Introduction to Saffron:
Saffron is one of the most expensive spices and comes from the dried stigma of the flower of the saffron crocus – it is used in cooking as a seasoning and as a colouring agent.
Saffron is native to Southwest Asia and has a bitter taste and contains a carotenoid dye, crocin, that gives food a rich golden-yellow colour.
Recent research has shown a diet containing saffron can protect the eye from damage caused by bright sunlight and slow the progress of genetic diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa.
The researchers also found saffron had a beneficial effect in humans suffering from age-related macular degeneration, the most common form of blindness in old age. Early tests by the researchers, however, have revealed that patients showed signs of cell recovery after being given saffron in their diet.
Saffron has also been linked as an affective treatment for depression. Like other medications used to treat depression, saffron may exert its antidepressant activity by increasing the levels of certain chemicals in the brain, including serotonin. Crocin and safranal are believed to be the active components of the plant. The new study compared the effects of saffron with fluoxetine on the symptoms of mild to moderate depression. Participants were given 30 mg of dried extract of saffron daily.
At the end of the study, both the saffron and fluoxetine treatments resulted in significant improvements in depressive symptoms, with no difference in the amount of improvement between the two groups.
The frequency of side effects was similar in the two groups; however, there were no reports of sexual dysfunction, tremor, or sweating in the saffron group.
