Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Saffron as an Antidepressant (2018)

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 110 posts

Re: Saffron as an Antidepressant (2018)

#11

Post by The_rationalist »

bigmattystyles wrote: post #7
chrisa wrote: post #4

This seems to be combining a couple of studies; the primary one seems to be 40 people over 6 weeks using the petals of saffron (but in another place said "leaves", so I'm not sure which is correct), but it's interesting that the petals have the effect and not just the stigma which is what is called "saffron" for cooking They also mentioned that it _might_ work by affecting serotonin in the brain, but no one actually…

>> They also mentioned that it _might_ work by affecting serotonin in the brain, but no one actually knows yet; I don't even think we know with regards to any substance, i.e even why SSRI work - I think we have some good hypothesis, but nothing conclusive. I've even seen an ad on CNN for tardive dyskinesia that says 'the is thought to do something to dopamine' - Doesn't exactly inspire confidence but having suffered…

Don't disregard scientific knowledge like that. Many (albeit not all) drugs have been extensively tested at least by close to exhaustively testing receptor binding sensitivity. Except for the extremely rare drugs that have very atypical action mechanism it allows to understand to a decent extent what it does pharmacologically. But also, understanding how a drug work isn't necessary for taking the risk of trying it given that most CNS (except DRA) drugs are "safe" especially if combined with potent neuroprotectors (anti oxidants, NMDA antagonists, etc) However even if the risk is low, I don't understand your motive to try it. The only one would be to advance scientific knowledge by self testing. But if the motive is for egoistic and not altruistic then there are much more proved antidepressants out there with small side effect profiles.

Re: Saffron as an Antidepressant (2018)

#12

Post by selimthegrim »

codelord wrote: post #10

I feel like people in the west need to become more familiar with Persian cooking. Every year I learn that one more ingredient that we commonly use in Persian cooking is good for your health. So based on this definitive evidence I'm gonna conclude everything we eat is good for you. To get you ahead here are some other things to try: 1. Sabzi Khordan: Elevate your breakfast with Sabzi Khordan, a mixed of herbs that are…

It can be hard to find the right cheese for sabzi khordan. Also some people find drinking tea out of the saucer weird.

Re: Saffron as an Antidepressant (2018)

#14

Post by LatteLazy »

chrisa wrote: post #4

This seems to be combining a couple of studies; the primary one seems to be 40 people over 6 weeks using the petals of saffron (but in another place said "leaves", so I'm not sure which is correct), but it's interesting that the petals have the effect and not just the stigma which is what is called "saffron" for cooking They also mentioned that it _might_ work by affecting serotonin in the brain, but no one actually…

You'd be amazed how little extra effort goes into pharmaceutical studies for antidepressants. They're mostly n<1k people, under 6months long, with no mechanism firmly established...

Re: Saffron as an Antidepressant (2018)

#15

Post by codelord »

selimthegrim wrote: post #12
codelord wrote: post #10

I feel like people in the west need to become more familiar with Persian cooking. Every year I learn that one more ingredient that we commonly use in Persian cooking is good for your health. So based on this definitive evidence I'm gonna conclude everything we eat is good for you. To get you ahead here are some other things to try: 1. Sabzi Khordan: Elevate your breakfast with Sabzi Khordan, a mixed of herbs that are…

It can be hard to find the right cheese for sabzi khordan. Also some people find drinking tea out of the saucer weird.

Saucer is optional. I drink directly from the cup. Make sure the cup is made of clear glass though to see the color of the tea.

Re: Saffron as an Antidepressant (2018)

#16

Post by angrais »

codelord wrote: post #15
selimthegrim wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It can be hard to find the right cheese for sabzi khordan. Also some people find drinking tea out of the saucer weird.

Saucer is optional. I drink directly from the cup. Make sure the cup is made of clear glass though to see the color of the tea.

Why does where you drink from it matter, let alone its transparency?

Re: Saffron as an Antidepressant (2018)

#17

Post by PragmaticPulp »

defaultname wrote: post #9
bigmattystyles wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> They also mentioned that it _might_ work by affecting serotonin in the brain, but no one actually knows yet; I don't even think we know with regards to any substance, i.e even why SSRI work - I think we have some good hypothesis, but nothing conclusive. I've even seen an ad on CNN for tardive dyskinesia that says 'the is thought to do something to dopamine' - Doesn't exactly inspire confidence but having suffered…

As you mention, most SSRI ads specifically note that it is thought to work by inhibiting serotonin reuptake...maybe. There isn't even strong proof that serotonin plays the part popularly believed. But SSRIs work for many people, and do seem to have an effect, so the theoretical is good enough for now.

> As you mention, most SSRI ads specifically note that it is thought to work by inhibiting serotonin reuptake...maybe. There isn't even strong proof that serotonin plays the part popularly believed.

The "chemical imbalance" theory hasn't been taken seriously for decades. It's a myth that psychiatrists think that SSRIs are compensating for low serotonin. We've known for a long time that the actual anti-depressant effects come from somewhere downstream that isn't fully understood yet. This isn't really a new discovery. We've known from the start that SSRIs inhibit serotonin reuptake within hours of taking the first dose, but the full antidepressant effect can lag by weeks.

That doesn't mean that serotonin isn't involved in the therapeutic action of SSRIs, though. Occupying around 80% of the serotonin transporters is necessary to bring about the antidepressant effects of different SSRIs. So we do know that inhibiting serotonin reuptake is almost certainly the mechanism that kicks off the chain of events that ultimately produces the antidepressant effect, but we also know that the antidepressant effect doesn't come directly from this inhibition.

This is a good article that explains debunks the myth that psychiatry believes the "chemical imbalance" or "low serotonin" theories: https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/debunking-two-chemical...

Re: Saffron as an Antidepressant (2018)

#18

Post by brahadeesh »

codelord wrote: post #10

I feel like people in the west need to become more familiar with Persian cooking. Every year I learn that one more ingredient that we commonly use in Persian cooking is good for your health. So based on this definitive evidence I'm gonna conclude everything we eat is good for you. To get you ahead here are some other things to try: 1. Sabzi Khordan: Elevate your breakfast with Sabzi Khordan, a mixed of herbs that are…

It's not unique to Persian cooking, but there is wisdom in most cultural foods. I have been cooking a lot during the pandemic and every month I discover a new fermented food that has "recently" been found to be a superfood - kombucha, kefir, kimchi, soy sauce, mole sauce, sourdough etc. That is not to talk about other ingredients like turmeric, chiles, lentils and other stuff that add nutritional value.

EDIT: I wanted to add something I just remembered from the Netflix docuseries "Cooked" - "If you were to eat grains and nothing but grains, you will die sooner rather than later from lack of one nutrient or another. But if you were to eat real fermented bread made from the same grains, you will live much longer". Something about fermentation is truly nourishing.

Re: Saffron as an Antidepressant (2018)

#19

Post by bigmattystyles »

The_rationalist wrote: post #11
bigmattystyles wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> They also mentioned that it _might_ work by affecting serotonin in the brain, but no one actually knows yet; I don't even think we know with regards to any substance, i.e even why SSRI work - I think we have some good hypothesis, but nothing conclusive. I've even seen an ad on CNN for tardive dyskinesia that says 'the is thought to do something to dopamine' - Doesn't exactly inspire confidence but having suffered…

Don't disregard scientific knowledge like that. Many (albeit not all) drugs have been extensively tested at least by close to exhaustively testing receptor binding sensitivity. Except for the extremely rare drugs that have very atypical action mechanism it allows to understand to a decent extent what it does pharmacologically. But also, understanding how a drug work isn't necessary for taking the risk of trying it gi…

Oh - I muddled my phrasing - I agree with you, I was saying I would try a medication with historical, industry and regulatory backing even if we didn't understand exactly how it worked - not the saffron. That being said, I'm now planning to make paella...

Re: Saffron as an Antidepressant (2018)

#20

Post by chromaton »

brahadeesh wrote: post #18
codelord wrote: post #10

I feel like people in the west need to become more familiar with Persian cooking. Every year I learn that one more ingredient that we commonly use in Persian cooking is good for your health. So based on this definitive evidence I'm gonna conclude everything we eat is good for you. To get you ahead here are some other things to try: 1. Sabzi Khordan: Elevate your breakfast with Sabzi Khordan, a mixed of herbs that are…

It's not unique to Persian cooking, but there is wisdom in most cultural foods. I have been cooking a lot during the pandemic and every month I discover a new fermented food that has "recently" been found to be a superfood - kombucha, kefir, kimchi, soy sauce, mole sauce, sourdough etc. That is not to talk about other ingredients like turmeric, chiles, lentils and other stuff that add nutritional value. EDIT: I wante…

In the 70's it was yogurt.
Post reply on HN