Benefits
Snacking and satiety: fewer snacking episodes than placebo
In one 8-week randomized, placebo-controlled trial in 60 mildly overweight women, self-recorded snacking frequency fell significantly more on 176.5 mg/day than on placebo (P < .05). PLT Health reports a 55% drop on the extract against 28% on placebo, so placebo improved substantially too; those percentages are not in the published abstract. This single trial has not been independently replicated.
Appetite: company-reported decrease, mixed in other saffron trials
PLT Health states that self-reported appetite in this single trial fell 69% on the extract against 54% on placebo, while a trade report on the developer's patent gave 84% against 52%; neither figure is in the published abstract. Other saffron preparations are mixed: 30 mg/day did not reduce food craving and 100 mg/day did not change appetite, while 30 mg/day in heart patients lowered appetite within the saffron group.
Studied only in mildly overweight women, for 8 weeks
The published trial enrolled 60 healthy, mildly overweight women, so it says nothing about men, people at a higher BMI, or use beyond 8 weeks. A PLT Health sales sheet says effects began within 14 days and reached up to 3 times placebo in women considered snackers; that subgroup result is not reported in the published abstract and should not be treated as demonstrated.
Mood and stress-eating rationale: untested for this extract
The developer's rationale is that saffron improves mood and so reduces stress-driven snacking. The published abstract of the 8-week trial reports no mood or stress measurements, so for this extract that remains a hypothesis. A 28-day randomized trial that gave 178 mg of the extract inside a supplement with naringin and vitamin D3 found no difference from placebo in mood states, cravings, anxiety or stress.
Body weight: small difference in one trial, not confirmed elsewhere
In the single 8-week trial the extract group lost significantly more weight than placebo (P < .01), but other body measurements and vital signs were almost unchanged, so the difference was small. A pooled analysis of 25 randomized saffron trials in overweight and obese adults found no significant effect on body weight or BMI, and the 28-day combination trial found no change in body mass, BMI or waist size.
Mechanism of action
Proposed serotonergic activity
PLT Health describes the extract as acting by enhancing serotonin, and the trial authors proposed that a mood-improving effect would reduce snacking. Serotonin signalling is involved in mood and in satiety, which is the basis for the idea that the extract acts on mood-driven eating rather than on metabolism. Serotonin has not been measured in people taking this extract, so this remains a proposed route.
Stress-related snacking hypothesis
The trial authors note that snacking is frequently associated with stress, and hypothesized that the extract would reduce snacking through its suggested mood-improving effect. Stress, cortisol and craving are not reported outcomes of that trial, and a 28-day trial that gave the extract inside a combination supplement found no difference from placebo in stress, anxiety or food cravings.
Proposed satiety signalling
Serotonin is one of the signals involved in feelings of fullness, and the proposal is that supporting it nudges satiety rather than blunting hunger with a stimulant. Satiety hormones such as GLP-1 and objectively measured food intake are not reported outcomes in the trials of this extract, so this remains a proposed route, and no data show that this extract acts on GLP-1.
Saffron compounds and standardization
Safranal, crocins and picrocrocin are characteristic saffron compounds. Retail labels for this extract state standardization to 0.3% safranal. How much each compound contributes to the reported effects has not been tested, and no head-to-head trial has compared this extract with other saffron extracts.
Non-stimulant profile
The extract is not a stimulant and is not proposed to act through central nervous system stimulation. In the 8-week trial vital signs were almost unchanged and no participant withdrew because of the product. Safety beyond 8 weeks has not been studied, so suitability for long-term daily use is not established.
Clinical trials
Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 176.5 mg/day of this saffron stigma extract (one capsule twice daily) versus placebo for 8 weeks, published as Gout B, Bourges C, Paineau-Dubreuil S, Nutrition Research 2010;30(5):305-13, under the extract's other brand name, Satiereal (Inoreal). PLT Health publishes the same study as its Supresa trial. Primary outcome was body weight; the main secondary outcome was snacking frequency, self-recorded in a nutrition diary. Caloric intake was not restricted. The abstract does not state funding.
Sixty healthy, mildly overweight women (PLT Health gives a BMI range of 25 to 30 and ages 25 to 45); 31 on the extract and 29 on placebo, over 8 weeks.
Body weight fell significantly more on the extract than on placebo (P < .01) and snacking frequency fell significantly more (P < .05). Other anthropometric measures and vital signs remained almost unchanged in both groups, so the weight difference was small. PLT Health's figures for the same trial are a 55% versus 28% drop in snacking and a 69% versus 54% decrease in appetite (a trade report on the developer's patent gave 84% versus 52%); these are not in the published abstract. No participant withdrew because of the product. The abstract reports no mood or stress outcomes. One small trial, not independently replicated.
Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial at Hofstra University of a multi-ingredient supplement containing 178 mg Satiereal (the same saffron extract sold as Supresa), 100 mg naringin and 2,000 IU vitamin D3 daily for 28 days. Published as Gonzalez AM, Sell KM, Ghigiarelli JJ, Spitz RW, Accetta MR, Mangine GT, Journal of Dietary Supplements 2018;15(6):965-76. Measures included body mass, BMI, waist circumference, self-reported food records, Profile of Mood States, visual analog scales and food-craving questionnaires.
Twenty healthy overweight adults (mean age 25.5, mean BMI 29.9), ten on the supplement and ten on placebo, over 28 days.
No significant difference between groups in total calorie or macronutrient intake, body mass, BMI or waist circumference, and no difference in mood states, food cravings, anxiety, fullness, bloating, hunger or stress. The authors concluded the supplement had no detectable beneficial effect on body-weight management. The study was small (20 people) and short (28 days), so it could miss a modest effect, and the saffron extract was given with other ingredients, so the result is for the combination, not the extract alone.
Systematic review and meta-analysis of 25 randomized controlled trials of saffron in overweight and obese patients, published as Tahmasbi F, Araj-Khodaei M, Mahmoodpoor A, Sanaie S, Phytotherapy Research 2022;36(9):3394-3414. This is an evidence synthesis of various saffron preparations and doses, not a trial of this specific extract.
Overweight and obese adults pooled across 25 randomized trials of various saffron preparations.
Pooling the trials showed no significant effect of saffron on body weight (-0.32 kg; CI -3.15 to 2.51; p = 0.82), BMI (-0.06 kg/m2; CI -1.04 to 0.93; p = 0.91), waist circumference (p = 0.41) or hip circumference (p = 0.89). Waist-to-hip ratio fell significantly (SMD -0.41; CI -0.73 to -0.09; p = 0.01). The authors described promising effects on some cardiometabolic factors, noted limitations mainly from heterogeneity among the included studies, and called for higher-quality evidence.