EVENING PRIMROSE OIL

Evening Primrose Oil is an Essential Fatty Acid Everybody

The tiny seeds of the evening primrose flower are the source of an oil that has been valued in the world for building health and overcoming a lot of common health problems. Evening primrose, also known as evening star, night willow herb, scabish, and tree primrose, has a recorded history of at least 500 years of use for its health promoting properties. Growing in a wider variety of climates, the plant can be found in rocky roadsides, shallow streams, or even high deserts.

The evening primrose plant can even be found growing at elevations as high as 9,000 feet. Open only until sunrise, the flowers die the next day, causing hundreds of small black seeds to form inside. These seeds are the source of the plant?s oil, with about 5,000 seeds being used for just one 500 mg capsule. Due to this, evening primrose can be relatively expensive.

Evening primroses value in a variety of illnesses was recognized by American Indians and European immigrants. One of the first botanicals exported to Europe from North America, it was brought to Italy in 1619 and planted in the Padua Botanical Gardens. Modern science has found that the essential fatty acids that are found in the oil of the evening primrose oil seeds are the secret to the health-building properties.

Like vitamins and minerals, essential fatty acids are nutritional substances that have far-reaching effects on many body processes.

These effects include reducing blood pressure, helping to prevent arthritis, reducing the growth rate of breast cancer, lowering cholesterol and triglyceride levels, maintaining healthy skin, aiding in transmission of nerve impulses, playing a role in normal brain function, constituting the building blocks of body membranes, promoting proper hormone function, and forming the basis

for prostaglandin production.

Because essential fatty acids can not be manufactured in the body, evening primrose oil must be consumed in the diet, with at least three percent of an adult?s daily caloric intake being recommended to be comprised of essential fatty acids. Children and pregnant women should have a diet containing at least five percent essential fatty acids. Essential fatty acids are essential for normal functioning of all body tissues.

Because of this, the list of symptoms of essential fatty acid deficiency includes :

reduced growth rate,

skin disorders,

male and female infertility,

kidney abnormalities,

decreased capillary resistance,

susceptibility to infection,

heart problems,

anemia,

enlarged liver,

sparse hair growth in infants,

poor wound healing,

In conclusion, to prevent or heal these conditions, a diet that is rich in essential fatty acids must be present. Evening primrose oil is a good source of essential fatty acids, containing about 72 percent linoleic acid and 9 percent GLA. Have you had your evening primrose oil today?

Is-evening-primrose-oil-effective?

Is Evening Primrose Oil an Effective Treatment of Mastalgia?

Is Evening Primrose Oil an Effective Treatment of Mastalgia?

What is Mastalgia?

Mastalgia is commonly called breast pain. There are two main forms: cyclical and non-cyclical. Non-cyclical mastalgia could be pain that is felt in the breast but actually originates from a different area of the body such as nearby muscles or joints. It is described as a sharp pain that occurs in one area of the breast (www.webmd.com/hw/womenspain). With non-cyclical astalgia
the pain is present all the time. If the cause of non-cyclical mastalgia can be located, such as a cyst, then the pain is easier to alleviate.

Cyclic mastalgia is typically associated with the menstrual cycle and is normally related to hormone levels in a woman’s body. With cyclical mastalgia, the pain felt in the breast is not permanent. It normally comes and goes and the doctor recommends that the woman charts her pain in order to determine the pattern of occurrence .There are levels of pain and discomfort varying from barely noticeable to extremely severe. In its severity, cyclical mastalgia can prevent a woman from wearing tight fitting clothing and inhibit any contact to the breast. Due to the varying levels of pain, not all women need treatment. It is generally necessary to reassure the woman that she does not have breast cancer.

After this initial reassurance only women that experience pain that affects their quality of life need to seek treatment with either pharmaceuticals or alternative therapies like evening primrose oil.

Is Evening Primrose Oil Effective in Treating Mastalgia?

Four studies will be reviewed in order to assess the effect of evening primrose oil on both cyclical and non-cyclical mastalgia. The first study was conducted in the Cardiff mastalgia clinic by the University of Wales College of Medicine and published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine in 1992.
The researchers at the clinic require that new patients make a breast pain chart for a period of two menstrual cycles. With this chart the researchers produced a baseline measuring the severity of pain. The chart also enables the researchers to distinguish between cyclical and
non-cyclical mastalgia. This is important because medication is generally less effective with non-cyclical mastalgia.

Over the course of 17 years 490 patients were given one of the following treatments for their pain: danazol 200mg daily, bromocriptine 5mg daily, or evening primrose oil 6X500mg capsules daily. The choice of the most appropriate treatment is made with the patient so that they are aware of any adverse side effects. Of the 490 patients, 375 had cyclical mastalgia and 115 had non-cyclical.

324 patients with cyclical mastalgia and 90 patients with non-cyclical mastalgia completed a therapeutic trial. With evening primrose oil a therapeutic trial lasted 4 months, whereas with danazol and bromocriptine the trial lasted 2 months. If the treatment was successful then it was stopped after a period of 6 months.

Both danazol (30%) and bromocriptine (35%) had more recorded adverse effects than evening primrose oil (4%).The study concluded that in terms of general effectiveness danazol was the most effective with evening primrose oil and bromocriptine having relatively equivalent efficacy
rates. However, unless the patient requires a rapid response to pain, evening primrose oil should be the first treatment option since it causes considerably less adverse effects.

The second study is similar to the first in that it compares the effectiveness of danazol,
bromocriptine and evening primrose oil. It was carried out by Pye, Mansel, and Hughes in 1985.
The design of the study was a randomized trial in open studies of 291 patients who were suffering from severe breast pain. 77% of the patients suffered from cyclical mastalgia while 44% suffered from non-cyclical mastalgia. This study demonstrated similar results to the first study in that all methods of treatment are relatively successful. There is not a significant difference between bromocriptine and evening primrose oil when looking at cyclic mastalgia. In non-cyclical mastalgia all three treatments are relatively close.

The third study looked at the effect of evening primrose oil and fish oil on severe chronic mastalgia. The Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Vrije Universiteit University Medical Center in Amsterdam carried out the study, specifically Bloomers et al. This
study was published in 2002 in the Amsterdam Journal of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
The design of the study is as follows. It was a randomized, double-blind, controlled study. The study was a factorial clinical trial, which means that the two methods of treatment, evening primrose oil and fish oil, were studied simultaneously. 120 women were randomly placed into 4 groups. The first group was the fish oil and control oil, second group was evening primrose oil and control oil, the third group was fish and evening primrose oil and the final group was both control oils. The study lasted 6 months. The control oils were corn oil and corn oil with wheat germ. After 6 months the number of days with breast pain was compared to the number of days with pain before treatment began.

The results are displayed in the following table with each percentage representing the decrease in days for each treatment and control.

Treatment

Decrease in Days %

1. Fish Oil
2. Control oil for Fish oil
3. Evening primrose oil
4. Control oil for evening primrose oil

The results demonstrate that all methods of treatment were successful in reducing the number of days of pain felt; however, no method is significantly more effective than another. Therefore, while evening primrose was effective, it was not more effective than the control of corn oil.

The fourth study, conducted by Goyel, Mansel and the Efamast Study Group looked at the effect of evening primrose oil, with and without antioxidants, in the management of mastalgia. The study was published in 2005 in the Breast Journal from the Department of Surgery at the Wales College of Medicine in Cardiff, UK.
The study was a randomized, “double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel group, multicenter study” . The study included 555 patients suffering from varying levels of mastalgia. Each patient was randomized into one of four groups. The first group received evening primrose oil and antioxidants, the second received placebo fatty acids and antioxidants. The third group received evening primrose oil and placebo antioxidants and the last group received placebo fatty acids and placebo antioxidants. The groups were charted for four menstrual cycles based on their group. After the first four cycles, all patients received evening primrose oil with the independent variable being the active or placebo antioxidants.

The results showed that all four groups showed a reduction in their mastalgia. Therefore, the effect of evening primrose oil does not differ from the placebo of fatty acids.

What Does All This Mean?

When looking specifically at the dates of the studies mentioned, it is clear that as the studies have progressed, not only have they become more sophisticated in their methods (i.e. using randomized double-blind studies that evenly disperse confounding variables), but they
collectively say that while evening primrose oil may help, it is not more effective than placebo effect (control oils).

Evening primrose oil unquestioningly reduces pain in women suffering from mastalgia; however, there are other treatments available that are more effective. Clearly stated, evening primrose oil has not been sufficiently demonstrated to be more effective than receiving fatty acids from foods such as sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, safflower oil, most nuts, vegetables and grains.

evening-primrose-oil-uses

Evening Primrose Oil Uses and Pharmacology

Evening Primrose Oil Uses and Pharmacology

Essential fatty acids are important as cellular structural elements and as precursors of prostaglandins. Essential fatty acids are the biologically active parts of polyunsaturated fats and cannot be manufactured by the body. They must be provided by the diet in relatively large
amounts. 5 Recommended intake of linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid are 12 g and 1.1 g, respectively, for women 19 to 30 years of age.

In theory, the GLA provided by evening primrose oil can be converted directly to the prostaglandin precursor di-homo-gamma-linolenic acid (DGLA) and might be beneficial to people unable to metabolize cis-linoleic acid to GLA or with low dietary intake of cis-linoleic acid. However, this relationship was not proven in a pharmacokinetic study in healthy humans.

Premenstrual syndrome/Menopause-associated vasomotor symptoms

A number of reviews and randomized clinical trials suggest there is little evidence to support the use of evening primrose oil for menopausal vasomotor symptoms or premenstrual syndrome. A satisfactory meta-analysis of the available data has not yet been achieved, but a protocol has been published by the Cochrane Collaboration, the results of which are pending.
The North American Menopause Society does not support the use of evening primrose oil for hot flash relief given the lack of efficacy data.

Mastalgia

A few researchers suggest benefit from evening primrose oil in the management of cyclic mastalgia, but there is little evidence to support this. One randomized, controlled trial found no benefit of evening primrose oil over control.

Rheumatoid arthritis

A Cochrane review of randomized trials using evening primrose oil versus placebo suggests some benefit in using evening primrose oil for rheumatoid arthritis, despite the relative poor quality of the individual studies. A trend toward reduction of morning stiffness and joint tenderness as well as pain relief has been shown. The authors found the evidence to be sufficient to warrant further larger trials to provide conclusive results and define optimal dosage and duration of therapy. 28 These findings are supported by other reviews, especially with regard to effective duration of therapy.
A more recent randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study involving 90 patients with primary Sjorgen syndrome found no statistical significance in patient tiredness with a higher dosage after 6 months of therapy. Other studies, primarily in animals and healthy humans,
provide the theoretical rationale for the effect of GLA in inflammatory disease.

Multiple sclerosis

Despite a seemingly valid theoretical basis for the use of evening primrose oil in multiple sclerosis, there is a lack of evidence to substantiate its use and no new trials since the 1980s. A review of 3 trials suggested an effect with a slower progression of disability and improved relapse (severity and duration) scores, but a randomized, controlled trial, not included in the review, showed no effect.

Atopic dermatitis/Dermatologic disordersA number of reviews and randomized clinical trials suggest a lack of support for the use of evening primrose oil for atopic dermatitis. Many of the trials are of poor quality and have apparent issues of bias. While an earlier review suggested promising results, the most comprehensive meta-analysis to date was unable to establish efficacy. 3 A protocol seeking to assess the effects of oral evening primrose oil and borage oil for
treating the symptoms of atopic eczema has been published by the Cochrane Collaboration, the results of which are pending.

Other uses

Cardiovascular diseaseThere is no recent evidence to support older studies suggesting that evening primrose oil reduced platelet aggregation. An observational study suggests serum linoleic acid may protect against ischemic stroke. Despite limited older trials in humans and numerous studies using rats and rabbits, there are no recent randomized, controlled trials demonstrating a beneficial effect of evening primrose oil on cholesterol levels or serum lipids.
A more recent randomized, controlled trial found no effect on endothelial function or vascular tone with evening primrose oil supplementation.

Diabetic neuropathy

A review of 3 randomized, controlled trials suggested evening primrose oil might improve symptoms of diabetic neuropathy. Dosages in these trials ranged from 360 to 480 mg GLA daily. Few side effects were noted in these trials, and there was no increase in blood glucose levels.

Dyslexia/Brain development

Current interest in the use of evening primrose oil for enhancing intellectual performance in children is yet to be validated by rigorous research.Studies conducted in children with dyslexia suggest improved reading, spelling, and behavior, while a Cochrane systematic review and a long-term study (39 months) showed no long-term benefit in infants fed formula supplemented
with long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids.

Eye conditions

Study results disagree as to the effect of evening primrose oil on dry eye syndrome, 31 , 53 and there is concern regarding high intake of linolenic and linolenic acid and the risk of cataract development.

Dosage

Evening primrose oil has been administered orally in clinical trials at doses between 6 and 8 g/day in adults and 2 and 4 g/day in children. The typical content of GLA in the oil is 8% to 10%.

Pregnancy/Lactation

Information regarding safety and efficacy in pregnancy and lactation is lacking. Both linoleic and gamma-linolenic acid are normally present in breast milk, and it is reasonable to assume that evening primrose oil may be taken while breast-feeding.

Adverse Reactions

Evening primrose oil is suspected to lower the seizure threshold in epileptic patients.

Toxicology

Animal toxicological studies and extensive use of evening primrose oil over many years have revealed no data of concern. As a nutritional supplement, the maximum label-recommended daily dose of evening primrose oil is approximately 4 g, containing 300 to 360 mg GLA. There is little concern about the safety of evening primrose oil as a dietary supplement in the recommended dosage range.

Evening Primrose Oil for Premenstrual Syndrome

Evening Primrose Oil for Premenstrual Syndrome

Clinical bottom line: There is no evidence from high quality studies to show that evening primrose oil reduces the symptoms of premenstrual syndrome, including cyclical mastalgia. The included studies were small and of variable quality.

Premenstrual syndrome is associated with a mixture of emotional, somatic and behavioural symptoms. It is thought to result from disruption to the normal levels of certain fatty acids in the body. Evening primrose oil (EPO) contains the essential unsaturated fatty acids linoleic and
gamma-linoleic acid. The latter is thought to be helpful in restoring the body's natural balance of fatty acids.

Findings:

The included studies were of variable quality and were small. Women rated their symptoms over a treatment period of between 2-6 menstrual cycles.

Cyclical mastalgia:

Two randomised, cross-over studies compared EPO with liquid paraffin in women with cyclical mastalgia and noncyclical mastalgia (109 patients) over 3-4 cycles. The studies were described as double blind, but all patients received EPO at the cross-over. This removes the blinding from the second treatment phase. The dose of EPO was six capsules per day.

There was no significant, clinically relevant difference in breast tenderness, nodularity, pain, heaviness or lumpiness with EPO.

Premenstrual symptoms:

Six randomised, double blind studies compared EPO with liquid paraffin in 287 women with premenstrual symptoms over 2-6 cycles. In two studies, patient ratings showed no difference between EPO and liquid paraffin for breast pain, swelling and tenderness. Four studies (222 women) assessed mood, abdominal swelling, tiredness etc. Of these two were positive, one showed no difference between EPO and placebo, and one did not report its results.Five open, uncontrolled studies showed positive beneficial effects of EPO in 744 women with premenstrual symptoms. Response rates varied between 26-86%.

Adverse effects

The incidence of adverse effects was low and included rash, nausea, abdominal bloating, depression, dizziness. All adverse effects were also reported with placebo and included premenstrual symptoms. No further details were provided.

Comment

There is no compelling evidence of any additional beneficial effect of Evening Primrose Oil over that reported with placebo in any of the more methodologically rigorous studies. Two studies which were described as double blind were only blind for the first treatment phase. All of the studies were small and some were not controlled. The open studies are likely to be biased because of the lack of blinding. Their positive results are also likely to be invalid because of high placebo response rates in EPO trials.

Evening Primrose Oil for the Active Lifestyle

Evening Primrose Oil for the Active Lifestyle

by Marian Brown

Fatty acids, essential fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, Linoleic acid (LA), Gamma-Linolenic Acid (GLA) and prostaglandins. If these “buzz” words leave your head swimming you’re not alone. After the Food & Agriculture Organization and World Health Organization released a joint report addressing the role of dietary fats and oils in nutrition, much attention has been given the role these play in our health. The study recommended that at least 3% of our daily calorie intake should be in the form of these “essential fatty acids” (EFA), 5% for children and pregnant/lactating mothers.

What are essential fatty acids and what makes them so essential? EFA’s play important roles in our body‘s overall health. They are part of every cell and establish and control the cellular metabolism. EFA’s are essential in four primary body functions:

1) provide energy,
2) maintain body temperature,
3) insulate our nerves,
4) cushion and protect body tissues.

Two key polyunsaturated fatty acids (EFA’s) are Linoleic acid and Gamma-Linolenic acid. LA is
not produced by the body but must be obtained through the dietary intake. LA acts as an energy source and is what the body converts to GLA which in turn forms other substances such as prostaglandins. Prostaglandins are hormone-like substances that are found in every body cell. They are critical to the body’s overall health maintenance, but need to be replenished constantly as once they serve their purpose, they are destroyed.

The purposes of Prostaglandins include lowering blood pressure, reducing risks of blood clotting, stimulating the immune system, and regulating brain function. Animal studies at the University of Pennsylvania have also shown them to prevent arthritis. This is also being studied in humans trials in Europe with similar results. The source of EFA’s in these studies has been Evening Primrose Oil.

It was once believed that our diet would provide enough EFA’s but due to processing methods, the LA’s structure is changed ( then called trans fatty acids). These fatty acids actually block the normal conversion process. Our western lifestyle--too much saturated fat and cholesterol,
processed vegetable oils, and alcohol--also inhibits the normal conversion processes. These blockages become even more dramatic with age, low thyroid function, slower metabolism, infections, disease, and dietary considerations such as zinc deficiency.

Evening Primrose Oil is a natural, and the richest, source of Gamma-Linolenic acid. It contains about 72% Linoleic acid and 9 percent GLA. Since it contains the essential GLA, evening primrose oil is highly valuable to those who cannot otherwise form enough GLA. This would include those who do not get enough essential fatty acids in their diet, drink or have drunk excessive amounts of alcohol, have low thyroid function, or have received radiation treatment. The direct source of GLA takes the pressure off the body to produce the necessary amount of GLA for optimum health.

Preliminary studies in Sweden are relating Evening Primrose Oil to an anti-oxidant in that it also counter acts the formation of free radicals. Free radicals are most often associated with the aging process. Maintaining health is just one of the benefits of Evening Primrose Oil. It is also being studied extensively in England and Europe for its pain reduction in association with arthritis,
controlling complications of diabetes, controlling liver and kidney damage due to alcohol, depression, Multiple sclerosis, skin/hair/nail repair, and most impressively, controlling sever symptoms of PMS.

A study at St. Thomas Hospital in London found that when PMS suffers were given evening primrose oil three times daily, 67% of the participants were symptom-free and 22% achieved partial relief. (In all total, 89% had positive results with the evening primrose oil.) Although not as popular in the United States, Evening Primrose Oil is available at most health food stores and nutrition centers.

evening-primrose-oil.

Evening Primrose

Evening Primrose (Oenothera Biennis)

Other Names: Common Evening Primrose, Fever plant, Great Evening-Primrose, King's-cure-all, Night willow-herb, Scabish, Scurvish, Tree primrose

Description
Evening Primrose is a North American native biennial plant. The plants are very tall, often 4 to 5 feet or more in height. The stem is erect, stout, soft-hairy, reddish and branching forming a shrub. Leaves are alternate, rough-hairy, lanceolate, about 3 to 6 inches long and lemon-scented. The taproot is elongated, fibrous, yellow on the outside and whitish within. The flower spikes grow on auxiliary branches all along the stalk. They are about 2-1/2 inched in diameter, bright yellow and have four petals, a cross shaped stigma and a refluxed calyx (leaves under petals). The flowers open in the evening and close up during the day and are strongly scented with a delicious sweet perfume which attracts pollinating moths. The fruit is an oblong 1 in. capsule
containing many tiny reddish seeds.

Habitat
Evening Primrose is found east of the Rockies to the Atlantic. Naturalized in Britain but found all over the world. It grows by roadsides, railway banks and waste places in dry open soils, gravelly places, meadows and old fields. Evening Primrose blooms from June to September. The entire plant is edible, gather edible roots and leaves in spring may be frozen, gather flowers, buds and young seed pods in bloom, gather entire plant in fall and dry for later herb use. Evening Primrose Oil is made from pressing oil from the tiny seeds. You can also grind the seeds of Evening Primrose and use them as you would flax seed.
Cultivation
Evening primrose is easily cultivated, it prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) well-drained soils and requires full sun. Plants will last two years and are self sowing.

Properties
Evening Primrose is edible and medicinal and has a long history of use as an alternative medicine . The leaves are cooked and eaten as greens and the roots are said to be sweet succulent and delicious when boiled like potatoes. Flowers are a sweet addition to salads or as a garnish and young seedpods are Steamed. This plant was a staple food for many Native American tribes. Formerly cultivated for its nutritious edible roots, it is being increasingly cultivated for the oil
contained in its seeds which contains certain the essential gamma-linoleinc acid (GLA), a very valuable fatty acid that is not found in many plants and has numerous vital functions in the body. GLA is an essential fatty acid that the body does not manufacture.
This fatty acid is known to help prevent hardening of the arteries, heart disease, eczema, cirrhosis, rheumatoid arthritis, menopause, PMS, multiple sclerosis, and high blood pressure. It has a positive effect on sex hormone response including the hormones estrogen and testosterone, aids in lowering cholesterol levels, and is important in treating cirrhosis of the liver. Research also demonstrates that primrose oil helps relieve pain and inflammation. The oil also has a positive effect on the uterine muscles, nervous system and metabolism. The bark and the leaves are astringent and sedative. They have proved of use in the treatment of gastro-intestinal disorders, whooping cough and asthma. A tea made from the roots is used in the treatment of obesity. A finely ground powder made from the flowering stems is used cosmetically in face-masks to counteract reddened skins.
Evening Primrose Oil.....

Evening-Primrose-Oil-oenothera-biennis

Evening Primrose Oil

Evening Primrose Oil

Evening primrose oil, a small yellow wildflower (Oenothera biennis), is rich in linoleic acid, an essential fatty acid. Essential fatty acids are also plentiful in foods, notably nuts and seed.
Evening primrose oil supplies another fatty acid, known as gamma-linolenic acid, or GLA (not to be confused with alpha-linolenic acid, which is one of the omega-3 fatty acids). You actually don’t need to consume GLA, because your body synthesizes it from linoleic acid and converts it to hormone-like chemicals important in maintaining health.
Evening Primrose Oil Benefits:
Evening primrose oil is said to cure, treat, or prevent rheumatoid arthritis, breast pain, hot flashes, premenstrual syndrome, eczema, and other skin problems; evening primrose oil is also said to lower blood cholesterol, and to be beneficial against diabetic neuropathy, cancer, multiple sclerosis, and heart disease.

Evening Primrose Oil bottom line:
Evening primrose oil is not effective against diabetic neuropathy. Current evidence shows evening primrose oil of no value in the treatment of premenstrual syndrome, diabetes, or heart disease. Evening primrose oil and similar products are unproven for any medical or health purpose. Manufacturers of evening primrose oil make troubling, unfounded, and illegal claims.