Creatine is the number-one sports activities efficiency complement out there.
But regardless of its research-backed advantages, some individuals keep away from creatine as a result of they’re afraid it’s dangerous for well being.
Some declare it causes weight achieve, cramping, and digestive, liver, or kidney issues.
This text supplies an evidence-based evaluation of creatine’s security and unintended effects.
What Are Its Purported Aspect Results?
Relying on who you ask, the prompt unintended effects of creatine might embrace:
Moreover, some individuals wrongly declare that creatine is an anabolic steroid, that it’s unsuitable for ladies or youngsters, or that it ought to solely be utilized by skilled athletes or bodybuilders.
Regardless of the destructive press, the Worldwide Society of Sports activities Diet regards creatine as extraordinarily protected, concluding that it is likely one of the most useful sports activities dietary supplements out there (1).
Main researchers who’ve studied creatine for a number of many years additionally conclude that it is likely one of the most secure dietary supplements in the marketplace (2).
One examine examined 52 well being markers after members took creatine dietary supplements for 21 months. It discovered no hostile results (2).
Creatine has additionally been used to deal with varied illnesses and well being issues, together with neuromuscular issues, concussions, diabetes, and muscle loss (1, 3, 4, 5).
What Does It Do in Your Physique?
Creatine is discovered all through your physique, with 95% saved in your muscle mass (6).
It’s obtained from meat and fish and will also be produced naturally in your physique from amino acids (7).
Nonetheless, your eating regimen and pure creatine ranges don’t usually maximize muscle shops of this compound.
The common shops are about 120 mmol/kg, however creatine dietary supplements can elevate these shops to round 140–150 mmol/kg (8).
Throughout high-intensity train, the saved creatine helps your muscle mass produce extra vitality. That is the principle cause that creatine enhances train efficiency (9).
When you fill your muscle’s creatine shops, any extra is damaged down into creatinine, which is metabolized by your liver and excreted in your urine (8).
Does It Trigger Dehydration or Cramps?
Creatine alters your physique’s saved water content material, driving further water into your muscle cells (10).
This reality could also be behind the speculation that creatine causes dehydration. Nonetheless, this shift in mobile water content material is minor, and no analysis helps the claims about dehydration.
A 3-year examine of school athletes discovered that these taking creatine had fewer instances of dehydration, muscle cramps, or muscle accidents than these not taking it. Additionally they missed fewer periods on account of sickness or damage (11).
One examine examined creatine use throughout train in scorching climate, which might speed up cramping and dehydration. Throughout a 35-minute biking session in 99°F (37°C) warmth, creatine had no hostile results in comparison with a placebo (12).
Additional examination by way of blood checks additionally confirmed no distinction in hydration or electrolyte ranges, which play a key function in muscle cramps (12).
Probably the most conclusive analysis has been performed in people present process hemodialysis, a medical therapy that will trigger muscle cramps. Researchers famous that creatine decreased cramping incidents by 60% (13).
Based mostly on the present proof, creatine doesn’t trigger dehydration or cramping. If something, it might defend in opposition to these circumstances.
Does It Trigger Weight Acquire?
Analysis has totally documented that creatine dietary supplements trigger a fast enhance in physique weight.
After one week of high-dose loading of creatine (20 grams/day), your weight will increase by round 2–6 kilos (1–3 kg) on account of elevated water in your muscle mass (1, 14).
Over the long run, research present that physique weight might proceed to extend to a higher extent in creatine customers than in non-creatine customers. Nonetheless, weight achieve is because of elevated muscle progress — not elevated physique fats (15).
For many athletes, the extra muscle is a optimistic adaptation that will enhance sports activities efficiency. As it’s also one of many essential causes individuals take creatine, it shouldn’t be thought of a facet impact (1, 14).
Elevated muscle might also have advantages for older adults, overweight people, and people with sure illnesses (16, 17, 18, 19, 20).
How Does It Have an effect on Your Kidneys and Liver?
Creatine can barely elevate ranges of creatinine in your blood. Creatinine is often measured to diagnose kidney or liver issues.
Nonetheless, the truth that creatine raises creatinine ranges doesn’t imply that it’s harming your liver or kidneys (21).
To this point, no examine of creatine use in wholesome people has supplied proof of hurt to those organs (1, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26).
An extended-term examine of school athletes discovered no unintended effects associated to liver or kidney perform. Different research measuring organic markers within the urine additionally discovered no distinction after creatine ingestion (27).
One of many longest research up to now — lasting for 4 years — equally concluded that creatine has no destructive unintended effects (24).
One other fashionable examine usually cited within the media reported kidney illness in a male weightlifter who supplemented with creatine (28).
Nonetheless, this single case examine is inadequate proof. Quite a few different components, together with further dietary supplements, had been additionally concerned (26, 28).
That mentioned, creatine dietary supplements ought to be approached with warning when you’ve got a historical past of liver or kidney points.
Does It Trigger Digestive Issues?
As with many dietary supplements or drugs, extreme doses might trigger digestive points.
In a single examine, the 5-gram beneficial dose precipitated no digestive issues, whereas a 10-gram dose elevated diarrhea threat by 37% (29).
For that reason, the beneficial serving is about at 3–5 grams. The 20-gram loading protocol can also be break up into 4 servings of 5 grams every over the course of a day (1).
One main researcher reviewed a number of research and concluded that creatine doesn’t enhance digestive issues when taken at beneficial doses (30).
Nonetheless, it’s potential that components, substances, or contaminants generated through the industrial manufacturing of creatine can result in points (21, 31).
It’s due to this fact beneficial that you just buy a trusted, high-quality product.
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