You’re drenched in sweat, muscles aching, as you finally finish your last rep at the gym. You’re constantly sore and tired, and don’t quite understand how people can make lifting look so effortless. Each day you sluggishly get ready for the gym, and all you can think about is how you really, really don’t want to work out.
Suddenly, while scrolling through social media, you see an ad pop up. It’s trying to get you to buy the latest gym craze – creatine. You hear some scientific jargon and all you really understand is more creatine, more muscle. You shrug and buy some, curious on what it’s all about.
Creatine first took off in the early 1990’s. According to “Physical Culture Study,” it all began after the Barcelona Olympic Games in 1992. Olympic athletes took creatine to boost their performance, and once researchers began finding benefits to the substance, consumption rates skyrocketed.
Yet most people don’t actually understand what it is that they’re putting in their bodies. What is creatine, and why do people take it?
Creatine is a naturally produced organic compound that the body uses to store energy. According to “Maxinutrition,” organic creatine is formed in the liver and kidneys by a trio of amino acids.
After being formed, creatine is mainly stored in skeletal muscles as a way to keep them functioning, even through intense exercise or fatigue. This same creatine is also found in certain meats and fish, meaning a balanced, healthy diet can help naturally increase creatine intake.
However, the body only makes so much creatine (about one gram per day), and it constantly excretes it. While it is true that some of our foods contain creatine, it’s in very small amounts. A person would need to eat about four pounds of beef – or almost six pounds of cod – per day in order to have noticeable benefits.
Because of this, many people turn towards synthetic supplements. According to “Vitaquest,” these supplements are formed by a chemical reaction between two compounds – sarcosine, a form of salt, and cyanamide (not to be confused with the highly poisonous cyanide).
These supplements can carry 5-8 grams of creatine per serving, which is drastically different from the body’s daily one gram. They’re ground to a fine powder that can mix into any drink or food with ease.
When it comes to athletics, particularly weight-lifting, creatine is seemingly a cheat code. It sparks quick bursts of energy that are perfect for anaerobic exercise, which can help build lean muscle mass and improve workouts. However, research shows that there are both pros and cons to taking creatine.
For starters, creatine helps attract and store water molecules. According to the Cleveland Clinic, this water retention helps the body recover quicker from workouts, reduce muscle soreness, and stay hydrated for longer periods of time. Some research, as found by UCLA Health, has found that creatine can even help with skin health and relieve Parkinson’s symptoms.
However, creatine’s water-retention capabilities have also proven detrimental. According to “Healthline”, taking consistent amounts of creatine can cause a massive increase in the water in your body, leading you to bloat and even gain weight.
On top of storing energy and retaining water, creatine has been indicated to have neurological effects as well.
Evidence compiled by the National Institutes of Health shows that people taking creatine have improved in logic, memory, and reasoning. Some research even showed that people suffering from neurological conditions may be relieved of their symptoms by taking creatine.
However, these effects aren’t guaranteed. According to Harvard Health, because it’s a supplement, creatine is not directly tested by the FDA for accuracy. This means that ingredient concentrations could be different from what’s printed on the label, misleading customers and people meeting strict dietary guidelines.
These effects also raise questions about its consumption in youth. As studies progress, creatine’s impact on teens is both uncertain and a potential cause for concern.
While research has indicated that teens taking creatine yields beneficial results, it’s hard to generalize the effects to the entire youth population. It’s also difficult to differentiate results from confounding variables, such as growing teenage bodies that already gain muscle mass naturally.
Secondly, Harvard Health has found that creatine overconsumption can create stress on the kidneys. This can leave athletes with long-term side effects, especially in athletes with already-present kidney dysfunctions.
Despite being extensively studied, creatine impact isn’t conclusive and more research is left to be conducted. While creatine has shown a multitude of benefits, its potential risks should also be considered.
With athletes taking it to boost their stats and gains, it’s important to know what creatine actually is, where it comes from, and why people take it.