Creatine: The benefits, what it does and dosage

Creatine (from the Greek kreas, meaning ‘meat’) is an organic acid and a real energy booster for our body. Every day, our liver, kidneys and pancreas produce around 1 to 2 grams of it – with the help of the amino acids arginine, glycine and methionine. Kreatin enters the target tissue via the bloodstream, especially the skeletal muscles: around 90 per cent of the stores are located here. But the heart, brain, nervous system and sperm are also ‘kreatin-loaded’.

You can't do it without creatine! That's because creatine is involved in the provision of energy that is immediately available to the muscles when they need it straight away during short, explosive or interval-style exertions.

To understand the exact role of creatine in the energy supply, one should also be familiar with ATP. Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is a high-energy compound that releases energy when a phosphate group is split off and becomes adenosine diphosphate (ADP). Our bodies constantly draw on their ATP reserves during fast, powerful exertions. However, these reserves are small and depleted after just a few seconds.

This is where creatine comes into play. In the form of creatine phosphate, the energy bundle passes its phosphate group to ADP, thereby recharging the ATP stores. Optimally filled creatine stores help us to breathe longer and allow us to withstand high-intensity stress for longer.

Creatine is one of the most widely researched sports supplements in the world. People with certain pre-existing conditions, such as kidney disease, diabetes or high blood pressure, should take creatine with caution and discuss any planned intake with their doctor in advance.

Creatine is no longer an insider tip among athletes. Athletes benefit from taking creatine in several ways:

• Creatine & weight training: creatine can lead to an increase in maximum strength, speed and strength endurance – this has been proven by numerous studies. Athletes who can use strong muscles in their discipline benefit most from this effect. These include sports such as sprinting, weightlifting or shot put.

• Creatine & muscle building: Creatine gives you more strength for longer, enabling you to push harder during training and build muscle more efficiently. The water stored in the muscle cells also makes the muscles look fuller.

• Creatine & endurance: While the data in strength sports speaks for itself, a measurable increase in performance in endurance sports is still unclear. Nevertheless, creatine can also be an issue for endurance athletes. After all, it promotes recovery after intensive training and thus shortens muscle regeneration time.

Although the brain only makes up about 2% of our body weight, it can consume up to 20% of the body's energy. Like our muscles, the brain, nerves and sensory cells also need the energy source creatine to function and perform.

Although research in this area is less advanced than on the muscular level, the initial study results speak for themselves. For example, targeted creatine supplementation of 5 g per day has positive effects on intelligence and memory performance, mental stress tolerance and cognitive brain functions under stressful conditions. Further studies show that the vital substance can also alleviate some of the symptoms and signs of depression.

Research is also currently being conducted into the use of creatine in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Animal studies suggest that a targeted intake could counteract the development of these diseases. However, human studies are still pending in this regard.

What inspires athletes in a sporting sense could also be beneficial for our twilight years, according to longevity research. Studies have shown that the creatine content in our cells declines with increasing age. This development is also associated with a decline in muscle strength and general performance. Meanwhile, several clinical studies show that creatine supplementation in combination with exercise in old age strengthens muscles and bones and reduces the risk of falls.

Older people also benefit mentally from well-filled creatine stores. Various studies show that creatine can help older people to learn better, become more attentive and improve their spatial, mathematical and linguistic memory.

In healthy adults, a creatine intake of 3–5 g per day is considered safe and well tolerated. Side effects, which include gastrointestinal complaints and muscle cramps, occur only rarely, especially at higher dosages. Since creatine increases the water content of muscle cells, it is also possible to gain 1–2 kg in weight. However, this is even desirable in some sports.

People with kidney disease or an increased risk of developing kidney problems (e.g. diabetics, hypertensive patients) should discuss taking creatine with their doctor in advance.

According to estimates, the daily requirement of creatine is about 2 g. Creatine is found in larger quantities in meat and fish. However, since our body has the ability to synthesise the vital substance itself, a minimum supply is usually available even for vegetarians. However, there is a difference between a minimum supply and an optimal supply. The latter can not only strengthen our physical and mental performance, but also our well-being.

The following people should pay particular attention to their creatine levels:

• Vegans and vegetarians

• Women, especially those of middle-age and older

• The elderly

• People who do hard physical labour, strength athletes

• People with creatine synthesis deficiency (a rare enzyme deficiency)

• People with neuromuscular disorders

A creatine deficiency can lead to a variety of symptoms, including:

• Reduced physical performance, such as muscle weakness, a decrease in muscle mass, tiredness and rapid fatigue

• A reduced ability to recover

• An increased susceptibility to stress and a reduced ability to defend against stress

Creatine is not only found in our muscles, but also in those of animals. Accordingly, excellent sources of creatine include various types of meat as well as saltwater and freshwater fish. Milk and dairy products also contain creatine, although only in relatively small amounts. By contrast, fruit and vegetables play no role in the creatine supply. They contain only traces of the substance.

The optimal creatine dosage can vary depending on your individual needs and training goals. However, between 3 and 5 grams of creatine per day is usually recommended to maximise the body's own creatine stores.

Creatine is available on the market in a variety of formats, including powders, tablets, capsules and bars. It is particularly easy to take in larger amounts of creatine in powder form. With capsules and tablets, several pieces are usually needed to reach the recommended daily amount of 3 to 5 g.

Whether in the morning or evening, creatine can basically be taken anytime. However, many athletes swear by taking it shortly before (< 1 h) or shortly after training, as the cells are supplied with creatine particularly quickly due to the increased blood flow. Even on non-training days, creatine should be supplemented, as the supplement is particularly effective when taken without interruptions.

Whether you train or not, creatine is most effective when taken daily. It is best taken in combination with sugary drinks or carbohydrate-rich meals, because creatine is absorbed more quickly into the muscle cells in the presence of insulin.

While warm fluids improve the dissolving behaviour of creatine powders, excessive consumption of caffeine should be avoided. Studies suggest that there may be an interaction between caffeine and creatine that could impair explosive power development and sprint performance.

Not only can creatine and protein be taken together without any problems, but taking them together can even be an effective strategy for building muscle mass, improving athletic performance and shortening the recovery period after intensive training.

Combining BCAA and creatine is another clever move – especially if you are taking them to achieve a more muscular appearance. While the branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) specifically support muscle building, creatine not only helps to provide the necessary energy, it also makes our muscles appear fuller due to the increased water retention.

The time at which creatine takes effect varies from person to person. In general, effects can be felt a few days after the depots are filled.

However, in the case of creatine, there are also non-responders – people who do not respond at all to the intake. One possible explanation for this may be that the depots were already well stocked without targeted creatine intake. The level of training also seems to play a role in the success of creatine supplementation.Who should take creatine?

For a long time, creatine was trapped in the sports and fitness sector. Completely wrongly, as many new studies show. Not only can the vital substance boost performance during short, high-intensity and intermittent exertions – it can also help non-athletes to achieve more physical and mental strength under certain circumstances. A targeted intake is particularly worth considering for vegans, vegetarians, middle-aged women and older people. In addition, studies show that creatine could also alleviate certain symptoms of depression.

Conclusion: creatine provides energy when muscles and the brain are slowly running out of steam. Although the energy bundle can be produced by our body itself, under certain circumstances – in sports, with increasing age or a plant-based diet – an optimised creatine intake can help us to draw on unlimited resources more easily, both physically and mentally.