J Menopausal Med.  2019 Aug;25(2):74-82. 10.6118/jmm.18190.

Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis) Oil in Management of Female Ailments

• Mahboubi M

• KMID: 2466842
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.6118/jmm.18190

Abstract

Oenothera biennis with the common name of "evening primrose" is containing a valuable fixed oil with commercial name of EPO. Evening primrose oil has two types of omega-6-fatty acid including linoleic acid (60%-80%) and γ-linoleic acid (8%-14%). Essential fatty acids are considered as essential compounds for body health, especially among women. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of evening primrose oil in the management of women ailments. The document was prepared by investigation in scientific articles of electronic resources (Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct, Wiley, Scopus, and Springer) by keywords of evening primrose oil and women. The results of our investigations showed that evening primrose oil has been the subject of several clinical studies, including premenstrual syndrome (PMS), hot flash, mastalgia, fibroadenomas, gestational diabetes, cervical ripening, and dilation. The major clinical studies are focused on mastalgia, followed by PMS. The results of studies confirmed the evening primrose oil's efficacy in women health, but the immediate response should not be expected from it, therefore, it should be regularly used up to 4 or 6 months.

Keyword

Evening primrose oil; Mastodynia; Premenstrual syndrome

MeSH Terms

Cervical Ripening
Diabetes, Gestational
Fatty Acids, Essential
Female*
Fibroadenoma
Humans
Linoleic Acid
Mastodynia
Oenothera biennis*
Pregnancy
Premenstrual Syndrome
Fatty Acids, Essential
Linoleic Acid

Figure

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  Fig. 1 The potential of evening primrose oil in management of women ailments.

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