Will Saffron Make You Sleepy?
From speaking with some of our new customers recently, we’ve seen a big shift in why people are ordering saffron. When we started Heray Spice in 2017, the vast majority of our customers used our saffron for their culinary needs, but in recent years, it’s also becoming a popular natural remedy for sleep. Today, we’ll dive into whether or not saffron will make you sleepy, as well as the science and research behind it.
Research shows saffron does actually make you sleepy and thus helps you fall asleep faster, as well as improve broader sleep quality, and even make you feel more refreshed in the morning. It does this in a much more natural way than sedating sleeping pills by supporting the brain and body naturally.
What Does Saffron Do to the Brain?
Saffron is much more than just an expensive flavoring, it’s a true powerhouse. The bright red threads contain 3 very potent compounds:
1. Crocin and crocetin (color strength): gives saffron its strong antioxidant activity, protecting your cells from damage caused by free radicals (unstable molecules that cause cellular damage leading to heart disease and cancer).
2. Safranal (aroma): gives saffron its distinct aroma and the compound influencing mood and neurotransmission.
3. Picrocrocin (taste): the key precursor to safranal and gives saffron its distinct taste.
Together, these compounds interact with your central nervous system and appear to be influencing the well-known neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine, and have an anti-inflammatory effect in the brain. This is actually what gets us to the core of why there is so much scientific research coming out on how saffron may help improve sleep quality, treat ADHD, and combat anxiety and depression.
Additionally, recent credible research also confirms that saffron interacts with the gut-brain axis: the communication network between your digestive system and brain. This is especially important for sleep quality, because the neurotransmitters serotonin and melatonin, are heavily influenced by the gut.
How DOES Saffron Affect Sleep? (The Mechanisms)
The fascinating part about saffron is that it appears to act on multiple sleep pathways at once. Let's discuss each of these pathways.
1. Boosting Serotonin and Melatonin
The first mechanism is that saffron supports converting tryptophan into serotonin, which eventually converts into melatonin. Both serotonin and melatonin are critical for regulating your circadian rhythm (sleep-wake cycle).
Some studies are now confirming that saffron increases natural melatonin levels, especially when consumed in the evening. This may explain why consuming saffron 1-2 hours before bed seems to make you sleepy.
2. Calming nighttime anxiety
For many people, the main sleep struggle isn’t falling asleep in the evening, but waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to fall back asleep, often due to a racing mind and stress hormones spiking at night.
Saffron has consistently been shown to improve anxiety symptoms (link to a review of a collection of studies), even in people who don’t suffer from daytime anxiety. By mildly calming the stress hormones, saffron helps prevent that “wide awake at 3AM” feeling in some people.
3. Blocking excitatory signals in the brain (much like magnesium)
Research suggests that saffron may interact with the NMDA receptor, a kind of “gatekeeper” on brain cells that allows calcium to excite neurons. Too much excitatory activity at night means the brain stays alert when it should be winding down.
This scientific research shows saffron binds to this specific receptor and thus dampens the excitatory signal, much like magnesium does, but possibly even more strongly. This is one of the most important reasons we’re now starting to see saffron popping up more and more on the ingredient lists of sleep supplements.
What Do Studies Say About Saffron and Sleep?
All of these benefits aren’t theory. We’re seeing multiple high-quality clinical trials and meta-analyses support saffron’s beneficial role in overall sleep quality. Let’s have closer look at what studies have been done, their key results and how we can best use their findings to benefit our sleep.
| Citation (year) | Population & design | Dose & duration | Key results | Notes |
| Adults with mild-moderate sleep complaints + anxiety; randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled; used actigraphy (brainwave measuring) + questionnaires | 15.5 mg/day saffron extract, 6 weeks | ↑ total sleep time ↑ sleep quality ratings ↑ wakefulness during day ↓ time to fall asleep | Objective + subjective measures; one of the key “low-dose” trials. | |
| Healthy adults with self-reported sleep problems; randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled | 14 mg saffron extract twice daily (28 mg/day), 4 weeks | ↑ sleep quality ratings ↑ morning mood ↓ anxiety ↓ depression | Used “affron” standardized extract; foundational 4-week RCT. | |
| Adults with unsatisfactory sleep; randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled | 14 mg or 28 mg saffron extract in the evening, 4 weeks | ↑ sleep quality ratings | Evening timing + dose-comparison; aligns with “1-2 h before bed”. | |
| Type-2 diabetes with comorbid depression–anxiety; double-blind randomized control trial | 30 mg/day saffron extract, 8 weeks | ↑ sleep quality ratings ↑ time to fall asleep after waking ↓ anxiety ↓ depression | Shows the sleep benefit alongside mood/anxiety improvements in a metabolic cohort. | |
| Adults with unsatisfactory sleep; 3-arm RCT (14 mg, 28 mg, placebo) | 14 mg or 28 mg/day saffron extract, 28 days | ↑ dose-dependent increases in melatonin ↑ time to fall asleep ↑ sleep quality ratings ↑ dose-dependent morning mood | Supports melatonin-related mechanism, and dose-dependent increases in melatonin and morning mood. Greater doses lead to bigger increases. | |
| Systematic review & meta-analysis of clinical trials (mostly depression patients) | 20–30 mg/day saffron extract | ↓ depression ↓ anxiety ↑ mood | Not sleep-focused, but shows mood/anxiety benefits that overlap with sleep improvements. | |
| Systematic review of human clinical trials on sleep outcomes | 14-30 mg/day saffron extract | ↑ sleep quality ratings | Consolidate overall sleep quality evidence | |
| In-vitro receptor binding assays on saffron extracts; analytical quality control study | | Saffron extracts & crocetin bind NMDA (PCP-site) and σ1 receptors; crocin/picrocrocin inactive | Mechanistic support for saffron dampening excitatory NMDA signaling (calming effect); forms basis for magnesium-like comparison | |
| Narrative review of animal + human studies | | Summarizes saffron’s neuro-modulatory potential across mood, stress, and sleep-related pathways | Not a primary RCT but consolidates findings | |
| Narrative review of animal + human safety studies | Ranges from dietary use to high-dose extracts | Therapeutic doses show no significant toxicity across experimental and clinical contexts | Supports claim that ≤30 mg/day saffron extract is safe; complements dosing guidelines. | |
| Older adults (55–85 yrs) with sleep complaints; randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot trial; subgroup analysis included gut microbiome profiling | 30 mg/day saffron extract, 4 weeks | ↑ subjective + objective sleep quality (EEG wearable) ↑ sleep efficiency ↓ sleep latency Altered gut microbiota composition (↑ Faecalibacterium, Prevotella; ↓ Dialister), some changes correlated with better sleep outcomes | RCT to link saffron’s sleep benefits with gut–brain axis modulation; supports mechanism via serotonin/melatonin regulation and microbiota changes |
Does Saffron Make You Sleepy Right Away?
Here’s the important distinction: saffron is not a sedative. Unlike melatonin or other sleeping pills, it doesn’t knock you out immediately. Instead, saffron:
- Works best when consumed 1-2 hours before bed
- Has a gradual effect that builds over several weeks
- Improves natural sleep patterns and quality, not just time spent asleep
- Avoids the next-day grogginess many people report with melatonin
In fact, one of the most promising findings is that saffron seems to improve morning mood and energy, as opposed to the next-day grogginess many people report when using melatonin. This leads to a higher reported energy baseline, which in turn motivates people to lower their caffeine intake which further improves sleep quality!
How Much Saffron Should You Take For Sleep?
Culinary Use: Most studies use 14-30 mg/day of saffron extract, which equates to approximately 30 threads of our saffron steeped in hot beverages like tea or warm milk. Needless to say, because saffron quality (and thus potency) varies so wildly (especially with all the fake and diluted stuff out there nowadays), the amount of saffron you’ll need for similar results depends heavily on the quality.
Timing: About 1-2 hours before bed works best.
Cycle vs daily: Some people find they don’t need a sleep aid every night. Instead, they prefer only using it during stressful periods or when sleep feels off. For these people specifically, saffron seems to be an excellent option because people report not experiencing the sleep dependency they have with melatonin.
Why Saffron Quality Matters for Sleep Benefits
As we just mentioned, the quality (and thus potency) of your saffron is extremely important in order to get these sleep benefits. If you get saffron that is poorly cultivated, diluted or outright fake, you obviously won’t get any of the sleep benefits you would with the real deal.
Unfortunately, because saffron is so expensive, it has attracted a lot of fraudsters.
In short, when buying saffron, one specific certification to look for is whether a brand’s saffron complies with ISO 3632 standards. This is basically a test that measures the concentration of the compounds we talked about earlier: crocin (color strength), safranal (aroma), and picrocrocin (taste). Not only that, but it also measures the adulterants that fraudsters add to their saffron to increase their product’s weight. We've previously written an entire article about how you can easily recognize real saffron and evaluate the quality of it Click here to read the article.
If a brand is able to comply with the ISO 3632 standard, it’s something they’ll be really proud of and you can be sure they’ll make it easy to find on their website, as we do!
At Heray Spice, our saffron is regularly tested by the Herat Directorate of Agriculture’s Saffron Quality Control Lab in Afghanistan. The results (see below) confirm that our saffron indeed far exceeds ISO 3632 “Grade A” standards, and is therefore provably one of the most potent and pure on the market:
| Compound (ISO standard) | ISO minimum for Grade A | Most Recent Heray Saffron Result | Why it matters for sleep |
| Crocin (color strength) | ≥ 200 | Consistently 300+ | Antioxidant compound; linked to mood + neuroprotection, part of serotonin/melatonin pathway |
| Safranal (aroma) | 20–50 | 31.6 | Influences GABA + serotonin activity; calming effect |
| Picrocrocin (taste) | ≥ 70 | 107.5 | Precursor to safranal; signals freshness & potency |
| Foreign matter, adulterants | < 0.1 | 0.04 | Confirms purity (no dilution or artificial coloring) |
2022 Lab Result from Herat Directorate of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock.
2024 Lab Result from Herat Directorate of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock.
Essentially, this lab validation means when we say “30 threads of Heray saffron equals the dosage seen in clinical studies”, it’s not just a guess but is in fact backed by verified potency.
Are There Any Side Effects?
Saffron is considered very safe:
- Culinary use is harmless for almost everyone and dates back literally thousands of years.
- A dosage of 30mg/day is well supported by clinical trials with no reported side effects.
- Very high doses (200 mg+) may cause side effects like dizziness, nausea, or headache, but these are far above what’s used for sleep.
As always, anyone who is pregnant, breastfeeding or on medication should consult a doctor before using supplements, including saffron.
How Does Saffron Compare to Other Sleep Aids?
- Melatonin: Works faster, but can cause next-day grogginess and dependency.
- Magnesium: Calms the nervous system, similar to saffron, but saffron seems to act more selectively.
- Tart Cherry Juice: Natural melatonin source which is also effective, but works differently.
- CBD: Indirectly aims to improve sleep quality by easing pre-sleep anxiety and reduce nighttime awakenings, but can cause next-time drowsiness. Quality varies wildly.
- Saffron: More holistic: improves both mood and sleep without sedation
This makes saffron a unique option: it doesn’t force sleep, but sustainably supports the brain in creating the right environment for restful sleep.
Best Ways to Use Saffron for Sleep
If you want to experiment with saffron for better sleep, here are the most common and practical ways:
1. Saffron Tea: Steep 5-10 threads in your favorite hot (not boiling!) tea for 10 minutes. Add honey to taste. (Want to upgrade it? Try our saffron mint tea recipe for a calming twist)
2. Golden Milk: Warm milk with saffron and a touch of cardamom or cinnamon. (Learn how to make saffron golden milk step-by-step, one of the coziest bedtime drinks)
3. Rice Dish for Dinner: Including saffron in your evening meal can create a calming ritual. (Check out our list of saffron rice dishes for dinner, perfect for winding down at night)
4. Saffron Extract: If you prefer an actual supplement, look for supplements from reputable brands with 14-30 mg of saffron extract, ideally taken 1-2 hours before bed.
Final Thoughts
So, will saffron make you sleepy?
Yes, but not in the sedative way people expect. Instead, saffron does it much more sustainably, by optimizing the conditions for sleep: calming the mind, supporting natural melatonin production, blocking excitatory signals, and increasing morning energy.
The result is gentler and much more natural: you fall asleep easier, wake less often, and feel more refreshed in the morning.
Many of our customers were frustrated with grogginess and sleep dependency from melatonin, and saffron offers a sustainable, natural alternative.
Quick recap
- Saffron contains powerful compounds that support your natural sleep-wake cycle.
- Studies show saffron improves time to fall asleep, sleep duration, quality and morning mood.
- Scientifically supported dose of 30 threads, taken 1-2 hours before bed.
- Works gradually, not instantly, and helps avoid next-day grogginess.
- Safe in food, safe in supplements up to 30 mg/day.
Ready to Try Saffron for Better Sleep?
If you’ve made it this far, you’re serious about finally finding a natural way to improve your sleep.
All of the studies we covered used real, pure saffron extracts. Not the diluted, fake saffron you’ll often find online.
That’s why we’re so proud that our Heray Afghani Saffron is lab-tested, ISO 3632 Grade A, and rich in the very compounds (crocin, safranal, picrocrocin) that research has linked to sleep and morning mood benefits.
One ounce of Heray Afghani Saffron equals roughly 189 nights of better sleep.
That’s six months of calm evenings and refreshed mornings!
