SUPPLEMENT SCIENCEInsights
Search

Search Insights

Try choline, nano-curcumin or probiotics.

    Botanical guide · Ingredient reference

    Crocetin half-life: one compound is not the whole saffron product

    A small pharmacokinetic study measured crocetin in plasma after single doses. Its timing values cannot establish when every saffron constituent or effect disappears.

    Read the evidence ↓

    Supplement Science Insights Editorial Team

    Published September 23, 2026

    Study and results

    Ten healthy volunteers received three escalating crocetin doses on separate visits one week apart. Blood sampling continued for twenty-four hours after each dose. [1]

    Crocetin was detectable within an hour, reached average peak concentrations around four to five hours and had an estimated plasma elimination half-life of roughly six to eight hours. Exposure rose with dose. [1]

    Interpretation and limitations

    This open-label study examined crocetin rather than a complete saffron extract. Plasma half-life is not a guarantee of complete elimination or a clinical-effect duration. Funding and conflicts were not established from the abstract, and the small single-dose study cannot establish repeated-use safety. [1]

    A hypothetical distinction

    Imagine a measured concentration falls by half. Material can remain detectable afterward, and other constituents may follow different time courses.

    Evidence summary — Crocetin half-life
    DetailInterpretation
    Peak timeMaximum measured exposure
    Half-lifeA proportional decline
    Whole extractNot represented by one compound
    Crocetin half-life: one compound is not the whole saffron product — original article outline diagram
    Original editorial diagram of this article’s sections; no product photograph or clinical finding is depicted.

    Sources for this article

    1. The pharmacokinetic profile of crocetin in healthy adult human volunteers after a single oral administration - PubMed
      Source consulted: 2026-09-19. This is a reference resource, not a claim that we conducted the studies or tested a product.