At PMS clinics, women are prescribed a variety of vitamin, mineral and other supplements to be taken with evening primrose oil. At the Nazzaro and Lombard PMS clinic in the USA, they recommend the EFA co-factors of:
•   Vitamin C: between 500 mg to 3g a day
•   B-complex tablet in appropriate ratios
•   Vitamin B6: 50 mg a day
•   Zinc: l0 mg a day
Vitamin B6. This vitamin has a particularly important role to play in the treatment of PMS. It is one of the co-factors in the metabolic conversion process of essential fatty acids. Some women may have below average levels of B6, and this is thought to have a harmful effect on the control centers of the menstrual cycle, the hypothalamus and pituitary glands. This vitamin is needed for the delicate inter-relationship between these two centers. Without it, they don’t work properly. The contraceptive pill, with its synthetic hormones, can lower some women’s levels of B6. Hormones may produce a condition where far more B6 is needed than usual – as high as 150mg a day. Doses much above this can lead to side-effects and should be taken only under medical supervision.
Overall, it seems that Vitamin B6 is helpful to any women with PMS, and also to women who get depressed when taking the contraceptive pill.
In some circumstances, the additional nutrients of magnesium, chromium, Vitamin E, and tryptophan are also used. These nutritional supplements are part of a wider nutritional programme which involves cutting out all xanthines in the diet, found in substances like coffee, tea, chocolate and cola, as well as all trans fatty acids found in things like hard margarines and processed pastries.
Other doctors go much further than this in their dietary recommendations and advise a nutritional plan which:
•   Reduces intake of sugar and junk foods
•   Reduces intake of salt
•   Reduces intake of tea and coffee
•   Advocates eating green vegetables or a salad daily
•   Limits intake of dairy products
•   Reduces intake of tobacco and alcohol
•   Advocates use of good vegetable oils
•   Advocates plenty of whole-foods
In addition, they advise taking regular exercise.
The Women’s Nutritional Advisory Service also uses evening primrose oil, plus vitamins and minerals, as part of its therapy. They carried out their own clinical (but unscientific) trials on products promoted for PMT in order to be able to give advice to their consumers as to which products really worked.
If you add together the ‘improved a lot’ and ‘improved slightly’ categories, a total of 83% improved on evening primrose oil.
These figures are similar to the findings of Dr Caroline Shreeve who has been using evening primrose oil to treat her PMS patients for several years.
She says that every patient on evening primrose oil has gained some relief, and more than 90% have had total relief.

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WOMEN’S HEALTH