ABSTRACT
Intake of dietary fat, particularly essential fatty acids, is known to influence human health and disease status. Evening primrose oil (EPO), a source of g-linolenic acid, has received much attention for its possible therapeutic effects on inflammatory and cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and cancer, among others. The beneficial health effects attributed to the oil are thought to be mediated by the desaturated metabolite of g-linolenic acid, namely dihomo-g-linolenic acid, which is metabolized in the body to produce anti-inflammatory eicosanoids that may reduce the incidence or severity of human disease status and to promote health. EPO is also a source of antioxidative tocopherols. This entry attempts to summarize the effects of EPO in health promotion and disease risk reduction.
