Creatine: (Everything You Need To Know)

[WillBrink]

I'm going to switch from powder to tablets (mostly for convenience). I've been using Optimum Nutrition powder and had a look at their tablets but they seem expensive (£30 for 200 @ 2,500mg) compared with another product (WeightWorld £18 for 270 tablets @ 3,000mg). Both are monohydrate.
I guess my question is are all tablets created equal? In what circumstances would the more expensive option be the better option?
I would post links but don't think i can due to my low post count

Why waste $ on tablets? CM has zero taste. Mix in any drink, done. I add to coffee.

As all CM is not created equal, all tablets obviously not created equal...

[Prima3]

Is it ok to take expired creatine? I think I still have some from 2019 or something and it says it expired 4/2022

EDIT: the powder still looks normal

[faipdeooiad]

Is it ok to take expired creatine? I think I still have some from 2019 or something and it says it expired 4/2022

EDIT: the powder still looks normal

If it looks ok, it’ll be fine.

[WillBrink]

Creatine Timing... 🤓

"To conclude, the current body of research does not support timed creatine supplementation prescription in relation to long(er) term training or in combination with other ingredients."

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles...22.893714/full

[WillBrink]

New creatine paper of interest:


Association between dietary creatine and visuospatial short-term memory in older adults


Aims: The purpose was to examine the relationship between habitual dietary creatine intake obtained in food and visuospatial short-term memory (VSSM).


Methods: Forty-two participants (32 females, 10 males; > 60 yrs of age) completed a 5-day dietary recall to estimate creatine intake and performed a cognitive assessment which included a visuospatial short-term memory test (forward and reverse corsi block test) and a mini-mental state examination (MMSE). Pearson correlation coefficients were determined. Further, cohorts were derived based on the median creatine intake.


Results: There was a significant correlation between the forward Corsi (r = 0.703, P < 0.001), reverse Corsi (r = 0.715, P < 0.001), and the memory sub-component of the MMSE (r = 0.406, P = 0.004). A median creatine intake of 0.382 g/day was found. Participants consuming greater than the median had a significantly higher Corsi (P = 0.005) and reverse Corsi (P < 0.001) scores compared to participants ingesting less than the median.


Conclusions: Dietary creatine intake is positively associated with measures of memory in older adults. Clinical Implications: Older adults should consider food sources containing creatine (i.e. red meat, seafood) due to the positive association with visuospatial short-term memory.


https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10....01060221102273

[WillBrink]

All, excellent review on creatine and aging specific issues:

Creatine supplementation for older adults: Focus on sarcopenia, osteoporosis, frailty and Cachexia

Highlights

• The combination of creatine supplementation and resistance training increases lean mass and muscle strength in aging adults.
•Creatine supplementation decreases measures of bone catabolism which may help explain some of the preliminary increases in bone area and strength.

>>>> Creatine supplementation poses no adverse effect on kidney or liver function. <<<<

•Creatine supplementation as the potential to be an effective intervention for treating frailty and cachexia.

Abstract

Sarcopenia refers to the age-related reduction in strength, muscle mass and functionality which increases the risk for falls, injuries and fractures. Sarcopenia is associated with other age-related conditions such as osteoporosis, frailty and cachexia. Identifying treatments to overcome sarcopenia and associated conditions is important from a global health perspective. There is evidence that creatine monohydrate supplementation, primarily when combined with resistance training, has favorable effects on indices of aging muscle and bone. These musculoskeletal benefits provide some rationale for creatine being a potential intervention for treating frailty and cachexia.

The purposes of this narrative review are to update the collective body of research pertaining to the effects of creatine supplementation on indices of aging muscle and bone (including bone turnover markers) and present possible justification and rationale for its utilization in the treatment of frailty and cachexia in older adults.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/scienc...56328222001442

[WillBrink]

Creatine As An Antioxidant?

Of the many potential benefits of creatine, that of an antioxidant is one of the more unexpected in my view, but studies over the decades suggest antioxidant properties. Precisely how creatine works as an antioxidant has not been fully elucidated, but a recent review paper via the J. Nutrients (1), does an excellent job of exploring the topic. It appears more likley creatine itself is not an antioxidant but up-regulates key antioxidant enzymes and pathways.

Why is that important? Oxidative stress (which antioxidants control), is associated with a long list of diseases best avoided, aging, performance decrements, damage to muscle fibers during intense exercise, inflammation, and so forth.

Cont:

https://brinkzone.com/is-creatine-an-antioxidant/

(1) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8000194/

[WillBrink]

A new study of interest, another benefit of creatine:

Effects of Creatine Supplementation and Progressive Resistance Training in Stroke Survivors

Abstract

International Journal of Exercise Science 15(2): 1117-1132, 2022. The purpose was to investigate the effects of progressive resistance training (PRT) and creatine supplementation in stroke survivors. Participants were randomized to one of two groups: creatine (n = 5; 51 ± 16y) or placebo (n = 3; 73 ± 8y) during 10 weeks of supervised PRT. Prior to and following PRT and supplementation, assessments were made for body composition (lean tissue and fat mass), muscle thickness, muscle strength (1-repetition maximum), functional exercise capacity (6-minute walk test, Berg Balance Scale; BBS), cognition (Montreal Cognitive Assessment; MoCA), and symptoms of anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder Assessment-7; GAD-7) and depression (Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale; CES-D). There were time main effects for leg press strength (increased; p = 0.001), chest press strength (increased; p = 0.003), elbow flexor muscle thickness (increased; p = 0.007), BBS (increased; p = 0.002), MoCA (increased; p = 0.031) and CES-D (decreased; p = 0.045). There was a group x time interaction for the 6 minute walk test (p = 0.039). The creatine group significantly increased walking distance over time (p = 0.002) with no change in the placebo group (p = 0.120). Ten weeks of PRT had some positive effects on measures of muscle strength and size, balance, cognition and depression. The addition of creatine to PRT significantly improved walking performance in stroke survivors.

https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/ijes/vol15/iss2/15/

[WillBrink]

Creatine Study 🤓

Another attempt to produce a superior form of creatine to monohydrate fails. Looks like I have to update the graveyard (1)


Creatine Monohydrate Supplementation, but not Creatyl-L-Leucine, Increased Muscle Creatine Content in Healthy Young Adults: A Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial

International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism

Creatine (Cr) supplementation is a well-established strategy to enhance gains in strength, lean body mass, and power from a period of resistance training. However, the effectiveness of creatyl-L-leucine (CLL), a purported Cr amide, is unknown. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the effects of CLL on muscle Cr content. Twenty-nine healthy men (n = 17) and women (n = 12) consumed 5 g/day of either Cr monohydrate (n = 8; 28.5 ± 7.3 years, 172.1 ± 11.0 cm, 76.6 ± 10.7 kg), CLL (n = 11; 29.2 ± 9.3 years, 170.3 ± 10.5 cm, 71.9 ± 14.5 kg), or placebo (n = 10; 30.3 ± 6.9 years, 167.8 ± 9.9 cm, 69.9 ± 11.1 kg) for 14 days in a randomized, double-blind design. Participants completed three bouts of supervised resistance exercise per week. Muscle biopsies were collected before and after the intervention for quantification of muscle Cr. Cr monohydrate supplementation which significantly increased muscle Cr content with 14 days of supplementation. No changes in muscle Cr were observed for the placebo or CLL groups. Cr monohydrate supplementation is an effective strategy to augment muscle Cr content while CLL is not.

https://journals.humankinetics.com/v....2022-0074.xml

(1) https://brinkzone.com/the-creatine-grave-yard/

[WillBrink]

Creatine study of interest and importance:

Effects of Creatine Supplementation and Progressive Resistance Training in Stroke Survivors

Int J Exerc Sci. 2022; 15(2): 1117–1132.

Abstract
The purpose was to investigate the effects of progressive resistance training (PRT) and creatine supplementation in stroke survivors. Participants were randomized to one of two groups: creatine (n = 5; 51 ± 16y) or placebo (n = 3; 73 ± 8y) during 10 weeks of supervised PRT. Prior to and following PRT and supplementation, assessments were made for body composition (lean tissue and fat mass), muscle thickness, muscle strength (1-repetition maximum), functional exercise capacity (6-minute walk test, Berg Balance Scale; BBS), cognition (Montreal Cognitive Assessment; MoCA), and symptoms of anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder Assessment-7; GAD-7) and depression (Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale; CES-D). There were time main effects for leg press strength (increased; p = 0.001), chest press strength (increased; p = 0.003), elbow flexor muscle thickness (increased; p = 0.007), BBS (increased; p = 0.002), MoCA (increased; p = 0.031) and CES-D (decreased; p = 0.045). There was a group x time interaction for the 6 minute walk test (p = 0.039). The creatine group significantly increased walking distance over time (p = 0.002) with no change in the placebo group (p = 0.120). Ten weeks of PRT had some positive effects on measures of muscle strength and size, balance, cognition and depression. The addition of creatine to PRT significantly improved walking performance in stroke survivors.

Full paper:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9362889/

[WillBrink]

New meta of interest:

"Creatine supplementation enhanced measures of memory performance in healthy individuals, especially in older adults (66-76 years): a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials."

CONTEXT: From an energy perspective, the brain is very metabolically demanding. It is well documented that creatine plays a key role in brain bioenergetics. There is some evidence that creatine supplementation can augment brain creatine stores, which could increase memory.

OBJECTIVE: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted to determine the effects of creatine supplementation on memory performance in healthy humans.

DATA SOURCES: The literature was searched through the PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Scopus databases from inception until September 2021.

DATA EXTRACTION: Twenty-three eligible RCTs were initially identified. Ten RCTs examining the effect of creatine supplementation compared with placebo on measures of memory in healthy individuals met the inclusion criteria for systematic review, 8 of which were included in the meta-analysis.

DATA ANALYSIS: Overall, creatine supplementation improved measures of memory compared with placebo (standard mean difference [SMD] = 0.29, 95%CI, 0.04-0.53; I2 = 66%; P = 0.02). Subgroup analyses revealed a significant improvement in memory in older adults (66-76 years) (SMD = 0.88; 95%CI, 0.22-1.55; I2 = 83%; P = 0.009) compared with their younger counterparts (11-31 years) (SMD = 0.03; 95%CI, -0.14 to 0.20; I2 = 0%; P = 0.72). Creatine dose (≈ 2.2-20 g/d), duration of intervention (5 days to 24 weeks), sex, or geographical origin did not influence the findings.

CONCLUSION: Creatine supplementation enhanced measures of memory performance in healthy individuals, especially in older adults (66-76 years).

Source: https://read.qxmd.com/read/35984306/...trolled-trials

[KieranB1996]

should I be using this as a beginner?

[faipdeooiad]

should I be using this as a beginner?

There’s no harm in it. 5g/day, no need to load. Ensure you’re drinking plenty.

[WillBrink]

should I be using this as a beginner?

If you read the OP and looked through a few pages here of the various studies posted, the answer is obvious, and unrelated to whether you workout or not.

If you're not using creatine, you're doing it wrong...

[WillBrink]

More Creatine Win! 😎

Effects of creatine supplementation on memory in healthy individuals: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Nutr Rev. 2022 Aug 19;nuac064.

Abstract
Context: From an energy perspective, the brain is very metabolically demanding. It is well documented that creatine plays a key role in brain bioenergetics. There is some evidence that creatine supplementation can augment brain creatine stores, which could increase memory.

Objective: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted to determine the effects of creatine supplementation on memory performance in healthy humans.

Data sources: The literature was searched through the PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Scopus databases from inception until September 2021.

Data extraction: Twenty-three eligible RCTs were initially identified. Ten RCTs examining the effect of creatine supplementation compared with placebo on measures of memory in healthy individuals met the inclusion criteria for systematic review, 8 of which were included in the meta-analysis.

Data analysis: Overall, creatine supplementation improved measures of memory compared with placebo (standard mean difference [SMD] = 0.29, 95%CI, 0.04-0.53; I2 = 66%; P = 0.02). Subgroup analyses revealed a significant improvement in memory in older adults (66-76 years) (SMD = 0.88; 95%CI, 0.22-1.55; I2 = 83%; P = 0.009) compared with their younger counterparts (11-31 years) (SMD = 0.03; 95%CI, -0.14 to 0.20; I2 = 0%; P = 0.72). Creatine dose (≈ 2.2-20 g/d), duration of intervention (5 days to 24 weeks), sex, or geographical origin did not influence the findings.

Conclusion: Creatine supplementation enhanced measures of memory performance in healthy individuals, especially in older adults (66-76 years).

https://academic.oup.com/nutritionre...uac064/6671817

[WillBrink]

More Creatine Win! 😎

Effects of creatine supplementation on memory in healthy individuals: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Nutr Rev. 2022 Aug 19;nuac064.

Abstract
Context: From an energy perspective, the brain is very metabolically demanding. It is well documented that creatine plays a key role in brain bioenergetics. There is some evidence that creatine supplementation can augment brain creatine stores, which could increase memory.

Objective: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted to determine the effects of creatine supplementation on memory performance in healthy humans.

Data sources: The literature was searched through the PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Scopus databases from inception until September 2021.

Data extraction: Twenty-three eligible RCTs were initially identified. Ten RCTs examining the effect of creatine supplementation compared with placebo on measures of memory in healthy individuals met the inclusion criteria for systematic review, 8 of which were included in the meta-analysis.

Data analysis: Overall, creatine supplementation improved measures of memory compared with placebo (standard mean difference [SMD] = 0.29, 95%CI, 0.04-0.53; I2 = 66%; P = 0.02). Subgroup analyses revealed a significant improvement in memory in older adults (66-76 years) (SMD = 0.88; 95%CI, 0.22-1.55; I2 = 83%; P = 0.009) compared with their younger counterparts (11-31 years) (SMD = 0.03; 95%CI, -0.14 to 0.20; I2 = 0%; P = 0.72). Creatine dose (≈ 2.2-20 g/d), duration of intervention (5 days to 24 weeks), sex, or geographical origin did not influence the findings.

Conclusion: Creatine supplementation enhanced measures of memory performance in healthy individuals, especially in older adults (66-76 years).

https://academic.oup.com/nutritionre...uac064/6671817

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[elenapatrick]

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[WillBrink]

Creatine And Cancer: another potential benefit of creatine:

Creatine modulates cellular energy metabolism and protects against cancer cachexia-associated muscle wasting

Frontiers in Pharmacology 2022, 13: 1086662

Cancer cachexia is a multifactorial syndrome defined by progressive loss of body weight with specific depletion of skeletal muscle and adipose tissue. Since there are no FDA-approved drugs that are available, nutritional intervention is recommended as a supporting therapy. Creatine supplementation has an ergogenic effect in various types of sports training, but the regulatory effects of creatine supplementation in cancer cachexia remain unknown. In this study, we investigated the impact of creatine supplementation on cachectic weight loss and muscle loss protection in a tumor-bearing cachectic mouse model, and the underlying molecular mechanism of body weight protection was further assessed.

We observed decreased serum creatine levels in patients with cancer cachexia, and the creatine content in skeletal muscle was also significantly decreased in cachectic skeletal muscle in the C26 tumor-bearing mouse model. Creatine supplementation protected against cancer cachexia-associated body weight loss and muscle wasting and induced greater improvements in grip strength. Mechanistically, creatine treatment altered the dysfunction and morphological abnormalities of mitochondria, thus protecting against cachectic muscle wasting by inhibiting the abnormal overactivation of the ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS) and autophagic lysosomal system (ALS).

In addition, electron microscopy revealed that creatine supplementation alleviated the observed increase in the percentage of damaged mitochondria in C26 mice, indicating that nutritional intervention with creatine supplementation effectively counteracts mitochondrial dysfunction to mitigate muscle loss in cancer cachexia. These results uncover a previously uncharacterized role for creatine in cachectic muscle wasting by modulating cellular energy metabolism to reduce the level of muscle cell atrophy.

https://read.qxmd.com/read/36569317/...muscle-wasting

[Aliceuri]

If the family environment allows, patients with progressive muscular dystrophy can take creatine under the guidance of doctors, and the dosage should not be excessive or increased randomly to prevent side effects and drug resistance caused by excessive dosage. Creatine is the energy source of explosive exertion. Therefore, it is best to take it after exercise and exercise. After exercise, adenosine triphosphate is largely consumed. Taking creatine can help the body accelerate the production and supplement of adenosine triphosphate, which can effectively improve muscle strength, speed and endurance. If you do not exercise, adenosine triphosphate can not be taken before it is consumed, and the effect will be worse. The demand for adenosine triphosphate in muscle exercise is hundreds of times higher than that in quiet time. The greater the amount of exercise, the greater the ATP consumption. The storage amount of adenosine triphosphate in the human body is very small, and it needs to be synthesized continuously, but the body synthesis speed is very slow, so the body causes fatigue. Therefore, timely supplementation of creatine can effectively improve muscle strength, speed and endurance. Improve physical strength and training level to prevent fatigue

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[Aliceuri]

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[WillBrink]

If the family environment allows, patients with progressive muscular dystrophy can take creatine under the guidance of doctors, and the dosage should not be excessive or increased randomly to prevent side effects and drug resistance caused by excessive dosage. Creatine is the energy source of explosive exertion. Therefore, it is best to take it after exercise and exercise. After exercise, adenosine triphosphate is largely consumed. Taking creatine can help the body accelerate the production and supplement of adenosine triphosphate, which can effectively improve muscle strength, speed and endurance. If you do not exercise, adenosine triphosphate can not be taken before it is consumed, and the effect will be worse. The demand for adenosine triphosphate in muscle exercise is hundreds of times higher than that in quiet time. The greater the amount of exercise, the greater the ATP consumption. The storage amount of adenosine triphosphate in the human body is very small, and it needs to be synthesized continuously, but the body synthesis speed is very slow, so the body causes fatigue. Therefore, timely supplementation of creatine can effectively improve muscle strength, speed and endurance. Improve physical strength and training level to prevent fatigue

Timing does not matter exercise or not, the rest is full of incorrect claims, etc.

[Aliceuri]

cool

[WillBrink]

FYI:

Creatine Supplementation to Improve Sarcopenia in Chronic Liver Disease: Facts and Perspectives

Nutrients 2023, 15(4), 863;

Abstract
Creatine supplementation has been one of the most studied and useful ergogenic nutritional support for athletes to improve performance, strength, and muscular mass. Over time creatine has shown beneficial effects in several human disease conditions. This review aims to summarise the current evidence for creatine supplementation in advanced chronic liver disease and its complications, primarily in sarcopenic cirrhotic patients, because this condition is known to be associated with poor prognosis and outcomes. Although creatine supplementation in chronic liver disease seems to be barely investigated and not studied in human patients, its potential efficacy on chronic liver disease is indirectly highlighted in animal models of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, bringing beneficial effects in the fatty liver. Similarly, encephalopathy and fatigue seem to have beneficial effects. Creatine supplementation has demonstrated effects in sarcopenia in the elderly with and without resistance training suggesting a potential role in improving this condition in patients with advanced chronic liver disease. Creatine supplementation could address several critical points of chronic liver disease and its complications. Further studies are needed to support the clinical burden of this hypothesis.

https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/15/4/863

[avajames8805]

nice post

[acnescarlett]

Amazing detailed and well articulated write up OP! Lots of great info on creatine! I just have one small critique for clarity purposes. In the sentence I quoted above you reference that for short explosive sports and exercises that "ATP" is the energy system used. ATP on it's own is not an energy system. It is the energy compound used throughout ALL 3 energy systems (ATP-PCR, Glycolytic, and Oxidative). It is used in the ATP-PCR system just like you explained by recreating ATP from ADP by taking a phospate molecule from creatine phosphate, also is manufactured in the glycolytic system by converting glycogen and glucose to ATP, and also in the oxidative system by combined oxygen with either glycogen, glucose, fatty acids, and amino acids to form ATP.

I believe your statement would have been more accurate if instead of saying "ATP" you had substituted it with "ATP-PCR system" or Creatine Phospate or Phosphagen system as it is also known as.

Anyways this small thing does not take away from the amazing job you did writing all this up. Just wanted to clarify since the first time I read that part it confused me a little bit.

Cheers!

[judislot888]

[QUOTE=WillBrink;1487679161]Should help wit 1RM. By how much I can't say.



im so surprise with your oppinion

[LoganJ99]

How much does it help 1RM, or does it only help to provide more energy for the later reps in a set.


Also, if you take it and then don't work out for a few days, does that mean the creatine in your body already doesn't get used up as quick, so you don't have to take as more?

Creatine stays up in your body for a while. But I don't really recommend it. You'll just swell up and you'll lose a lot of that lean look everyone's going for. A big part of it is water absorption.

[WillBrink]

Creatine stays up in your body for a while. But I don't really recommend it. You'll just swell up and you'll lose a lot of that lean look everyone's going for. A big part of it is water absorption.

You obvious didn't read the OP and everything you wrote is demonstrably false.

[LoganJ99]

I think it's important to take into account that not everyone's experience with creatine is the same. So I stand by my earlier comment: I don't recommend it.