Saffron, a pricey spice, provides numerous health benefits when included in your diet. Beyond its vivid color and distinct flavor, saffron has long been used to promote calmness and relaxation. Saffron-infused milk is said to help pregnant women sleep better and have a more beautiful complexion. Just let us know, have you heard the prevalent idea that drinking saffron milk while pregnant will make your baby fair? Have you ever raised your brow on this thought? If yes, read on to know more. Let’s be clear: it’s just a myth!
What is truly crucial during pregnancy is to eat a well-balanced diet that contains essential nutrients for both you and your developing baby. Remember that each baby is unique and wonderful, regardless of skin tone. Always consult with your doctor before making any major changes to your diet during pregnancy.
What is Saffron Milk?
Saffron is a propitious multipotent dietary agent used as a spice, colorant, and saffron-based herbal medicine (1). It is derived from the flower of Crocus Sativus. The dried thread-like parts of the flower (stigmas) are used to make saffron spice. A modest amount of saffron has the potential to enhance subtle flavors and aromas. It goes well with many savory recipes to get a deeper and richer unique flavor.
Why is Saffron So Expensive?
The entire process of obtaining Kesar is very laborious and requires highly skilled labor to carry out the task (2). Considering each flower has only 3 strands and approximately 14000 strands are required to form 1 pound is what makes this spice so expensive.
Is Saffron Milk Safe During Pregnancy?
Saffron, the sunshine spice, can be used to make a nutritious beverage, saffron milk, throughout pregnancy. At the end of the second trimester, you can start drinking saffron milk daily. Use 2-3 saffron strands in a glass of milk, once a day.
Moderate saffron consumption (0.5 – 2 g per day) after the second trimester can increase uterine tissue flexibility and aid labor during full-term pregnancy. Studies show that oral saffron is beneficial for cervix ripening in full-term pregnant women (3).
Is it Good to Consume Kesar Milk During Pregnancy?
Saffron has numerous medicinal properties. And, kesar milk also bears health benefits of kesar as well as milk. Therefore, kesar milk makes a healthy beverage during pregnancy. Saffron, on the other hand, has some negative side effects when consumed in large quantities. As a result, in any preparation, use no more than two to three strands. Furthermore, to reap all of the health benefits and avoid any risk of artificial coloring or impurities, pregnant women should only purchase saffron from a high-quality vendor.
How To Prepare Saffron Milk?
The simplest way to enjoy saffron milk is to soak the threads in warm water. Using mortal, make a fine liquid to dissolve the threads. Now, add this liquid to boiling milk, and simmer for a while. Relish kesar milk, hot or cold as per your preference.
Notably, milk is a good source of protein and calcium, which are needed during pregnancy. Adding a few strands of saffron to your milk when pregnant has numerous advantages that can help you have a trouble-free pregnancy. This includes:
1. Cold kesar milk relieves pregnancy-related gas, bloating, acidity, and other digestive disorders.
2. Pregnancy can cause mood swings and sadness in women. Saffron milk functions as an antidepressant in such instances.
[Read : Drinking Milk During Pregnancy]
Benefits of Consuming Saffron Milk During Pregnancy
Saffron is a prominent flavoring ingredient in the famed Hyderabadi Biryanis and is widely used as a garnish in many Indian desserts. The Saffron is a vital flavoring component in many Indian sweets, including kheer, shrikhand, thandai, kesar milk, rasmalai, and aamras. Saffron has numerous medical properties. A few common benefits are listed below:
Reduces Menstrual Cramps and PMS Symptoms
Apart from its culinary uses, saffron has strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects that can help women overcome menstrual cramps, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), postpartum depression and anxiety, and many other conditions (4, 5).
Improves Sleep Quality
Regular saffron consumption has been shown to improve sleep quality in people with self-reported poor sleep linked with anxiety (6, 7). pregnant women having troubled sleeping experience can be benefited with a warm glass of saffron milk during their last trimester.
Boosts Skin Health
Saffron has been demonstrated to be beneficial in the treatment of skin-related issues due to its antioxidant, antimicrobial, depigmenting, healing, and analgesic properties (8, 9). As a result, it is utilized in the formulation of a variety of body lotions, stretch mark creams, and cosmetic emulsions, including. Pregnant women having deepened stretch marks due to growing fetus can start the tropical application of saffron-based sunscreens, moisturizers, and anti-spot, and anti-stretch mark products from the end of the first trimester.
Aids in Labor and Delivery
Several studies have reported that saffron and other edible plants improve cervical preparedness, stimulate labor initiation, reduce pain intensity, and shorten labor duration (10, 11). Hence under professional guidance, a glass of warm saffron milk can be taken regularly during the last few weeks of full-term pregnancy.
[Read: Buttermilk During Pregnancy]
Will Drinking Kesar Milk During Pregnancy Make the Baby Fair?
A glass of saffron milk is known to do wonders during pregnancy, however, increasing your child’s fairness or beauty isn’t one among them. There is a myth that saffron milk during pregnancy makes babies fair. Drinking saffron milk has benefits for your pregnancy but has no role to play in your newborn’s skin color.
The baby’s fairness is governed by the genes of the parents and the amount of melanin present in the skin and saffron does not have much of a role in it. There are no scientific studies that prove that saffron makes your baby fair.
Side Effects of Kesar Milk During Pregnancy
Saffron can be harmful to a healthy pregnancy if not taken moderately. Your chances of exceeding the limit of saffron intake are especially high when you add it to milk.
- Excess saffron is a stimulant that causes uterine contractions.
- Overconsumption of saffron in the first trimester results in miscarriage; and in the second trimester, it may result in premature delivery.
- In some women, saffron can cause vomiting.
- Pregnant women who consume saffron report anxiety, dry mouth, nausea, and headaches.
If you are experiencing any of the above issues, it is best to avoid saffron.
Which is the Best Time to Consume Kesar Milk During Pregnancy?
Pregnant women can start drinking saffron milk at any time during their pregnancy. However, it is better to avoid saffron during the first trimester, which is the delicate phase of pregnancy. Ayurveda recommends consuming saffron only after the fourth month of pregnancy. Precisely, when you begin to feel the baby move in your womb.
Saffron milk is best consumed first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. You can even drink it after dinner. Please ensure you have no more than 2-3 strands during your pregnancy. Excess consumption can have a drowsy effect on you. Saffron is not to be consumed by anyone suffering from bipolar disorder.
Can Saffron Cause Miscarriage?
In the rare case, high doses of 5 g or more of saffron per day for over 3 months, may have toxic effects. Pregnant women should avoid high doses, which have been linked to early uterine contractions and miscarriage in animal studies (12).
But, every individual is different and their bodily functions vary from person to person. What suits your body may not suit someone else. So before you adopt any hearsay elements in your daily diet during pregnancy let your doctors know about it. If you wish to share your experience with us or add any more to the above content, please feel free to drop your thoughts in the comments box below.
FAQ’s
1. Can Saffron Help With My Constipation During Pregnancy?
Yes, it can. It can help reducing your acidity and gas. This aids in better digestion.
2. Can I Drink Saffron Milk For My Cold During Pregnancy?
Yes you can. It helps to reduce lung inflammations. Apart from helping with your cold, saffron has other medicinal benefits to offer too.
3. Can Saffron Help Me Avoid Stretch Marks During Pregnancy?
Saffron is very good for your skin. It can help your skin glow and slow down the ageing process. Sometimes nothing can prevent those stretch marks.
4. Can I Drink Saffron Milk to Make a Fair Baby?
This myth has no scientific backing but is followed by many. The skin colour of a human is influenced by the genes. No matter what you eat or don’t eat, your baby’s skin colour is determined by its genes.
Read Also: Almond Milk During Pregnancy – Is It Safe ?
Reference
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- Zeka K, Ruparelia KC, Continenza MA, Stagos D, Vegliò F, Arroo RRJ. Petals of Crocus sativus L. as a potential source of the antioxidants crocin and kaempferol. Fitoterapia. 2015 Dec;107:128-134 – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26012879/
- Sadi R, Mohammad-Alizadeh-Charandabi S, Mirghafourvand M, Javadzadeh Y, Ahmadi-Bonabi A. Effect of Saffron (Fan Hong Hua) On the Readiness of The Uterine Cervix In Term Pregnancy: A Placebo-Controlled Randomized Tria – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5285732/
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- Pachikian BD, Copine S, Suchareau M, Deldicque L. Effects of Saffron Extract on Sleep Quality: A Randomized Double-Blind Controlled Clinical Trial. Nutrients. – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33925432/
- Anaeigoudari F, Anaeigoudari A, Kheirkhah-Vakilabad A. A review of therapeutic impacts of saffron (Crocus sativus L.) and its constituents. Physiol Rep. 2023 Aug;11(15):e15785 – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37537722/
- Rigi H, Mohtashami L, Asnaashari M, Emami SA, Tayarani-Najaran Z. Dermoprotective Effects of Saffron: A Mini Review. – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34544335/
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- Amir Nili-Ahmadabadi, Tayebe Artimani, Asal Sepehr, Zahra Farzaneh Kaloorazi, Yasaman Behnamfar, Amir Larki-Harchegani, Akram Ranjbar, Dara Dastan, Masoumeh Taheri Azandaryani, Davoud Ahmadimoghaddam, The effect of saffron and its constituent, crocin, on anterior pituitary-gonadal axis during pregnancy in the rat: A time-course study, South African Journal of Botany, Volume 148, 2022, Pages 33-38 – https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0254629922001612
