How safe is creatine?
Generally it has been found that creatine is well tolerated, and there are few, if any, side effects.
Although some adverse effects have been reported by users, many of these are anecdotal and have not been seen over a vast population. The main point in considering whether to use creatine or not is whether you as an individual are going to get any of these side effects, as these vary greatly from person to person.
What are the short term side effects?
Some short term side effects that have been reported by users include:
- Gastrointestinal disturbances, such as gas, bloating, adnominal pain and diarrhoea.
- Liver and kidney disturbances (these have been reported by individuals, yet in controlled studies on the adverse effects of exogenous creatine supplementation, these findings are almost nonexistent.)
- Muscle dysfunction, such as aches, cramps, tears or tightness.
What are the long term side effects?
One major concern for people deciding to take creatine is whether there are any long term side effects. Recently, two long term studies by the Exercise and Sports Nutrition Laboratory at the University of Memphis have been conducted and these studies showed that 9 months of creatine supplementation (at an average of 5 grams per day) had no negative effects on the kidney, muscle or liver.
So is creatine dangerous?
Many of the studies done on creatine supplementation have been looking to find negative effects that it may cause, yet many of these studies find alarming positive effects that creatine possesses. Firstly creatine does not affect your hormones, therefore mood swings and skin alterations are not common. Secondly creatine has been found to reduce the chances of heart disease (by reducing your cholesterol) and the chance of developing adult onset diabetes.
Since there have been no long-term studies evaluating the side effects of creatine use, athletes should be advised that they take creatine at their own risk. If they decide to take creatine, they should be advised that daily maintenance doses in excess of 2 g or 0.03 g/kg are not of additional benefit and may be affect kidney function.
