creatine and high blood pressure?

[manaka]

hi, ive just started on creatine last week and after my workouts today i noticed that one of my eyes was rather bloodshot

the last time i had bloodshot eyes for no apparent reason i checked with the doctor and he said it was probably due to hypertension (high blood pressure)

is it possible this time the creatine has raised my high blood pressure? hypertension runs in the family, but im still young at 18 i figure and shouldnt really run into problems at this age.. so this is why im starting to get cautious

any info would be appreciated

edit: forgot to mention, i was taking creatine monohydrate if that helps
i've just read that creatine ethyl ester seems like a better option but i just bought this tub of mono it seems like a waste

[TangoandCash]

hi, ive just started on creatine last week and after my workouts today i noticed that one of my eyes was rather bloodshot

the last time i had bloodshot eyes for no apparent reason i checked with the doctor and he said it was probably due to hypertension (high blood pressure)

is it possible this time the creatine has raised my high blood pressure? hypertension runs in the family, but im still young at 18 i figure and shouldnt really run into problems at this age.. so this is why im starting to get cautious

any info would be appreciated

edit: forgot to mention, i was taking creatine monohydrate if that helps
i've just read that creatine ethyl ester seems like a better option but i just bought this tub of mono it seems like a waste

It's very unlikely that creatine is the cause but not impossible. I can't find you and hard evidence (Studies) but I have seen some ppl complaining of the same thing on other forums, very rarely however.

It's more likely that you are working out harder, faster, and more intensely which shoots up the BP. Creatine MONO is ultra safe so you don't have to worry about and wild adverse effects.

Keep taking the MONO on workout days and keep focused on ur training.

On off days take the MONO (5g) like you normally would. Wait 1 hr, and if your BP is raised significantly then I'd start asking questions.

Until then no worries, MONO is cheap, effective and safe.

[manaka]

thanks, thats a bit reassuring. ill keep taking it and if my blood pressure spikes up again on an off day ill come back with concerns haha

[Rsx6speed]

hi, ive just started on creatine last week and after my workouts today i noticed that one of my eyes was rather bloodshot

the last time i had bloodshot eyes for no apparent reason i checked with the doctor and he said it was probably due to hypertension (high blood pressure)

is it possible this time the creatine has raised my high blood pressure? hypertension runs in the family, but im still young at 18 i figure and shouldnt really run into problems at this age.. so this is why im starting to get cautious

any info would be appreciated

edit: forgot to mention, i was taking creatine monohydrate if that helps
i've just read that creatine ethyl ester seems like a better option but i just bought this tub of mono it seems like a waste

I am in the same dilemma as you; however, I suspect that Creatine might be causing high blood pressure for me. I am 23 right now and i've been taking creatine as instructed on the label for about 4 months.

Last year, my aunt, who is a nurse, measured my blood pressure. She was astonished how low my blood pressure was (I believe that it was 110/75). She measured my whole family, and I had the lowest blood pressure. I was working out regularly last year with protein supplementation but without creatine. I weighed about 175 at that time.

About 4 months ago I started to take creatine again (I took a little bit in high school, but not regularly). She measured my blood pressure yesterday and today. She was shocked at how high my blood pressure was (140/78). I did some research online and a few websites were suggesting that it is possible that creatine could be the cause of high blood pressure in my case. The reason is that creatine leads to water retention in the muscles, which could constrict the nearby blood vessels. This constriction of the blood vessels is what could potentially cause the high blood pressure.

I am not an expert on this. Nor am I 100% sure that creatine is the cause. However, as of today, I have stopped taking creatine. I will continue to work out moderately and have my blood pressure measured frequently.

Hopefully this is some what helpful.

[F.A.M.E.]

Just regular creatine mono should not have caused this. However, I've seen certain creatine supplements advise against taking w/ high blood pressure (CellMass being one of them).

[kstevo]

Although there is no hard evidence of Creatine having any side-effects, there ARE numerous but widely spaced reports of things including but not limited to high blood pressure. 19/20 people will flame you or tell you you are full of **** if you suggest such things but a lack of evidence does not nessesarily mean that those side-effects don't exist. IMO though I believe these side-effects DO exist but ONLY be cases where things like diet and sleep are not in check. In a bodybuilder who eats and sleeps in sufficent amounts I do not believe there to be problems.

Many of my 'wanna-be but not deticated enough to have a diet' bodybuilding mates often complain of Creatine side-effects, I however only feel the benefits and according to my Blood Pressure Reading my reading is... wait a sec... 126/61 which is about the average for me. Granted that I smoke occasionally and have for the last 5 years (smoked heavily until start of 08) I would say it's only slightly elevated.

Get your diet in check and remember that Creatine is THE supplement that WORKS, and IMO having your blood pressure raised by 5 or 10 is absolutly NOTHING to worry about.

[cross2767]

Sorry to rehash this after so long, but I wanted to take a second to address some of the comments as a whole.

For starters, yes, creatine supplementation works...I'll be the first to admit it. However, it can have adverse effects on blood pressure. To the average person, a change of +10 mmHg systolic may be nothing, but for someone at the age of 18 who has a family history of hypertension, it's cause for concern. Rsx6speed mentioned that his bp was always low in comparison to the family, and now it's not at the age of 23. Trust me, I'm going through it.

Just starting with the facts, increased creatine kinase enzymes (byproduct of creatine phosphate breakdown) has shown to lead to an increase in blood pressure due to the kidneys trying to remove the excess waste. Additionally, supplementing amino acids or non-dietary protein can have the same effect because whatever your body determines to be excess will be excreted through the urine because it's more efficient than trying to convert proteins into fat for storage.

So, genetically predisposed hypertensives + bodybuilding (especially without focus on cardiorespiratory endurance prior to heavy lifting) can lead to complications with supplementing protein and creatine, which are the two most effective and widely consumed products. Being realistic, my RMR is 3300 kCals per day without exercise...I know how hard it is to get that many low fat calories per day, so the protein is kinda unavoidable. My suggestion is to make sure you maintain proper cardio and muscular endurance at a young age, and try to avoid supplementing creatine.

Additionally, nitric oxide enhancers, such as the all-powerful NO Xplode, can do the same thing. Besides the caffeine (which actually nullifies the body's ability to uptake supplemented creatine monohydrate), the "vasodilators" within can put an unrealistic dependency on the vascular system. The smooth muscle in the arteries will get used to the drug doing the work for them, so the ability to perform themselves will be limited once you cycle off. This can have long-term effects on blood pressure. And let's be realistic about cycling off of NO Xplode...it's hard to do because it's addictive. Oh, and one other note about it...if you must use it, drink plenty of water and up your vitamins. It sends your body into "fight or flight" mode, during which your body redirects blood flow to skeletal muscle and away from digestive organs. What does this mean? It means that your GI tract won't absorb as much water and nutrients. I lost 10+lbs on that stuff. Additionally, the blowouts you get are because the GI tract someone shuts down, and as the stomach acid flows through the small intestine and colon, it damages the cells that are responsible for absorbing nutrients, sometimes permanently. All of this is a result of arginine AAKG. Oh, and that also increases your bp and heartrate.

Hope that helps.

[theapexxxx]

Creatine kinase activity is associated with blood pressure.
Brewster LM, Mairuhu G, Bindraban NR, Koopmans RP, Clark JF, van Montfrans GA.

Department of Internal Medicine, F4-222, Academic Medical Center, Meibergdreef 9, 1105 AZ, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. mail@lizzybrewster.net

Abstract
BACKGROUND: We previously hypothesized that high activity of creatine kinase, the central regulatory enzyme of energy metabolism, facilitates the development of high blood pressure. Creatine kinase rapidly provides adenosine triphosphate to highly energy-demanding processes, including cardiovascular contraction, and antagonizes nitric oxide-mediated functions. Relatively high activity of the enzyme, particularly in resistance arteries, is thought to enhance pressor responses and increase blood pressure. Tissue creatine kinase activity is reported to be high in black people, a population subgroup with greater hypertension risk; the proposed effects of high creatine kinase activity, however, are not "race dependent." We therefore assessed whether creatine kinase is associated with blood pressure in a multiethnic population.

METHODS AND RESULTS: We analyzed a stratified random sample of the population of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, consisting of 1444 citizens (503 white European, 292 South Asian, 580 black, and 69 of other ethnicity) aged 34 to 60 years. We used linear regression analysis to investigate the association between blood pressure and normal serum creatine kinase after rest, as a substitute measure of tissue activity. Creatine kinase was independently associated with blood pressure, with an increase in systolic and diastolic pressure, respectively, of 8.0 (95% CI, 3.3 to 12.7) and 4.7 (95% CI, 1.9 to 7.5) mm Hg per log creatine kinase increase after adjustment for age, sex, body mass index, and ethnicity.

CONCLUSIONS: Creatine kinase is associated with blood pressure. Further studies are needed to explore the nature of this association, including how variation in cardiovascular creatine kinase activity may affect pressor responses.

[iksD]

Sorry for bumping, but does anyone have any more research on this?
I don't think I've ever had blood pressure problems but I've been having high blood pressure lately and the only thing I changed was my routine and creatine supplementation.