Effects of saffron and crocin on glycemic control: an exploratory systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials

Pooled randomized-trial evidence in humans shows saffron or crocin lowers fasting glucose by MD -16.16 mg/dL (95% CI -27.02 to -5.31) across 12 trials.

• Why it matters: Longer-term glycemic exposure and fasting metabolic indices are key gaps for adjuncts like saffron/crocin, especially given uncertainty about whether effects persist beyond short studies.
• What they did: The review searched PubMed Central (June 11, 2025) and PubMed (October 5, 2025) for human randomized controlled trials of at least four weeks, meta-analyzing mean differences with inverse-variance random-effects models.
• The result: Across 570 participants, the fasting glucose reduction is linked to saffron or crocin, while HbA1c (MD -0.25 percentage points, 95% CI -0.58 to 0.08) remains compatible with both reduction and little difference.

AI summary of the abstract · may contain errors · not medical advice · read the paper.