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Objective  The aim of this double‐blind and placebo‐controlled trial was to investigate whether saffron (stigma of Crocus sativus L.) could relieve symptoms of premenstrual syndrome (PMS).

Design  Double‐blind, randomised and placebo‐controlled trial.

Setting  Departments of Gynaecology/Obstetrics and Psychiatry, Tehran and Zanjan University of Medical Sciences.

Population  Women aged 20–45 years with regular menstrual cycles and experience of PMS symptoms for at least 6 months were eligible for the study.

Method  Women were randomly assigned to receive capsule saffron 30 mg/day (15 mg twice a day; morning and evening) (group A) or capsule placebo (twice a day) for a two menstrual cycles (cycles 3 and 4).

Main outcome measures  The primary outcome measure was the Daily Symptom Report, and secondary outcome measure was the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale.

Results  In this …