7 biggest misconceptions about creatine

Geschatte leestijd: 4 minuten The 7 biggest misconceptions about creatine.

Creatine loading is necessary

You can load creatine, but it’s not necessary. If you use a loading phase, your muscles will be saturated with creatine earlier, but the ultimate result is the same. A loading phase doesn’t make you store more creatine. A loading phase does make it work faster. So, you may notice results faster and therefore feel like it works better. However, the only difference is the timeframe in which the result is achieved. It’s actually strange that there’s still confusion about this. In 1996, Hultman et al. conducted research on this. In the study, one group used a loading phase and the other group took a small daily dose of 3 grams. The group taking a small daily dose reached the same creatine level after 4 weeks as the loading phase group did after 6 days. If you use a loading phase, your muscles are saturated with creatine about 4 times faster. It’s not the case that one group stored more creatine than the other group.

You need to stop taking creatine after a while

Yes and no. No for safety. A possible yes for effectiveness.

Safety

In a study where participants took 10 grams of creatine for 310 days – 5 grams per day is the recommended amount – they experienced no health differences compared to the placebo control group. Based on this, it seems safe to say that the recommended daily dose of 3 to 5 grams can be taken without risks [1].

Effectiveness

In the study by Derave et al. 2003, the long-term effectiveness of creatine was investigated. They found evidence that the increased creatine level in the muscles may not be maintained and (partially) falls back after 2 to 3 months [2]. From this perspective, it is advisable to stop using creatine after 3 months. If you continue for longer, there is a chance that you are taking creatine while it leads to a lower increase in creatine levels. The recommended duration for a rest period is about 4 to 6 weeks. This is often the duration of a washout period in crossover studies.

Creatine ethyl ester is better

It’s not. It’s just more expensive. Creatine ethyl ester rapidly converts to creatinine, the breakdown product of creatine. This is because the body’s pH is not favorable for creatine ethyl ester. Therefore, creatine ethyl ester is practically useless [5].

You should take creatine with carbohydrates

Some people take their creatine with a fruit drink. The idea behind this is that the sugars raise your insulin levels, and insulin then helps the creatine to be better absorbed. It’s true that insulin contributes positively to the absorption of creatine [3,4]. However, there are two points of attention here: 1. It is not known if better absorption ultimately results in increased creatine levels. Improved absorption could possibly also lead to reaching your maximum level faster. There is no decisive answer to this yet. 2. Protein also stimulates insulin production. Quite significantly, in fact. So, take your creatine with a full meal consisting of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, and you are good to go. Stuffing yourself with sugars because it improves creatine absorption is not recommended; there are better ways.

You should take creatine before exercising

Also not true. The full effect of creatine is beyond the scope of this article, but what’s important to know is that creatine doesn’t work immediately like caffeine, for example, does. Creatine accumulates in your body. Think of it as trying to fill a bathtub with a garden hose; it takes a while before it’s filled. The fuller the tub, the higher the creatine levels in your body, the better creatine works. That’s why it also takes a while before you really notice anything from creatine.

Creatine is bad for the kidneys

Creatine is not bad for the kidneys unless there are pre-existing kidney problems. This also applies to protein. We previously wrote about several studies that unanimously showed that creatine use has no harmful effect on the kidneys. Even long-term intake of 5 grams of creatine per day for 5 years had no adverse effects. Possible problems with creatine use in case of pre-existing kidney problems are, however, a (logical assumption). Such problems have not been demonstrated in research.

Creatine is a steroid

I don’t know if there are still people who believe this seriously, but the answer is a very clear no. The only similarity between androgenic anabolic steroids (that’s the stuff bodybuilders inject) and creatine is that it has performance-enhancing effects. For the rest, nothing. Reality check: caffeine also has performance-enhancing effects. That it enhances performance says nothing about the mechanisms behind the action and certainly nothing about the side effects. A steroid is a compound consisting of all kinds of carbon ring structures. So, it’s a scientific term for a certain framework of atomic compounds. Creatine doesn’t resemble a steroid. It consists of totally different compounds. Creatine looks more like a vitamin or mineral than a steroid. You know what are examples of steroids? Vitamin D and cholesterol. The steroid hormone testosterone, of course, too.

References

1. Groeneveld GJ, Beijer C, Veldink JH, Kalmijn S, Wokke JH, van den Berg LH. Few adverse effects of long-term creatine supplementation in a placebo-controlled trial. Int J Sports Med. 2005 May;26(4):307-13. PubMed PMID: 15795816.
2. Wim Derave, Bert O. Eijnde and Peter Hespel.Creatine supplementation in health and disease: What is the evidence for long-term efficacy?Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry 244: 49–55, 2003.
3. Green, A.L., E.J. Simpson, J.J. Littlewood, I.A. MacDonald, and P.L. Greenhaff. Carbohydrate ingestion augments creatine retention during creatine feeding in humans. Acta Physiol. Scand. 158:195-202, 1996.
4. Steenge, G.R., J. Lambourne, A. Casey, I.A. MacDonald, and P.L.Greenhaff. Stimulatory effect of insulin on creatine accumulation in human skeletal muscle.Am. J. Physiol. 275:E974-E979, 1998
5. Gufford BT, Ezell EL, Robinson DH, et al. pH-Dependent Stability of Creatine Ethyl Ester: Relevance to Oral Absorption. Journal of dietary supplements. 2013;10(3):241-251. doi:10.3109/19390211.2013.822453.