The effects of saffron and crocin in enhancing male fertility: insights from clinical and preclinical studies

L. (saffron), a widely used spice and food additive, is also recognised for its diverse medicinal properties. This review evaluates current literature regarding the effects of saffron and its active constituent, crocin, on male infertility. The search of electronic databases was conducted for articles published through April 2025, extracting data from both basic and clinical studies. Evidence from animal models indicates that saffron and crocin extracts enhance sexual behaviour, including mounting and intromission, while reducing latency for mounting, intromission and ejaculation. In clinical settings, daily supplementation with 200 mg of saffron has been shown to improve quality of life, urinary symptoms and sexual function in male subjects. Furthermore, both saffron and crocin significantly improve sperm parameters-including count, viability and motility-as well as seminiferous tubule diameter and serum testosterone levels. These therapeutic effects appear to be mediated by the alleviation of psychiatric symptoms, enhancement of antioxidant status and modulation of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) levels.