What does it do?
Borage oil is derived from the seeds of the borage (Borago officinalis) plant, a
large plant with blue, star-shaped flowers found throughout Europe and North Africa and
naturalized to North America.1
Borage oil, evening primrose oil, and black
currant seed oil contain gamma linolenic acid (GLA), a fatty acid that the body converts to a
hormone-like substance called prostaglandin E1 (PGE1). PGE1 has anti-inflammatory properties
and may also act as a blood thinner and blood vessel dilator. Linoleic acid, a common fatty
acid found in nuts and seeds and most vegetable
oils (including borage oil), should theoretically convert to PGE1. Many things can interfere
with this conversion, however, including disease; the aging process; saturated fat; hydrogenated oils; blood sugar problems;
and inadequate vitamin C,
magnesium, zinc, and B vitamins. Supplements that provide GLA circumvent these
conversion problems, leading to more predictable formation of PGE1.2
Borage seed oil is the richest source of GLA, containing 20 to 26%. While GLA from evening
primrose oil has been widely researched, scientific evidence supporting the use of borage oil
has been limited. Nonetheless, one preliminary trial3 and two double-blind
trials4 5 have shown that borage oil, 1.1-2.8 grams per day for at least
three months, reduces symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis.
Borage oil has also been used to treat people with atopic dermatitis (eczema) in preliminary trials, with reductions in skin
inflammation, dryness, scaliness, and itch, without side effects being reported.6
However, a controlled study using 360 mg daily of GLA from borage oil in patients with atopic
dermatitis (3 to 17 years of age) was unable to reproduce these results.7 In
another preliminary study, a group of children with infantile seborrheic dermatitis were
treated with borage oil (0.5 ml) applied to the diaper region twice daily.8 Within
10 to 12 days, all of the children were free from skin lesions, even in the areas not treated
with borage. Moreover, using the oil topically two to three times a week kept the seborrhea in
remission until the patients were six to seven months old. There were no relapses after the
oil was discontinued.
Who is likely to be deficient?
Many people in Western societies may be at least partially GLA-deficient as a result of
aging, glucose intolerance, dietary fat intake,
and other problems, though the exact incidence of deficiency remains unknown. People with
deficiencies benefit from supplemental GLA intake from borage oil, black currant seed oil, or
evening primrose oil.
Those with premenstrual syndrome,9 diabetes,10 scleroderma,11 Sjogren’s
syndrome,12 tardive
dyskinesia,13 eczema,14 and
other skin conditions15 may have a metabolic block that interferes with the
body’s ability to make GLA. However, most clinical trials supplementing GLA for these
conditions has used evening primrose oil, and not borage oil.
References
1. Wren RC. Potter’s New Cyclopedia of Botanical Drugs and
Preparations. Essex, England: C.W. Daniel and Co., 1988, 41.
2. Horrobin DF. The importance of gamma-linolenic acid and prostaglandin
E1 in human nutrition and medicine. J Holistic Med 1981;3:118-39.
3. Pullman-Mooar S, Laposata M, Lem D, et al. Alteration of the cellular
fatty acid profile and the production of eicosanoids in human monocytes by gamma-linolenic
acid. Arthritis Rheum 1990;33:1526-33.
4. Leventhal LJ, Boyce EG, Zurier RB. Treatment of rheumatoid arthritis
with gammalinolenic acid. Ann Intern Med 1993;119:867-73.
5. Zurier RB, Rossetti RG, Jacobson EW, et al. Gamma-linolenic acid
treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. A randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Arthritis
Rheum 1996;39:1808-17.
6. Landi G. Oral administration of borage oil in atopic dermatitis. J
Appl Cosmetology 1993;11:115-20.
7. Borreck S, Hildebrandt A, Forster J. Borage seed oil and atopic
dermatitis. Klinische Pediatrie 1997;203:100-4.
8. Tolleson A, Frithz A. Borage oil, an effective new treatment for
infantile seborrhoeic dermatitis. Br J Dermatol 1993;25:95.
9. Horrobin DF, Manku M, Brush M, et al. Abnormalities in plasma
essential fatty acid levels in women with pre-menstrual syndrome and with non-malignant breast
disease. J Nutr Med 1991;2:259–64.
10. Keen H, Payan J, Allawi J, et al. Treatment of diabetic neuropathy
with gamma-linolenic acid. Diabetes Care 1993;16:8–15.
11. Horrobin DF. Essential fatty acid metabolism in diseases of
connective tissue with special reference to scleroderma and to Sjogren’s syndrome.
Med Hypotheses 1984;14:233–47.
12. Horrobin DF, Campbell A. Sjogren’s syndrome and the sicca
syndrome: the role of prostaglandin E1 deficiency. Treatment with essential fatty acids and
vitamin C. Med Hypotheses 1980;6:225–32.
13. Vaddadi KS, Gilleard CJ. Essential fatty acids, tardive dyskinesia,
and schizophrenia. In Omega-6 Essential Fatty Acids: Pathophysiology and Roles in Clinical
Medicine. Horrobin DF (ed). New York: Alan R Liss, 1990, 333–43.
14. Manku MS, Horrobin, DF, Morse NL, et al. Essential fatty acids in the
plasma phospholipids of patients with atopic eczema. Br J Dermatol 1984;110:643.
15. Horrobin DF. Essential fatty acids in clinical dermatology. J Am
Acad Dermatol 1989;20:1045–53.
16. Leventhal LJ, Boyce EG, Zurier RB. Treatment of rheumatoid arthritis
with gammalinolenic acid. Ann Intern Med 1993;119:867–73.
17. Zurier RB, Rossetti RG, Jacobson EW, et al. Gamma-linolenic acid
treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. A randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Arthritis
Rheum 1996;39:1808–17.
18. Landi G. Oral administration of borage oil in atopic dermatitis.
J Appl Cosmetology 1993;11:115–20.
19. Tolleson A, Frithz A. Borage oil, an effective new treatment for
infantile seborrhoeic dermatitis. Br J Dermatol 1993;25:95.
20. Parvais O, Vander Stricht B, Vanhaelen-Fastré R,Vanhaelen M. TLC
detection of pyrrolizidine alkaloids in oil extracted from the seeds of Borago officinalis.
J Planar Chromatography 1994;7:80–2.
21. Awang DVC. Borage. Can Pharm J 1990;123:121–3.
