Creatine, a supplement widely used by gymgoers seeking bigger muscles, may also help improve strength in middle-aged adults who do not exercise regularly, new research suggests.
In a 12-week study, researchers at Texas A&M University found that adults between 45 and 65 who took creatine gained lean tissue and improved their strength—even without participating in a workout program.
Creatine is a compound produced naturally in the body and found in foods including meat and fish. It is commonly sold as a supplement to support muscle growth, increase strength and enhance exercise performance.
For the peer-reviewed trial, some participants took 10 grams of creatine monohydrate daily, split between morning and evening doses, while others received a placebo. Within each group, some followed a structured exercise program and others did not.
Participants who took creatine without exercising added an average of about 2.4 pounds of lean tissue. By comparison, people who exercised while taking the placebo saw little change.
The nonexercising participants who used creatine also increased their maximum bench-press lift by approximately 15 percent over the 12-week period, exceeding the gains recorded by the nonexercising placebo group.
“I think the improvements in muscle performance are the key variables,” Darren Candow, a creatine researcher and professor at Canada’s University of Regina who was not involved in the research, told Our News Outlet. “Improving muscle strength especially is important for older adults.”
Adults who took creatine without exercising gained an average of about 2.4 pounds of lean tissue, the study found.
Figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that only 47.2 percent of US adults meet federal recommendations for aerobic activity.
For people who find it difficult to make regular workouts part of their routine, the findings suggest creatine may provide some strength-related benefits on its own.
“We have proposed several times that creatine is one tool in a multi-factorial toolbox,” Candow said.
“When combined with resistance exercise, creatine has been shown to increase lean mass, muscle size, muscle performance and functional ability in healthy older adult populations.”
The study, published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, included 73 healthy adults who were sedentary.
Participants selected whether they would follow an exercise and diet plan before being randomly assigned to receive either creatine monohydrate or a placebo.
The trial was double-blind: neither the participants nor the researchers knew which powder each person had received until the study database was finalized.
In total, 64 adults—40 women and 24 men—between the ages of 45 and 65 completed the 12-week study.
Participants in the peer-reviewed trial took 10 grams of creatine monohydrate each day, divided between morning and evening.
Researchers assessed participants’ body composition, strength, blood markers and cognitive performance at the beginning of the trial and again after six and 12 weeks.
Among the 13 people who took creatine without following a structured exercise or diet program, lean tissue had risen by an average of 2.2 pounds after just six weeks.
Their leg-press performance improved as well, although the difference compared with the placebo group was less conclusive.
The bench-press result was a direct measurement of lifting performance, separate from the increase in lean tissue recorded by the body scans.
Candow sees potential applications for people whose circumstances prevent them from exercising.
‘These results could have application for those who cannot go to a gym, are injured or in long-term care,’ he said.
However, he cautioned against interpreting the extra lean tissue as newly built muscle.
The scans include water in their measurements, so the additional weight cannot be assumed to represent newly built muscle.
Candow believes the gains were ‘all water retention, especially in the nontraining group.’ The trial did not directly establish how much of the increase was water.
He also suggested that the strength improvements could partly reflect participants becoming more familiar with the lifting tests.
‘Lean mass and strength are associated but not cause and effect,’ Candow said.
Researchers also reported changes in selected memory tests, cholesterol measures and HbA1c, a marker of longer-term blood sugar. These findings were exploratory, however, and require confirmation.
For example, the nonexercising creatine group performed better than the placebo groups on a delayed word-recall assessment after six weeks.
The trial’s 10-gram daily dose exceeded the usual three-to-five-gram maintenance amounts discussed in the paper.
Candow called it ‘a viable dose’ that was ‘safe and effective for most populations.’
The researchers said they selected the higher daily amount partly because of interest in creatine’s potential effects on cognition.
These potential benefits include improvements in memory, attention and thinking speed, although the evidence remains mixed.
For those able to exercise, Candow said the strongest evidence supports combining the two.
‘The mountain of evidence behind creatine and resistance training is sound. For anyone wanting to improve muscle performance especially, the combination is something to consider.’
