Saffron For Weight Loss?

If you're on the same Internet I am, you have possibly been seeing claims that the spice, saffron, is a good weight loss product.

You may have never directly encountered saffron, but you may have had saffron tea, saffron rice, a saffron colored dress... or, you may have heard the song by Donovan (good name) in the 60's, "Mellow Yellow". In it, the singer confides that, "I'm just mad about Saffron", apparently a girl with a hippie name.

However, despite possibly hearing the word, most of us don't really know much about the actual spice.

So, what is saffron, how is it used, and is it really good for weight loss?

Saffron is sometimes referred to as "The King of Spices". While this may have to do with its many different uses, many believe that it is simply a reference to how expensive saffron is. In fact, based on weight, saffron is possibly the most expensive spice.

Now, this cost doesn't have as much to do with the usefulness of the spice, either. It's actually the result of the extensive, and expensive, process of extracting the spice. It is a long, involved process, resulting in a raw product that currently sells on one website I know about at $150 per ounce.

The upside is, that in all its uses, saffron needs only very small quantities to work its various "magic".

Saffron (Crocus sativus) is used as an aromatic, a culinary herb, and, in various preparations, as a health supplement... usually in combination with other spices or herbs.

It has been used for centuries to relieve anxiety and enhance serotonin production, although in the old days, users and herbalists didn't really know much about why... and they certainly didn't know about serotonin.

Enhanced serotonin levels help elevate mood... hence the ability to relive anxiety, but how does this work for weight loss.

Glad you asked... I have ADHD and was wandering off track.

Many weight loss products work directly on the weight problem by various means, such as by suppressing appetite, creating a feeling of fullness, by blocking absorption of fats or carbohydrates, or by boosting metabolism. Safron, on the other hand, does most of its weight loss work, just by getting rid of that anxiety we mentioned earlier.

For many of us, some of the extra, unnecessary, calories we consume are eaten because of anxiety.

Hey! I've heard that word before!

Anyway, a saffron weight loss supplement does a lot of its work by cutting down on anxiety eating and binge eating. However, the calming effect of saffron also helps reduce the production of excess cortisol.

While not as evil as TV ads would make us believe, cortisol, at least in excess, is like a caveman trapped in New York City. In our modern world, daily anxiety causes us to produce cortisol without the following relaxation felt by a caveman after being chased by a bear. Too much cortisol wandering around loose can cause us to pack on the pounds.

Conversely, being able to relax a bit, whether through exercise, meditation, or supplements can help cut down on that excess cortisol and, as a result, help us lose weight as well.

SAFFRON AND DEPRESSION

When anxiety becomes long-term and impossible to deal with, it may be clinical depression.

This condition may add to the weight loss problem and can even be part of a cycle.

Recent studies seem to indicate that, while treatment of clinical depression should be left to medical experts, saffron, for some people, can provide many of the benefits of prescription antidepressants without the side effects. In fact, it has been shown to even block many lingering side effects, especially those of sexual dysfunction.

Bottom line is that for some people saffron for weight loss can be at least a helper by relieving the effect that anxiety can have on weight gain.