About EFAs
EFAs and Disease
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EFAs and Pets
EFA Glossary
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Selected References

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The information on essential fatty acids (EFAs) presented in this website is based on documented scientific research. This list summarizes a selection of references used to compile the information on this site.

 

General
  1. al-Shabanah, OL. Effect of Evening Primrose Oil on Gastric Ulceration and Secretion Induced by Various Ulcerogenic and Necrotizing Agents in Rats, Food Chemistry Toxicology, Vol. 35, p. 769, 1997.

  2. Bierenbaum ML, et al. Reducing atherogenic risk in hyperlipemic humans with flax seed supplementation: a preliminary report. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, Vol. 12(5), pp. 501-4, 1993.

  3. Cunnane SC, et al. Nutritional attributes of traditional flaxseed in healthy young adults. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Vol. 61(1):62-68, 1995.

  4. Hamadeh MJ, et al. Nutritional aspects of flaxseed in the human diet. Proceedings of the Flax Institute. Vol. 4, pp 48-53, 1992.

  5. Harris W.S. n-3 Fatty acids and serum lipoproteins: human studies. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Vol. 65 (Supplement), pp 1645-54, 1997.

  6. Horrobin, D. Loss of delta-6-desaturase activity as a key factor in aging. Medical Hypothesis, Vol. 9, pp 1211-1220, 1981.

  7. Parbtani A and Clark WF. In: Flaxseed in Human Nutrition. Cunnane SC and Thompson LU, eds. Champaign, IL: AOCS Press, pp. 244-260, 1995.

  8. Zurier et al. Gamma-linolenic acid: Metabolism and its roles in Nutrition and Medicine. pp. 129-136, 1996.

  9. Zurier RB, et al. Modification of human lymphocyte and monocyte function by gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), an unsaturated fatty acid. Studies in vitro and in vivo. Proc Annual Meeting of the American Oil Chemists' Society. p. 24, 1998

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Cardiovascular Health

  1. Appel L.J., et al. Does Supplementation of Diet with 'Fish Oil' Reduce Blood Pressure'? A Meta-analysis of Controlled Clinical Trials. Archives of Internal Medicine. Vol. 153 (12), pp 1429-38, 1993.

  2. Bang H.O., Dyerberg, J., Hjoorne, N. The composition of food consumed by Greenland Eskimos. Acta Medical Scandinavia. Vol. 200, pp 69-73, 1976.

  3. Bierenbaum ML, et al. Reducing atherogenic risk in hyperlipemic humans with flax seedsupplementation: a preliminary report. Journal of the American College of Nutrition. Vol. 12(5), pp. 501-4, 1993.

  4. De Lorgeril et al. Mediterranean alpha-linolenic acid-rich diet in secondary prevention of coronary heart diseases. Lancet. Vol. 343, pp. 1454-1459, 1994.

  5. Hu FB, et al. Dietary intake of alpha-linolenic acid and risk of fatal ischemic heart disease among women American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 69, pp. 890-7, 1999.

  6. Jacob R. et al. Prolongation of life span in hypertensive rats by dietary interventions. Effects of garlic and linseed oil. Basic Research in Cardiology, Vol. 92(4), pp 223-232, 1997.

  7. McLennan P., et al. The cardiovascular protective role of docosahexaenoic acid. European Journal of Pharmacology. Vol.300, pp 83-89, 1995.

  8. Renaud S, et al. Cretan Mediterranean diet for prevention of coronary heart disease. American Society for Clinical Nutrition. Vol. 61(Supplement), pp 1360-67. 1995.

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Joint Health

  1. Ariza-Ariza, R. Omega-3 fatty acids in rheumatoid arthritis: an overview. Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism, Vol. 27, pp. 366-370, 1998.

  2. Belch JJ, et al. Effects of altering dietary essential fatty acids on requirements for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a double-blind placebo controlled study, Annals of Rheumatoid Disease, Vol. 47, pp 96-104 1988.

  3. Blackburn GL. Nutrition and inflammatory events: highly unsaturated fatty acids (omega-3 vs omega-6) in surgical injury. Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine. Vol. 200, pp 183-188, 1992.

  4. Calder P. Immunoregulatory and anti-inflammatory effects of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Brazillian Journal of Medical and Biological Research, Vol 31(4), pp. 467-90, 1998.

  5. Guillermo, Tate, et al. Suppression of Acute and Chronic Inflammation by Dietary Gamma Linolenic Acid, Journal of Rheumatology, Vol. 16, pp 729-33, 1989.

  6. Kremer, J.M. n-3 fatty acid supplements in rheumatoid arthritis. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 71(1), pp 349S-3451S, Jan. 2000.

  7. Leventhal, LJ, et al. Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis with Gamma Linolenic Acid, Annals of Internal Medicine, Vol. 119, pp 867-73, 1993.

  8. Pharmaceutical Information Associates, Nonprescription NSAIDs: Efficacy and Safety, Medical Sciences Bulletin, June 1994.

  9. Pullman-Mooar S et al. Alteration of the cellular fatty acid profile and the production of eicosanoids in human monocytes by gamma-linolenic acid. Arthritis and Rheumatism, Vol. 33(10), pp 1526-33, Oct. 1990.

  10. Rothman et al. Effects of unsaturated fatty acids on interleukin-1beta production by human monocytes. Cytokine, Vol. 9(12), pp 1008, 1997.

  11. Zurier RB, et al. Gamma-Linolenic acid treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. A randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Arthritis Rheumatology, Vol. 39, No 11, pp 1808-17, 1996.

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Diabetes

  1. Cotter, C., et al. Metabolic and Vascular Factors in the Pathogenesis of Diabetic Neuropathy, Diabetes, Vol. 46, Suppl. 2, pp S31-S37, 1997.

  2. Horrobin DF. The effects of Gamma Linolenic Acid on breast pain and diabetic neuropathy: possible non-eicosanoid mechanisms.

    Prostaglandins Leukotr Essential Fatty Acids, Vol. 48, pp 101-104, 1993.
  3. Jamal GA, et al. Gamma Linolenic acid in diabetic neuropathy. Lancet, Vol. 10. p. 1098, 1986.

  4. Keen, H, et al. Treatment of diabetic neuropathy with gamma-linolenic acid. The gamma-Linolenic Acid Multicenter Trial Group. Diabetes Care. Vol. 16, No. 1, pp 8-15, 1993.

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Skin Health

  1. Andreassi, M., et al. Efficacy of Gamma Linolenic Acid in the Treatment of Patients with Atopic Dermatitis, The Journal of International Medical Research, Vol. 25, pp. 266-74, 1997.

  2. Henz B.M., Double-blind, multicentre analysis of the efficacy of borage oil in patients with atopic eczema, British Journal of Dermatology, Vol. 140, pp. 685-88, 1999.

  3. Morse P.F., et al. Meta-analysis of placebo-controlled studies of the efficacy of Epogam in the treatment of atopic eczema. Relationship between plasma essential fatty acid changes and clinical response, British Journal of Dermatology, Vol. 121, pp. 75-90, 1989.

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Women's Health

  1. Brush MG, Watson SJ, Horrobin DF, Manku MS. Abnormal essential fatty acid levels in plasma of women with premenstrual syndrome. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Vol. 150, pp 363-366, 1984.

  2. Horrobin DF. The effects of Gamma Linolenic Acid on breast pain and diabetic neuropathy: possible non-eicosanoid mechanisms. Prostaglandins Leukotr Essential Fatty Acids, Vol. 48, pp 101-104, 1993.

  3. Horrobin DF. The role of essential fatty acids and prostaglandins in the premenstrual syndrome. Journal of Reproductive Medicine, Vol.28, pp 465-468, 1983.

  4. Korzekwa MI, Steiner M. Premenstrual Syndromes. Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology. Vol. 40(3):564-576, 1997.

  5. Kruger M.C., et al. Calcium, gamma-linolenic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid supplementation in senile osteoporosis. Aging Clin. Exp. Res, Vol 10, No. 5, pp. 385-94, 1998.

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Brain Function

  1. Anderson G., et al. Docosahexaenoic acid is the preferred dietary n-3 fatty acid for the development of the brain and retina. Pediatric Reserch. Vol. 27 (1), pp 89-97, 1990.

  2. Hamazaki T et al. Administration of Docosahexaenoic Acid Influences Behaviour of Plasma Catecholamine Levels at Times of Psychological Stress. Lipids, Vol. 34 (Supplement), 1999.

  3. Hibbein J. Fish consumption and major depression. Lancet. Vol. 351, pp 1213, 1998.

  4. Kalmij S. et al. Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids, Antioxidants, and Cognitive Function in Very Old Men. American Journal of Epidemiology Vol. 145. No 1 pp 33-41.

  5. Okiniwa Y. et al. A high linolenate and high alpha-linolenate diet induced changes in learning behaviour of rats. Effects of shift in diets and reversal of training stimuli. Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin, Vol. 19(4), pp 536-40, 1996.

  6. Stoll A.L., et al. Omega 3 Fatty Acids in Bipolar Disorder. A Preliminary Double-blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial. Archives of General Psychiatry. Vol. 56, pp 407-412, 1999.

  7. Willatts P., et al. Effect of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in infant formula on problem solving at 10 months of age. Lancet. Vol. 352, pp 688-691, 1998.

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Cancer

  1. Begin ME et al. Differential killing of human carcinoma cells supplemented with n-3 and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Vol 77, pp. 1053-61, 1986.

  2. Begin ME et al. Selective killing of human cancer cells by polyunsaturated fatty acids. Prostaglandins. Vol 19, pp 177-186, 1985.

  3. Hursting S.D., et al. Types of dietary fat and the incidence of cancer at five sites. Prevention Medicine. Vol. 19, pp 242 - 253, 1990.

  4. Kenny F., et.al. Gamma Linolenic Acid with Tamoxifen as Primary Therapy in Breast Cancer. International Journal of Cancer, Vol. 85, pp 643-648, 2000.

  5. Kokoglu et al. Profiles of the fatty acids in the plasma membrane of human brain tumors. Cancer Biochemistry Biophysics, Vol. 16(4), pp 301-12, 1998.

  6. Onogi N. et al. Suppressing effect of perilla oil on azoxymethane-induced foci of colonic aberrant crypts in rats. Carcinogenesis, Vol. 17(6), pp 1291-6, 1996.

  7. Thompson LU. Flaxseed and its lignan and oil components reduce mammary tumor growth at late stage of carcinogenesis. Carcinogenesis, Vol. 17(6), pp 1373-6, 1996.

  8. Yan L. et al. Dietary flaxseed supplementation and experimental metastasis of melanoma cells in mice. Cancer Letters. Vol. 124(2), pp 181-6, 1998.

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Other conditions

  1. Bates D., et al. A double-blind controlled trial of long chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in the treatment of multiple sclerosis. Vol. 52(1), pp18-22, 1989.

  2. Behan P.O. et al. Effect of high doses of essential fatty acids on the postviral fatigue syndrome. Acta Neurologica Scandinavica, Vol. 82(3), pp 209-16, 1990.

  3. Belluzzi, A., et al. Effect of an enteric-coated fish-oil preparation on relapses in Crohn's disease. New England Journal of Medicine. Vol. 334, pp 1557-1560, 1996.

  4. Bennet W.M., et al. Treatment of IgA nephropathy with eicosapentanoic acid (EPA): a two year prospective trial. Clinical Nephrology. Vol. 31, pp 128-131, 1989.

  5. Christophe A at al. Intake of Alpha Linolenic Acid, but not of Docosahexaenoic Acid, correlates positively with DHA content, and with parameters for fertilization potential of human spermatozoa. Abstract for 90th AOCS Annual Meeting, Orlando, Florida 1999.

  6. Clark WF, et al. Flaxseed: a Potential Treatment for Lupus Nephritis. Kidney International. Vol. 48(2), pp 475-80, 1995.

  7. Fung S.M. et al. Fish oil therapy in IgA Nephropathy. Annals of Pharmacotherapy. Vol. 31, pp 112-115, 1997.

  8. Walton A.J., et al. Dietary fish oil and the severity of symptoms in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. Vol. 50 (7), pp 467-466, 1991.

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Pet Health
  1. Bond R, Lloyd DH. Double-blind Comparison of an Evening Primrose Oil and Fish Oil Combination in the Management of Canine Atophy. Veterinary Dermatology. Vol. 4, pp 185-189,1993.

  2. Lloyd D, Thomsett LR. Essential Fatty Acid Supplementation in the Treatment of Canine Atopy: A Preliminary Study. Veterinary Dermatology. Vol. 1, pp 41-44, 1989.

  3. Scott DW, Miller WH, Reinhart GA, Mohammed HO, Bagladi MS. Effect of an Omega-3/Omega-6 Fatty Acid-Containing Commercial Lamb and Rice Diet on Pruritus in Atopic Dogs: Results of a Single-Blinded Study. Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research. Vol. 61, pp 145-153, 1997.

  4. Watson TDG. Diet and skin disease in dogs and cats. Journal of Nutrition. Vol. 128 (Supplement), pp 2783-2789, 1998.

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