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| Crocus
saffron |
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| Name |
| Saffron |
| Biological
Name |
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Crocus sativus, Crocus saffron
Iridaceae
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| Other
Names |
| Saffron, Kum Kuma, Zaffran, Kesar,
Autumn crocus, Spanish saffron, dyer's saffron, thistle saffron,
bastard saffron, parrot's corn, American saffron Agnishikha,
Bhavarakta, Jafran, Kashmirajanma, Kecara, Keshar, Kessar, Kunkumappu,
Kunkuma-kesara, Kunkumma-purru, Kunkuma-puvva, Kusrunam, Mangal,
Mangalya, Safran, Saurab, Zafrah, Zipharana |
| Parts
Used |
| Dried stigmas |
| History |
| The name saffron comes from the Arabic
zafaran (means yellow) - a sacred color chosen by Buddhist monks
for their robes.
Saffron is very expensive. 200,000 flowers have to be harvested
by hand to obtain 1 pound of saffron - This may explain the
high cost.
Saffron had been prized as a dye medication and culinary
spice since Greek and Roman times. Arab traders introduced
the spice to Spain. Became a mainstay of many Mediterranean
diets.
Due to the high cost, this herb is often adulterated. Be
careful in choosing.
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| Remedies
For |
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Action
Alterative, anodyne, antispasmodic, aphrodisiac, appetizer,
carminative, emmenagogue, expectorant, sedative, stimulant,
rejuvenative
Uses
Saffron has been used, in small doses only, for coughs, whooping
cough, stomach gas, gastrointestinal colic and insomnia. As
an ingredient in herb liqueurs, it serves as a stimulant to
appetite; and it is sometimes made into a salve for treatment
of gout.
Saffron is used in sedatives, as an antispasmodic and for
flatulence. It is also used in perfumes and dyes.
Saffron is used in small doses, in fevers, melancholia, enlargement
of the liver, and asthma. Saffron is also useful for treating
anemia, chlorosis and seminal debility.
Saffron is considered to be a sovereign remedy, not to be
excelled in virtue by any other drug as a stimulant and aphrodisiac.
Other uses of Saffron:
- for rheumatism and neuralgia
- for looseness of the bowels
- to relieve flatulent colic, amenorrhoea, dysmenorrhoea,
leucorrhoea
- for painful affections of the uterus
- for headaches
- for bruises and superficial sores
- hemorrhoids.
- snake bite
Saffron Classic Remedy is a classical Ayurvedic remedy that
is useful for chronic diarrhea, chronic discharges and seminal
weakness.
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| Description |
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Saffron is a small perennial plant which is cultivated in
many places, but particularly in France, Spain, Sicily, and
Iran. In springtime, an onion-like corm produces basal, linear
leaves which are surrounded as a group at the bottom by cylindrical
sheaths. These gray-green leaves have hairy margins and grow
to about 1 or1-1/2 feet feet long. About August or September,
the corm produces a funnel-shaped, reddish-purple (sometimes
lilac or white) flower.
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| Dosage |
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Infusion, milk decoction, powder
Infusion: Steep 6 to 10 stigmas in 1/2 cup water. Take 1/2
to 1 cup a day, unsweetened, a mouthful at a time.
Tincture, dose: 5 to 20 Minims
Saffron tea (1 in 80), dose -1 to 4 ounces.
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| Safety |
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Do not use when pregnant; large doses is narcotic
CAUTION: Saffron contains a poison that acts on the central
nervous system and damages the kidneys. Large doses can have
severe effects; 10 to 12 grams is a fatal dose for human beings.
The high cost of saffron and the availability of synthetic
substitutes make its use as medicine rare.
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