects. Lots of studies over this topic have been done. We review some of these researches.

Animal test

Experts give animals doses of saffron for 8 weeks, and test the effects of it on their bodies and behaviors. The results amazingly proved the health benefits of this spice and its effect on the body and mood.
The saffron user group results showed that this herb could improve users’ mood and reduce anxiety and depression.

102 patients

There was an 8-month test in 2012, in which 102 patients participated. These patients are divided into three groups. The group one used diazepam as a drug for anxiety. Group two was the control group. And the third group used saffron as an anti-anxiety treatment.

The results showed that both the diazepam and saffron groups reported reduction of anxiety and depression factor. In the control group, anxiety and depression levels increased or were stable.
The using amount of the sunshine spice in the group was about 25 mg per day. This amount of sunshine spice was more effective than the diazepam. In addition, the diazepam group has problems with the harmful effects of the chemical drugs on their bodies.

A review of 23 tests

The results of these studies include the positive effects on depressive and anxiety symptoms. These tests showed that if patients use saffron for anxiety and depression, they feel a better mood after a while with less harmful chemical drug effects.

In some of these studies, it is said that using this spice before sleep will help you to experience more relaxed and calm sleep.

20 Randomized control studies

The result of these studies agreed the positive effects of the golden spice on depression and anxiety.
The researchers claim that saffron could call as the safest treatment for anxiety and mild to moderate depression.

Many systematic reviews and meta-analyses proved that this magical spice is a natural agent to improve and boost mood in the people with anxiety and depression.

The Benefits of using Saffron for anxiety

Saffron for anxiety is as effective as medication. Fortunately, this spice causes no harm to the body except in some special cases like pregnancy. You can use it without being worried about harmful effects. Just be careful about the dosage.

saffron for anxiety how to use

There are various treatments for anxiety and depression. Most of them are chemical, lots of people do not want to use chemical drugs to fight anxiety and depression.

Actually, the use of chemical drugs makes them another mental problem like overthinking, or using these medications they may believe that they are hardly sick, in these cases, treatment would stop or take a lot of time. Experts try to prescribe herbal treatment for these kinds of patients; saffron is one of the best herbs, which helps a lot.

Nowadays, everybody, even scientists, believe that herbal medicine could help to cure some sicknesses, and they start to use their prescriptions for patients.

The prescribed doses of saffron for anxiety

Saffron has lots of health benefits, but you should not use it more than 150 gr per day. Experts believe that using 30 mg of this spice per day is enough for all of the benefits, though more than 150 gr may cause bad effects like poisoning.

Doctors prescribe using saffron for anxiety twice a day, each time 14 mg in beverages like water, tea, syrups and milk. They also say that at maximum 30 mg of this spice per day is enough for treatment of anxiety and depression.

Do not use saffron for anxiety or depression without your doctor’s prescriptions. That is right that this spice is full of great and useful ingredients and has lots of wonderful effects on the body, but using it in some cases is prohibited.

In addition, if you use other medications it could affect that. If you use this spice regularly, let your doctor know about it.

Some experts prescribe 15 mg dose of this spice in the morning, in order to improve your mood, and 15 mg doses in the afternoon or at night, due to calm and relax sleep. In order to see the treatment effect, you should use this spice for 42 to 56 days.

Conclusion

The treatment effect of the sunshine spice on most mental disorders like anxiety, depression, sleep disturbances and stress was proved by many studies. It means that you can use this spice as a drug in these cases, but do not forget to have a medical consultation with your doctor.
The dosage and prohibited conditions must be considered. If you do not comply, it may cause serious problems.

Frequently Asked Questions

1) Is it effective to use saffron for anxiety?

Yes, it is not just effective; this spice is a great and harmless treatment for anxiety.

2) How much saffron can I use for treatment?

Doctors prescribe 14 mg of this spice twice a day for treatment, and at maximum 30 mg use of it per day.

3) Does using saffron for anxiety have harmful effects on the body?

No, using this spice as a drug for anxiety and depression is harmless, but be careful about prohibited cases.