Algal EPA+DHA (microalgae oil, mixed 400/400)

Regulatory status: supplement (OTC vegan omega-3) / nutrition (preformed long-chain n-3). Not a device, not a recovery modality, not a prescription drug

• Fasting triglyceride lowering (and an improved TG:HDL ratio).
• Higher red-cell omega-3 index, with an implied target of ≥8% (sometimes sold as 8–12%).
• Fewer atherosclerotic cardiovascular events (MI, stroke, CV death, revascularisation).
• Vegan / vegetarian source that is bioequivalent to fish oil or oily fish for EPA+DHA status.
• Better cognition or slower age-related cognitive decline / Alzheimer’s disease.
• Pregnancy and infant outcomes (gestational length, preterm birth, infant visual/cognitive development) — a DHA-only / formula claim, not an 800 mg mixed-EPA/DHA claim.
• Lower marine-contaminant exposure than fish or fish oil.
• Lower blood pressure and resting heart rate.
• Less joint pain / systemic inflammation.

Algal mixed EPA+DHA is a **real, bioavailable, vegan source** of the same two fatty acids fish oil provides. Head-to-head work (Maki/Bailey; Arterburn vs salmon) shows the **source is not the bottleneck** — grams and EPA:DHA ratio are. Algal oil **lowers fasting triglycerides and raises the omega-3 index** in human RCTs, with a replicated **DHA-associated LDL-C increase**. Those lipid and status effects were generated at **~0.9–2.4 g/day**, mostly as **DHA-only** oils, not at **800 mg 1:1**. **What the 800 mg (400/400) protocol does not have:** any RCT of that dose or ratio on triglycerides, any RCT of that dose on the omega-3 index, and **any cardiovascular-outcomes RCT at any algal dose**. Marine event trials at the same gram dose (VITAL, ASCEND: 840 mg) missed their primary composites. Marine mixed EPA+DHA at **4 g** (STRENGTH) also missed. REDUCE-IT is a different drug and is not inherited. Treating 800 mg algal oil as if it were 2–4 g marine event-trial oil, or as if it were 4 g icosapent ethyl, is a category error.