Evening Primrose Oil for anti-agingEvening Primrose Oil is a natural anti-aging supplement. It’ll give you better skin elasticity, firmness, smoothness, and moisture, study shows, due to the GLA in it.

[I recommend iHerb.com for a wide selection of brands and low prices on Evening Primrose Oil ].

A commonly recommended dosage is three 500-mg softgel caps twice daily (for a total of 1.5 grams per day). You can take up to 8 grams a day safely according to the University of Maryland Medical Center, but its good to consult your doctor (a naturopathic doctor will know best) about a suitable dosage & how long you should take it.

You should buy capsules that are standardized to contain at least 8% GLA, and keep them in the fridge to maintain freshness.

nowfoods-primrose-oilIts also available for topical application (Now Foods, Primrose Oil), though the study didn’t discuss the topical approach. However the reviews on iHerb.com seem to support the fact that it nourishes the skin, moisturizes well, and smoothes out wrinkles and lines. Also apparently very effective in treating itchy skin and excema. I think ideally one would use both, but if you just can’t swallow another pill and its topical or nothing, than definitely its better than nothing. And likewise, taking the pills without the topical approach is obviously going to give benefit, as per the study. But the dual approach can only improve results.

Side effects are rare, but if upset stomach, stomach pain or mild diarrhea occurs, you might be taking too much. Reduce dosage then gradually increase again.

Evening Primrose Oil may reduce blood clotting ability, so don’t take it if you are on blood-thinning meds or if you have a bleeding disorder. Don’t take for two weeks prior to any surgery. In case of an emergency involving bleeding, or where surgery is required, be sure to inform doctors that you are on it.

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