Saffron (Crocus sativus extract)
affron® standardised saffron extract, 28 mg/day (≥3.5% Lepticrosalides®); Safr'Inside™ 30 mg/day is the alternative with objective-sleep data
Strong
Several good studies agree
Eight RCTs pooled in a 2022 meta-analysis all point the same direction, and a 2025 EEG-headband pilot confirms the subjective effect on objective latency and WASO.
Across 8 studies with about 600 people, sleep quality improved by a clear, meaningful margin on the standard questionnaires, and insomnia got milder.
Meta-analysis (8 RCTs, n=611): PSQI −2.14 points (95% CI −2.86 to −1.42); insomnia severity (ISI) −2.63 (95% CI −3.70 to −2.55).
Crocin and safranal modulate serotonergic and GABAergic transmission and inhibit serotonin reuptake; an evening dose raised evening salivary melatonin versus placebo, consistent with a shift in sleep-onset drive rather than sedation.
Adults with self-reported poor sleep or mild-to-moderate insomnia, especially when low mood travels with it; older adults with sleep complaints showed the objective EEG gains.
We compare each effect with how much that number normally swings from one night to the next. An effect smaller than the swing is real, but you will not see it in a week of data.
- Sleep efficiency (EEG)Probably visibleeffect: 5.4 ppnormal swing: ±4.5 pp
What to buy
- ✓affron® standardised saffron extract, 28 mg/day (≥3.5% Lepticrosalides®); Safr'Inside™ 30 mg/day is the alternative with objective-sleep data
- ✓28–30 mg/day of standardised extract (14 mg twice daily or 28 mg once); 20 mg/day also effective in the 2025 insomnia trial
- ✓Third-party tested (USP, NSF, Informed Sport)
- ✕Proprietary blends that hide the dose per ingredient
- ✕Unstandardised extracts with no active-compound percentage
- · Avoid in pregnancy: doses well above supplemental levels are uterotonic and abortifacient.
- · Contraindicated in bleeding disorders; saffron inhibits platelet aggregation in vitro.
- · Doses of 5 g are toxic (purpura, thrombocytopenia); supplement doses of 28–100 mg are far below this.
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The affron® extract standardised to Lepticrosalides® — the exact material used in the mood and sleep trials, at the trial dose of 28 mg.
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The cheapest single-ingredient saffron per capsule, and the best-selling one. It is not affron®-standardised, so check the crocin percentage on the label before you treat it as equivalent.
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One capsule equals the trial dose exactly — no splitting, no counting. The highest-rated of the dose-matched options.
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See all on AmazonEvery result, next to the line that means no effect
Each diamond is a study's best estimate. The thin line shows how sure the study was: the shorter the line, the more certain the result.
- PSQI global scorepoints · Meta-analysis 2022, 8 RCTs (n=611)−2.14−2.86 … −1.42
- Insomnia Severity Indexpoints · Meta-analysis 2022, 8 RCTs (n=611)−2.63−3.70 … −2.55
- Sleep-onset latency (EEG)% · RCT 2025, n=52, Dreem EEG, 4 wks (p=0.03)−21.0%[not given]
- Sleep efficiency (EEG)pp · RCT 2025, n=52, Dreem EEG, 4 wks (p=0.04)+5.40[not given]
Each unit gets its own scale, so numbers are never mixed on one line. When a study gave no range, we leave it blank instead of inventing one.
5 studies over 6 years
The studies
- 1.Effects of saffron supplementation on improving sleep quality: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trialsSleep Medicine · 2022 · meta-analysis · 8 experiments · n = 611
PSQI −2.14 (95% CI −2.86 to −1.42) and ISI −2.63 (95% CI −3.70 to −2.55) versus placebo; no serious adverse events.
- 2.A standardised saffron extract improves subjective and objective sleep quality in healthy older adults with sleep complaints: results from the gut-sleep-brain axis randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot studyFood & Function · 2025 · pilot · n = 52
Safr'Inside 30 mg/day for 4 weeks: PSQI −21.3% (p=0.02), EEG sleep-onset latency −21% (p=0.03), WASO −6.1% (p=0.0004), sleep efficiency +5.4% vs −14.7% placebo (p=0.04); total sleep time unchanged.
- 3.An investigation into an evening intake of a saffron extract (affron®) on sleep quality, cortisol, and melatonin concentrations in adults with poor sleep: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-dose studySleep Medicine · 2021 · rct · n = 120
14 mg and 28 mg evening doses for 28 days improved sleep-quality ratings and mood on waking versus placebo and raised evening melatonin; sleep-diary measures and evening cortisol were unchanged.
- 4.Effect of a saffron extract on sleep quality in adults with moderate insomnia: a decentralized, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trialmedRxiv / Current Research in Food Science · 2025 · rct · n = 158
Athens Insomnia Scale improved versus placebo (p=0.027, d=0.41); perceived stress fell 2.10 points at 30 mg (p=0.012) and 2.12 points at 20 mg (p=0.043). No objective sleep measures collected.
- 5.Effect of saffron supplementation on symptoms of depression and anxiety: a systematic review and meta-analysisNutrition Reviews · 2019 · meta-analysis · 23 experiments
Large effects versus placebo on depressive symptoms (g=0.99, p<0.001) and anxiety (g=0.95, p=0.006), but Egger's test showed publication bias, so the true effect is likely smaller.
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