Cited by 247Fatty Acid Research and HealthEdible Oils Quality and AnalysisAquaculture Nutrition and Growth

The differential effects of EPA and DHA on cardiovascular risk factors

Open access
Cottin, S. C., Sanders, T. A., Hall, W. L.·2011·Proceedings of the Nutrition Society

Abstract

Compelling evidence exists for the cardioprotective benefits resulting from consumption of fatty acids from fish oils, EPA (20:5 n-3) and DHA (22:6 n-3). EPA and DHA alter membrane fluidity, interact with transcription factors such as PPAR and sterol regulatory element binding protein, and are substrates for enzymes including cyclooxygenase, lipoxygenase and cytochrome P450. As a result, fish oils may improve cardiovascular health by altering lipid metabolism, inducing haemodynamic changes, decreasing arrhythmias, modulating platelet function, improving endothelial function and inhibiting inflammatory pathways. The independent effects of EPA and DHA are poorly understood. While both EPA and DHA decrease TAG levels, only DHA appears to increase HDL and LDL particle size. Evidence to date suggests that DHA is more efficient in decreasing blood pressure, heart rate and platelet aggregation compared to EPA. Fish oil consumption appears to improve arterial compliance and endothelial function; it is not yet clear as to whether differences exist between EPA and DHA in their vascular effects. In contrast, the beneficial effect of fish oils on inflammation and insulin sensitivity observed in vitro and in animal studies has not been confirmed in human subjects. Further investigation to clarify the relative effects of consuming EPA and DHA at a range of doses would enable elaboration of current understanding regarding cardioprotective effects of consuming oily fish and algal sources of long chain n-3 PUFA, and provide clearer evidence for the clinical therapeutic potential of consuming either EPA or DHA-rich oils.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1017/s0029665111000061

Cites

194 of 194 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • Spirulina protein level is 60-70% dry weight, compared to 22% in beef.

    “Spirulina has a protein level that is quite high, reaching from 60% to 70% of its dry weight (compared to 22% in beef).”

    From Trends and Technological Advancements in the Possible Food Applications of Spirulina and Their Health Benefits: A Review. (2022) · cites this paper as [57]

    The Conclusion discusses algal DHA as a source of omega-3 fatty acids, not the protein content of Spirulina. Searches for Spirulina protein, 60–70% dry weight, and the 22% beef comparison found no passage addressing those figures in our copy; page numbers were unavailable. (LLM, conf=0.78)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • Spirulina contains twice as much protein as the finest vegetable protein source.

    “This type of algae contains an extraordinarily high amount of protein for a plant source; in fact, it contains twice as much protein as the finest source of protein found in vegetables.”

    From Trends and Technological Advancements in the Possible Food Applications of Spirulina and Their Health Benefits: A Review. (2022) · cites this paper as [57]

    The Conclusion discusses algal DHA as a source of omega-3 fatty acids, not Spirulina or protein content. Searches for the claimed twofold protein comparison and for Spirulina protein content found no passage addressing either point in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.76)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • Spirulina has high protein digestibility ranging from 85% to 95%.

    “Additionally, it has a high digestibility of its proteins, ranging from 85% to 95%, and the process of acquiring proteins through proteolytic enzymes is straightforward in comparison to the process of obtaining enzymes from vegetables.”

    From Trends and Technological Advancements in the Possible Food Applications of Spirulina and Their Health Benefits: A Review. (2022) · cites this paper as [57]

    The Conclusion discusses algal DHA as a source of omega-3 fatty acids, not Spirulina protein. Searches for Spirulina, 85%–95% protein digestibility, and proteolytic extraction found no passage addressing the claim in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.76)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • Protein content of spirulina fluctuates by 10-15% depending on harvest time, with the most protein present in the early morning.

    “The amount of protein that these algae contain fluctuates by between 10% and 15% depending on the time of harvest, with the most protein being present in the algae during the early morning [42,57].”

    From Trends and Technological Advancements in the Possible Food Applications of Spirulina and Their Health Benefits: A Review. (2022) · cites this paper as [57]

    The Conclusion discusses algal sources of DHA, not spirulina protein. Searches for spirulina, harvest time, early morning, and a 10–15% change in protein content found no passage addressing the claim in our copy; page numbers were unavailable. (LLM, conf=0.77)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • Spirulina is more beneficial in children suffering from malnutrition than milk powders, which contain lactic acid that is difficult to digest and absorb.

    “It was discovered that this algae is more beneficial in children who are suffering from malnutrition than milk powders, which contain lactic acid that is difficult to digest and absorb.”

    From Trends and Technological Advancements in the Possible Food Applications of Spirulina and Their Health Benefits: A Review. (2022) · cites this paper as [57]

    The Conclusion discusses algal DHA and cardiovascular risk factors, including the availability of DHA-fortified infant foods, but does not address spirulina as a treatment for malnutrition. Searches for spirulina, malnourished children, milk powder, lactic acid, and digestion found no passage supporting the claimed comparison. (LLM, conf=0.76)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

Part of this paper’s reference list could not be split into single entries.

Flagged first, then by citations

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Cottin, S. C., Sanders, T. A., & Hall, W. L.
Affiliations
King's College London (GB)
Corresponding author
Cottin, S. C.
Venue
Proceedings of the Nutrition Society
Published
2011-02-24
Volume
70
Issue
2
Pages
215-231
ISSN
  • 0029-6651 (ISSN-L)
  • 1475-2719
OpenAlex
W2019409394
Cited by
247
References
194
Citations by year
2026: 8 · 2025: 15 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 11 · 2022: 19 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 25 · 2019: 14 · 2018: 14 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 19 · 2015: 18 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 31 · 2012: 19
FWCI
2.52
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Proceedings of The Nutrition Society (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion)
Funders
King's College London
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Fatty Acid Research and Health
  • Physical Sciences › Chemistry › Organic Chemistry › Edible Oils Quality and Analysis
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Aquatic Science › Aquaculture Nutrition and Growth
Keywords
eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, omega-3 fatty acids, fish oil, cardiovascular risk factors, cardioprotection, lipid metabolism, blood pressure, platelet aggregation, endothelial function, arterial compliance, inflammation, insulin sensitivity, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors, SREBP, n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, oily fish, algal oil
MeSH terms
Cardiovascular Diseases, Cardiovascular System, Docosahexaenoic Acids, Humans, Lipids, Risk Factors, Eicosapentaenoic Acid

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review