Effect of evening primrose oil on the symptoms of premenstrual syndrome. Literature review

Abstract

Many women with premenstrual syndrome (PMS) use alternative therapies, although the literature on their effectiveness is scarce. PMS is a cyclical condition that causes physical and psychological discomfort related to menstruation. Evening primrose oil has been one of the methods traditionally used to treat different types of inflammation. This characteristic is attributed to its high content of gamma linolenic acid. The objective of this bibliographic review is to evaluate the effectiveness of evening primrose oil for the relief of premenstrual symptoms. A structured research was performed in different databases. Original studies and systematic reviews were selected. Studies from different parts of the world were included to broaden the multicultural nature of the study. No date limit was established in the search in order to have as much information as possible. Finally 8 articles were selected. The results obtained were contradictory, since some studies reported an improvement in the duration and severity of symptoms and others reported no difference compared to placebo. More research is needed to better understand the effects of evening primrose and to obtain a treatment based on the best possible evidence.