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Creatine is a chemical that is found in the body. It is found mostly in muscles but also in the brain. It is also found in foods such as red meat and seafood. Creatine can also be made in the laboratory.

Creatine is most commonly used for improving exercise performance and increasing muscle mass in athletes and older adults. There is some science supporting the use of creatine in improving the athletic performance of young, healthy people during brief high-intensity activity such as sprinting. Because of this, creatine is often used as a dietary supplement to improve muscle strength and athletic performance. In the U.S., a majority of sports nutrition supplements contain creatine.

Creatine use is allowed by the International Olympic Committee, National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), and professional sports.

Creatine is also used for muscle cramps, multiple sclerosis (MS), depression, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses.

Natural Medicines rates effectiveness based on scientific evidence according to the following scale: Effective, Likely Effective, Possibly Effective, Possibly Ineffective, Likely Ineffective, Ineffective, and Insufficient Evidence to Rate.
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  • Athletic performance.  Oral creatine monohydrate seems to modestly improve rowing, jumping, and soccer performance. It is unclear if it is beneficial for sprinting, cycling, swimming, or tennis performance.
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  • Cerebral creatine deficiency syndromes.  Oral creatine seems to improve some symptoms of the cerebral creatine deficiency syndromes guanidinoacetate methyltransferase (GAMT) deficiency and arginine-glycine amidinotransferase (AGAT) deficiency. It is unclear if oral creatine is beneficial for creatine transporter defect.
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  • Muscle strength.  Oral creatine seems to modestly improve muscle strength. It is unclear if topical creatine is beneficial.
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  • Sarcopenia.  When used for up to 12 weeks in combination with resistance training, oral creatine seems to modestly improve muscle strength in older adults. It is unclear if oral creatine is beneficial when used as a single dose or for more than 12 weeks, or if topical creatine provides any benefits.
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Info

Creatine is involved in making the energy muscles need to work.

Vegetarians and other people who have lower total creatine levels when they start taking creatine supplements seem to get more benefit than people who start with a higher level of creatine. Skeletal muscle will only hold a certain amount of creatine; adding more won't raise levels any more. This "saturation point" is usually reached within the first few days of taking a "loading dose."

When taken by mouth: Creatine is LIKELY SAFE for most people when taken for up to 18 months. Doses up to 25 grams daily for up to 14 days have been safely used. Lower doses up to 4-5 grams taken daily for up to 18 months have also been safely used. Creatine is POSSIBLY SAFE when taken by mouth, long-term. Doses up to 10 grams daily for up to 5 years have been safely used.

When applied to the skin: There isn't enough reliable information to know if creatine is safe. It might cause side effects such as redness and itching.

Special Precautions & Warnings:

Pregnancy and breast-feeding: There isn't enough reliable information to know if creatine is safe to use when pregnant or breast feeding. Stay on the safe side and avoid use.

Children: Creatine is POSSIBLY SAFE in children when taken by mouth, short-term. Creatine 3-5 grams daily for 2-6 months has been taken safely in children 5-18 years of age. Creatine 2 grams daily for 6 months has been taken safely in children 2-5 years of age. Additionally, creatine 0.1-0.4 grams/kg daily for up to 6 months has been taken safely in both infants and children.

Bipolar disorder: There have been cases of manic episodes in people with bipolar disorder who took creatine daily for 4 weeks. Creatine might make mania worse in people with bipolar disorder.

Kidney disease: There is some concern that creatine might make kidney disease worse in people who already have kidney disease. If you have kidney disease, speak with a healthcare professional before using creatine.

Parkinson disease: Caffeine and creatine taken together may make Parkinson disease get worse faster. If you have Parkinson disease and take creatine, use caffeine with caution.

Medications that can harm the kidneys (Nephrotoxic Drugs)

Interaction Rating=Moderate Be cautious with this combination.

Taking high doses of creatine might harm the kidneys. Some medications can also harm the kidneys. Taking creatine with medications that can harm the kidneys might increase the chance of kidney damage.

Some of these medications that can harm the kidneys include cyclosporine (Neoral, Sandimmune); aminoglycosides including amikacin (Amikin), gentamicin (Garamycin, Gentak, others), and tobramycin (Nebcin, others); nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) including ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, Nuprin, others), indomethacin (Indocin), naproxen (Aleve, Anaprox, Naprelan, Naprosyn), piroxicam (Feldene); and numerous others.

Caffeine: Caffeine might decrease creatine's beneficial effects on athletic performance.

There are no known interactions with foods.

The following doses have been studied in scientific research:

ADULTS

BY MOUTH:

  • For athletic performance: Many different dosing regimens have been used; however, most use a short-term "loading dose" followed by a long-term maintenance dose. Loading doses are typically 20 grams daily for 4-7 days. Maintenance doses are typically 2-10 grams daily.
  • For muscle strength: Many different dosing regimens have been used; however, most use a short-term "loading dose" followed by a long-term maintenance dose. The most common loading doses are typically around 20 grams daily for 5-7 days. Maintenance doses ranging from 1 to 27 grams daily have also been used.
  • Age-related muscle loss (sarcopenia): Many different dosing regimens have been used; however, most use a short-term "loading dose" followed by a long-term maintenance dose. Loading doses are typically 20 grams daily for 4-7 days. Maintenance doses are typically 2-10 grams daily. Older adults seem to experience benefits from creatine supplementation only when it is combined with resistance training.
CHILDREN

BY MOUTH:
  • For disorders of creatine metabolism or transport: Doses of 400-800 mg of creatine per kg of body weight have been taken daily for up to 8 years. Also, 4-8 grams of creatine has been taken daily for up to 25 months.

2-[carbamimidoyl(methyl)amino]acetic acid, Cr, Creatin, Creatina, Créatine, Créatine Anhydre, Creatine Anhydrous, Creatine Citrate, Créatine Citrate, Creatine Ethyl Ester, Créatine Ethyl Ester, Creatine Ethyl Ester HCl, Créatine Ethyl Ester HCl, Creatine Gluconate, Creatine Hydrochloride, Créatine Kré Alkaline, Creatine Malate, Créatine Malate, Creatine Monohydrate, Créatine Monohydrate, Créatine Monohydratée, Creatine Pyroglutamate, Créatine Pyroglutamate, Creatine Pyruvate, Créatine Pyruvate, Dicreatine Malate, Dicréatine Malate, Di-Creatine Malate, Éthyle Ester de Créatine, Glycine, Kreatin, Kre-Alkalyn Pyruvate, Malate de Tricréatine, N-(aminoiminométhyl)-N-Méthyl, N-(aminoiminomethyl)-N methyl glycine, N-amidinosarcosine, Phosphocreatine, Phosphocréatine, Tricreatine HCA, Tricréatine HCA, Tricreatine Malate, Tricréatine Malate.

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