For general health, most adults need about 250 to 500 mg of combined EPA and DHA per day. That’s roughly what you get from two servings of fatty fish per week. But the right amount depends heavily on your goal: someone trying to lower high triglycerides needs six to ten times more than someone just maintaining baseline health.
General Health: 250 to 500 mg Per Day
The American Heart Association recommends that adults without heart disease eat two servings of oily fish per week, which works out to roughly 500 mg of EPA plus DHA daily. That amount is enough to support normal heart rhythm, healthy blood pressure, and basic cardiovascular protection. Interestingly, the U.S. government has never set an official recommended daily intake specifically for EPA or DHA. The only formal intake target is for ALA, the plant-based omega-3 found in flaxseed and walnuts. That’s because ALA is technically the “essential” omega-3 your body can’t make at all, while EPA and DHA can theoretically be produced from ALA.
In practice, though, your body converts very little ALA into EPA or DHA. Estimates range from 5 to 10% conversion to EPA and only 1 to 5% conversion to DHA. Some researchers put the DHA conversion rate below 1% in adults. This means relying on flaxseed oil or chia seeds alone won’t reliably raise your EPA and DHA levels. You need direct sources: fatty fish, algae-based supplements, or fish oil.
Heart Disease: About 1,000 mg Per Day
If you already have coronary heart disease or have had a heart attack, the recommended target jumps to about 1,000 mg per day of combined EPA and DHA. This dosage has been studied in large trials involving thousands of heart attack survivors and is associated with reduced risk of sudden cardiac death and further cardiovascular events. The AHA recommends getting this primarily from oily fish, though supplements are a reasonable alternative.
Even at the lower end, around 810 mg per day, studies have documented measurable improvements in heart function: lower resting heart rate, faster heart rate recovery after exercise, and better heart rate variability. These are markers of healthier autonomic nervous system function, meaning the balance between your body’s “rest” and “stress” responses improves. High doses of fish oil have also been shown to lower blood pressure, with one study finding a 25% reduction in mean arterial pressure.
High Triglycerides: 3,000 to 5,000 mg Per Day
Lowering very high triglyceride levels requires substantially more EPA and DHA, typically 3,000 to 4,000 mg per day and sometimes up to 5,000 mg. At these doses, triglyceride levels can drop by 30 to 50%. Prescription omega-3 products approved by the FDA for this purpose deliver about 3,400 mg of combined EPA and DHA daily. This is a therapeutic dose that almost certainly requires supplements or prescription formulations, since you’d need to eat an impractical amount of fish to reach it through food alone.
Depression and Mood Support: 1,000 to 2,000 mg EPA
For depression, EPA appears to be the more important of the two fatty acids. A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials found that EPA-enriched supplements (where EPA makes up at least 60% of the total omega-3 content) at doses between 1,000 and 2,000 mg per day produced a meaningful reduction in depression severity. Notably, doses above 2,000 mg of EPA per day did not show a significant benefit, so more is not better here.
If you’re considering omega-3s for mood, look for a supplement that’s EPA-dominant rather than one with equal parts EPA and DHA or a DHA-heavy formula. The ratio matters as much as the total dose.
Pregnancy and Breastfeeding: At Least 200 mg DHA
During pregnancy and breastfeeding, the focus shifts toward DHA, which is critical for fetal brain and eye development. Current guidelines recommend pregnant and lactating women consume at least 200 to 300 mg of DHA per day. This can be met with one to two portions of low-mercury fish per week or a prenatal supplement that includes DHA. Many prenatal vitamins now contain DHA, but it’s worth checking the label since amounts vary widely between products.
Inflammatory Joint Conditions: 3,000 to 5,000 mg
Getting a meaningful anti-inflammatory effect from omega-3s requires high doses, similar to what’s used for triglyceride reduction. Research on inflammatory joint disease indicates that 3,000 to 5,000 mg per day of combined EPA and DHA is needed to significantly reduce joint inflammation. At these levels, liquid fish oil (about 10 to 15 mL per day) tends to be more practical and cost-effective than capsules, which would require taking a large number daily.
Cognitive Decline: 900 mg or More DHA
For age-related memory concerns, DHA is the key fatty acid. A six-month placebo-controlled trial found that 900 mg per day of DHA improved memory performance in older adults who had mild cognitive complaints but not dementia. A separate 18-month trial used 2,000 mg per day of DHA in people with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease. That study found no benefit in most participants, though there was a possible slowing of progression in a genetic subgroup. The takeaway: DHA may help if started early, when memory is just beginning to slip, but probably can’t reverse established Alzheimer’s.
How Much EPA and DHA Is in Common Fish
A standard serving of fish is about 100 grams, or 3.5 ounces. Here’s how much combined EPA and DHA you get from some of the richest sources per serving:
- Atlantic mackerel: about 2,500 mg (0.9 g EPA + 1.6 g DHA)
- Farmed Atlantic salmon: about 1,800 mg (0.6 g EPA + 1.2 g DHA)
- Atlantic herring: about 1,600 mg (0.7 g EPA + 0.9 g DHA)
- Bluefin tuna: about 1,600 mg (0.4 g EPA + 1.2 g DHA)
- Sockeye salmon: about 1,200 mg (0.5 g EPA + 0.7 g DHA)
- European anchovies: about 1,400 mg (0.5 g EPA + 0.9 g DHA)
- Canned sardines: about 1,000 mg (0.4 g EPA + 0.6 g DHA)
Two servings of Atlantic salmon per week would give you roughly 3,600 mg total, or an average of about 500 mg per day. That hits the general health target easily. Reaching the higher therapeutic doses (3,000+ mg daily) through food alone would mean eating fish at nearly every meal, which is why supplements become necessary at those levels.
Safety and Upper Limits
The European Food Safety Authority reviewed the evidence and concluded that supplemental EPA and DHA combined at doses up to 5,000 mg per day do not raise safety concerns for adults. At these levels, there’s no increased risk of spontaneous bleeding, blood sugar problems, or immune dysfunction. The longstanding worry that fish oil “thins the blood” dangerously has not held up in the research.
One minor effect worth knowing: doses of 2,000 mg or more of combined EPA and DHA can raise LDL cholesterol by about 3%. This is a small increase and likely doesn’t affect overall cardiovascular risk, but it’s something to be aware of if you’re monitoring your cholesterol closely. EPA alone, at doses up to 4,000 mg per day, does not appear to raise LDL at all. Supplemental DHA alone has been studied up to 1,000 mg per day without safety concerns for the general population.