By If you have been in a health food store recently or have listened to anyone walking around a gym you have probably heard someone mention creatine. This is a common supplement and one that is well-studied. There was no shortage of research and more seemingly published every time I looked. In this blog, I will review a few important questions to consider before starting this supplement: What is creatine? Creatine’s effects on the body? Creatine’s impact on the mind? Who should supplement with creatine?
What is Creatine?
Creatine is an amino-acid-based molecule that is part of the energy cycle. The amino acids arginine, glycine and methionine are used to synthesize creatine with the support of vitamin B12. Creatine provides fast-acting energy by replacing the phosphorus ion that is lost when energy is released back onto the ADP molecules turning it into ATP, which is the energy currency of the body. This means that there is an increased available energy when you have larger creatine stores in the muscle. About 1 gram is made by the body every day with another gram coming from the food that we eat especially if you consume meat regularly.
Creatine’s Effects on the Body
Creatine, as explained above, is part of energy-producing cycles in our cells, specifically muscle cells. In fact, 90% of the creatine found in the body is within the muscle cells. In the muscle tissue (a collection of muscle cells) free creatine helps with the efficiency of ATP which has the potential to allow for more muscle mass growth, faster recovery and improved performance in short-term high-intensity activities like sprinting or weight lifting. In people over 50, a study has shown that taking creatine after exercising, specifically after resistance training, found there was an increase in overall lean tissue mass and strength gains. In this study, this group was compared to a placebo group that didn’t take creatine, as well as another group that took creatine before working out. This strength gain especially in older adults is particularly important as it can lead to better outcomes as you age preventing osteoporosis, loss in bone density, increased balance and being able to live more independently longer. Similar results have been seen for men and women of all ages, with lacking research for children and adolescents.
Creatine’s Impact on the Mind
Creatine is not just for increasing strength, it also has been shown to impact the brain and mental health. In the research that I looked at there is evidence that long-term consistent use of creatine can have beneficial impacts on your mental health. It has been suggested that creatine has an effect on neurotransmitter metabolism which can improve mood and decrease the severity of depressive episodes. It seems that creatine provides the brain with energy similar to how it does in the muscle. This increase in energy may counter the altered brain energetics that have been linked with depression, especially in cases that relate to the brain’s ability to synthesize energy. It has been well studied, although some studies used animals as subjects, that showed increasing the creatine concentration in the brain by either increasing the consumption of animal proteins especially those that come from the flesh of the animals (not eggs or dairy) or through supplementation can support mood and depression, especially in females that generally have lower creatine concentrations. This also impacts females during their reproductive age during their menstrual cycle. There’s an increased variability of the creatine concentration throughout the body during the menstruation cycle that seems to peak during ovulation and drop during menstruation. Also, it has been seen that in times of high stress, there is a higher demand for creatine and ATP production pathways are impaired. It has been suggested that creatine supplementation has shown to support ATP production which can provide cognitive benefits especially those that are concerned with cognition, attention and memory. For mental health, benefit supplementation seems to require higher dosages and long-term use for results to be seen.
Who Should Supplement with Creatine?
Creatine supplements are synthesized from sarcosine and cyanamide, these generally don’t contain any animal by-products so they are vegetarian and vegan friendly. According to the research, many people benefit from creatine in either its dietary or supplementary form. The only groups that need more research before it can be recommended would be children and adolescents. For this age group, there are still some concerns as there are some gaps in the research when it comes to both the long and short-term effects, as well as safety and how well it is tolerated. Women, on the other hand, may benefit greatly from supplementing with creatine as women have a lower amount of stored creatine that fluctuates during the menstrual cycle. For women in menopause and post-menopause creatine has been linked with maintaining more lean tissues, such as muscle, that can be protective against the effects of the decrease in estrogen especially when it comes to loss of muscle mass and bone health. Supplementing can be beneficial for vegans and vegetarians as they have lower dietary amounts of creatine available in their diet. Creatine supplementation is common and beneficial to those in power and strength-based sports as it provides short-term energy and recovery benefits.
Creatine supplementation from what I’ve been able to gather seems to be a supplement that comes highly recommended for many reasons for many people. Of course, if you have concerns you can always talk to your healthcare provider to see if it is something that you would benefit from. However, it seems to be safe and well tolerated as a supplement so it might be something that you might want to try and see if you find benefit with it. If you have any questions feel free to reach out through the Contact Me page and I’m happy to support you on your health journey.
Sources:
- Kaviani, M., Shaw, K., & Chilibeck, P. D. (2020). Benefits of Creatine Supplementation for Vegetarians Compared to Omnivorous Athletes: A Systematic Review. International journal of environmental research and public health, 17(9), 3041. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17093041
- Candow, D. G., Vogt, E., Johannsmeyer, S., Forbes, S. C., & Farthing, J. P. (2015). Strategic creatine supplementation and resistance training in healthy older adults. Applied physiology, nutrition, and metabolism = Physiologie appliquee, nutrition et metabolisme, 40(7), 689–694. https://doi.org/10.1139/apnm-2014-0498
- Smith-Ryan, A. E., Cabre, H. E., Eckerson, J. M., & Candow, D. G. (2021). Creatine Supplementation in Women’s Health: A Lifespan Perspective. Nutrients, 13(3), 877. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13030877
- Roschel, H., Gualano, B., Ostojic, S. M., & Rawson, E. S. (2021). Creatine Supplementation and Brain Health. Nutrients, 13(2), 586. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13020586
Antonio, J., Candow, D. G., Forbes, S. C., Gualano, B., Jagim, A. R., Kreider, R. B., Rawson, E. S., Smith-Ryan, A. E., VanDusseldorp, T. A., Willoughby, D. S., & Ziegenfuss, T. N. (2021). Common questions and misconceptions about creatine supplementation: what does the scientific evidence really show?. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 18(1), 13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-021-00412-w
