All About Creatine

SUCCESSFUL CREATINE EDUCATION

Different Types of Creatine

In this article we will go over the different types of creatine supplements. Everyone should read The Beginners Guide To Creatine before starting this article.

What types of creatine are there?

There are three basic types of creatine supplements - creatine monohydrate, creatine phosphate and creatine citrate. Let's take a quick look at each one:

Creatine Monohydrate

Creatine Monohydrate is basically creatine bound with water. Each molecule of creatine monohydrate is made up of 88% creatine and 12% water. Or to put it another way - 1 gram of creatine monohydrate has 880 milligrams of creatine. This means that if you take 5 grams of creatine monohydrate you will really be putting 4.40 grams (5 * .88) of creatine in your body. Creatine Monohydrate is by far the most common form for a creatine supplement. The majority of studies and research have been conducted using creatine monohydrate.

Creatine Phosphate

Remember that in order for creatine to be effective it needs to bond with a phosphate group and become Creatine Phosphate. For this reason, you may think that directly taking Creatine Phosphate would be better than just taking Creatine Monohydrate. The fact is - taking a creatine phosphate supplement has never been shown to be more effective than just taking creatine monohydrate. Creatine Phosphate has only 62.3% creatine and 37.7% phosphate. This means that 1 gram only produces 623 milligrams of creatine. In addition, creatine phosphate is more expensive than creatine monohydrate.

Creatine Citrate

Creatine Citrate became popular because it is more water soluble than other forms of creatine. Simply put, it dissolves better when you mix it up. The problem is that Creatine Citrate has only 400 milligrams of creatine per gram of creatine citrate. In addition, it is more expensive than Creatine Monohydrate.

Quick review - here is the yield of "free" creatine if you take 5 grams of each creatine supplement Creatine Monohydrate yields 4.40 grams of creatine Creatine Phosphate yields 3.12 grams of creatine Creatine Citrate yields 2 grams of creatine

Great, so everyone agrees Creatine Monohydrate is the best?

Of course not - nobody ever really agrees on anything (except hating taxes). The problem comes from the fact that just getting the most creatine into your body is not the end of the story. How the creatine is absorbed plays a key rule. People who defend Creatine Citrate claim that it has a 90% absorption rate while Creatine Monohydrate has only a 40% rate. This means that while Creatine Citrate delivers less creatine per gram - a much higher percentage is absorbed by the muscles.

This debate could go on forever. Our feeling is that since almost every major study has been done with Creatine Monohydrate - it would be our choice for a creatine supplement. We believe a lot of the marketing claims that some new form of creatine is superior - are often just that - marketing claims. When you look at the science it is not there to back up the claims.

Is creatine dangerous?

This is the question we will examine in this article. We will make one very basic assumption throughout this article - you are not abusing creatine. By this we mean you are taking or thinking about taking creatine within the recommended dosage (described in the Dosage article). This is an important distinction to make, because anything can become dangerous if you take to much of it. Vitamin C can have very harmful effects if you take too much of it - but that does not mean it is unsafe. So, for the rest of this article when we discuss potential side effects and safety we will assume that you are taking the recommended dosage of creatine.

Are there any short term side effects of creatine?

There have been hundreds of studies done on creatine that all show that it is a safe supplement. There are really very few side effects reported with creatine use but they include: upset stomach, muscle cramping, diarrhea and dehydration. Most of these side effects can be minimized by drinking plenty of water when taking creatine. In addition, people tend to have more side effects when taking the powder as opposed to a more direct delivery method like serum or effervescent powder. It is important to understand that creatine does not effect your hormone levels. This means you do NOT get side effects like bad skin and mood swings. It is also important to note that everyone is different. While 95% of the people may have no problems with creatine - it may just really bother your stomach. In the end if you find that creatine causes you problems then it makes sense not to take it.

Are there any long term side effects of creatine?

This is the most hotly debated question out there. We touch on this in our article on Teenagers and Creatine. The problem is there have not been enough long term studies done on creatine use as a supplement. With a lack of clear data people tend to speculate and that leads to controversy.

Many scientist agree that when taken within normal dosage, creatine in theory should pose no long term health risks. On the other hand, other people like to have data saying that it has been tested over a long period before they will say it is safe. They will point to the fact that no study has studied creatine use for over 3 months. Luckily that is all changing now.

On November 12, 1999 at the 19th Annual Southwest American College of Sports Medicine Meeting, two long term creatine studies were presented from the Exercise and Sport Nutrition Lab at the University of Memphis*. Both studies showed that 9 months of creatine supplementation (taking an average of 5 grams per day) in athletes had no negative effects on markers of renal function or muscle and liver enzymes in comparison to athletes not taking creatine.

In fact some studies have shown that creatine can help reduce your chances of heart disease and adult on-set diabetes. It was found that after 51 days of taking creatine the study group had a 22% decrease in VLDL-cholesterol levels and a 23% decrease in blood triglyceride levels. VLDL-cholesterol and triglycerides are risk factors for heart disease and adult on-set diabetes.

We make this point to show that as more studies are done it may be that more benefits of creatine are discovered. Studies don't always just show negative long term effects. A classic example of this has been the recent discoveries with alcohol. New studies show that 2 drinks a day can have very beneficial effects in reducing your chance of heart disease. Of course, like creatine - if you abuse alcohol it can have negative effects.

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So, are you guaranteeing that creatine is safe?

Of course not - there are only two guarantees in life - death and taxes. New studies are being done all the time. The best we can do is operate with the data we have in front of us. Your decision on whether to take creatine should be done with your doctor. It may be that you have an existing condition that could be harmful if you took creatine. You may be taking a drug that would have a negative interaction with creatine. There are many variables that come into play. In the end, everyone can interpret studies in a different way. From our view, nothing is out there to indicate that creatine has long term negative effects. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion - but that is the way we feel.

What is this I hear about liver and kidney damage with creatine?

This can be a problem if you abuse creatine. Any creatine your body does not use is excreted as a waste product called creatinine. If you take 20 grams a day of creatine - your body will not be able to use most of it and will have to excrete the excess. Over time this constant excretion of creatinine can put a lot of work on your kidneys and liver. If you force them to work to hard that can lead to serious problems.

Is creatine safe for teenagers to take?

Please read our our article on Teenagers and Creatine.

Is one form of creatine safer than another?

Not really. It is true that you need to take less creatine when using a creatine serum over a creatine powder - so this helps minimize any excess work by the liver and kidneys. In that way, serum can be safer. In the end, you want to be able to take the smallest amount possible and still achieve positive effects. If one form has a better absorption rate, than you need to take less creatine - and this can help further minimize any potential risk.

Is it safe for teenagers to use creatine?

Again we must state a definitive, absolute - maybe! This is a very tough question to answer and is hotly debated. Let's start by looking at some facts:

The body is growing up until age 18

When are body is in its growth phase it is very important not to do anything that could interfere with growth. It is for this reason that it makes sense to spend some time trying to determine if creatine could in any way interfere with growth.

Creatine has never been proven to interfere with growth

This is obviously a good sign. However, critics will point to this next fact -

Creatine has not been studied long enough to guarantee it does not interfere with growth

It is true that long term studies with teenagers have not been done. In addition, for ethical reasons they probably never will be done. No one wants to pump teenagers full of creatine for a few years just to see if it harms them. So what we are left with is the old "is the glass half empty or half full" debate.

You can look at the facts and say creatine has not been linked to long term growth problems so I think it is safe for teenagers. Someone else could easily say - more research needs to be done before we can draw any conclusions. Our feeling is that if you want to be completely safe don't take creatine until you are older than 18. It is not that we have read anything that tells us that creatine is dangerous to teenagers, but if you want to error on the safe side - don't use it just in case new research comes out later.

One thing we want to mention is that it is unfair to hold creatine to a higher standard than any other food or supplement. Many parents will let their children drink can after can of soda without researching the possible dangers of caffeine. Then when it comes to creatine they want a guarantee that it is completely safe. Well, there are no guarantees in life - and it is important to understand that we take risks everyday when we eat or drink certain foods.

A very powerful argument could be made on the negative effects of sugar for teenagers. However, there is little public outcry to ban sugar sales to minors. Our point is that it is great to be a concerned parent - but creatine may not be the only thing you should be evaluating.

In the end, we feel that you have your whole life to use creatine - so why rush into it before you are 18. If you workout hard in the gym - that is the real key to building muscle mass. As you get closer to 18 it becomes a "less risky" decision if you decide to use creatine. Inversely we believe that 12 - 15 year olds are just too young to really be using any supplements. Of course, every person is different and it is best to make your decision with your doctor and parents.

If a teenager does decide to use creatine do you have any advice? Whatever you do - do not take more than the recommended dosage. We believe it makes sense to use less than the recommended dosage. Perhaps 4 grams of powder instead of 5 grams. You may want to consider the creatine serum because it has less creatine per serving.

If you find you have any negative side effects you should stop taking the creatine.

Creatine and Legal Issues

In this article we will go over the issues surrounding creatine and its legal use in sports. Everyone should read The Beginners Guide To Creatine before starting this article.

Is Creatine legal in the US?

Yes. Creatine is classified as a Dietary Supplement - not a drug. This means that it is basically treated as a food substance and does not have to meet any of the drug requirements of the FDA. You do not need a prescription to buy creatine - because it is a food supplement.

Is creatine banned by any major sports leagues?

No. Creatine is not a banned substance in the NFL, NBA, MLB, NFL, NCAA or Olympics. It would be very hard to ban creatine use because it is found in many foods, therefore making it very hard to test for without false positives.

Does this mean creatine is completely safe?

No. The point of this article is just to explain that creatine is not banned from any major sports. If you are interested in the safety of creatine you should read our article - The safety of Creatine.

Is creatine legal outside the US?

For the most part yes - but laws vary from country to country. In the US it is a dietary substance, but other countries may classify it as a drug. If you live outside the US you should check with your government to see how they classify creatine.

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