Saffron and Alzheimersdisease

Many researchers have focused on the use of saffron extract or its bioactive apocarotenoids for the potential treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, which is the most common form of dementia among people over the age of 65 worldwide.
Alzheimer’s is an irreversible progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by behavioral disturbances, cognitive deterioration, and functional disability.
In a particular investigation in 2016 conducted by Akhondzadeh et al., it was found that the consumption of 30 mg day21 saffron in two doses of 15 mg each for a period of 22 weeks by 54 adults elicited similar effects as the consumption of 10 mg day21 donepezil (5 mg twice per day) in the treatment of mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease.
In another study, the same research group carried out a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial and showed that consumption of 30 mg day21 (15 mg twice/day) saffron for 16 weeks by 46 patients with probable Alzheimer’s disease resulted in better outcomes compared to placebo. Based on these results, the authors suggested that saffron is safe and effective in the treatment of mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease, at least in the short term.
Another randomized, double-blind clinical trial was conducted in 68 patients with moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease (Farokhnia et al., 2014). Patients received saffron extract (30 mg day21) or memantine (20 mg day21) for 12 months. The study showed that the 1-year saffron administration exhibited comparable results to memantine in terms of reducing cognitive decline in patients with moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease.
Based on scientific evidence that has been reported here and those available in academic literature, it might claim that crocins could be a promising agent for the prevention or treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
Our research team in #Ravang looks forward to hearing your similar observation in the case of treating Alzheimer’s disease with saffron extract.