Creatine Supplements Are Everywhere. Do You Actually Need Them?

Background

A decade ago, creatine mostly lived in gym bags and bodybuilding forums. In 2026, it’s in your pharmacy’s wellness aisle, mini-scooped into pre-mixed beverages, and hashtagged across social feeds by endurance runners, students cramming for exams, new parents trying to fight fatigue, and older adults focused on staying strong. Few supplements have traveled this far from their niche while also carrying a deep bench of scientific evidence.

Creatine isn’t exotic. Your body makes it from amino acids (arginine, glycine, and methionine), and you eat some in meat and fish. Inside muscle and brain cells, creatine’s job is simple but crucial: it helps rapidly recycle ATP, the cell’s immediate energy currency. That quick energy buffer is why lifters push extra reps and sprinters get a hair more pop off the blocks on creatine. But the wider cultural embrace reflects a growing interest beyond the weight room: maintaining muscle as we age, supporting recovery, and even nudging cognitive performance under stress.

With the supplement in everything from unflavored powders to neon pre-workouts and gummies, it’s fair to ask: do you actually need it? The answer depends on your diet, your goals, your health history, and your expectations.

What happened

• Mainstream adoption. Creatine has become one of the few supplements to cross from sports performance into general wellness. Sales have climbed as non-athletes look for simple, evidence-backed ways to maintain muscle, improve training efficiency on limited time, and possibly support cognition during sleep loss or high workload.
• A social-media feedback loop. Bite-size videos tout “3 grams for your brain” or “5 grams post-workout” as low-lift habits. That messaging, paired with personal anecdotes about strength gains or easier recovery, has driven widespread experimentation.
• Product proliferation. Beyond classic tubs of creatine monohydrate, brands now offer capsules, gummies, and ready-to-mix sticks. You’ll also see creatine blended into pre-workouts and marketed with claims of better solubility or fewer side effects—though plain monohydrate remains the best-studied and most cost-effective form.
• Expanding research lens. Sports science has long endorsed creatine for strength and power. More recent studies explore its potential roles in healthy aging (countering age-related muscle loss), injury recovery, heat tolerance, mood adjuncts in select populations, and cognitive performance under acute stressors. Results vary by context, but the research base is growing beyond athletics.

What creatine actually does

• Energy buffering. Creatine stores high-energy phosphate groups in phosphocreatine, enabling rapid ATP regeneration for short, intense efforts (think lifting, sprinting, jumping). Over weeks, that translates into more training volume and larger strength and muscle gains.
• Cellular hydration. Creatine draws water into muscle cells. This intracellular water shift is often experienced as a small, early weight increase. In the long run it appears to create a more favorable environment for muscle protein synthesis.
• Brain energy support. The brain also uses creatine to buffer energy, especially during demanding tasks or sleep restriction. Some studies show small cognitive benefits in stressful conditions or in people with lower baseline creatine (e.g., vegetarians). Findings in well-rested, well-fed young adults are mixed.

Who tends to benefit most

• Strength and power athletes. The evidence here is strongest. Expect modest but meaningful boosts in training volume and 1–3% improvements in performance outcomes over time when paired with progressive resistance training.
• New lifters and time-crunched exercisers. If you’re only lifting 2–3 times per week, creatine can help you extract more from limited sessions.
• Older adults focused on muscle and function. When combined with resistance training and adequate protein, creatine can enhance gains in lean mass and strength, which matter for balance, independence, and injury prevention.
• Vegetarians and vegans. Because dietary creatine largely comes from animal foods, plant-based eaters often start with lower muscle creatine stores and may see larger relative benefits.
• People under acute cognitive strain. There’s evidence for small improvements in tasks of memory and reaction time under sleep deprivation, hypoxia, or high cognitive load. Effects vary and are not a substitute for sleep.

Who should skip it or talk to a clinician first

• Anyone with kidney disease, significant risk factors for kidney impairment, or a history of rhabdomyolysis. Creatine metabolism raises serum creatinine (a breakdown product), which can look like kidney dysfunction on labs even when kidney function is normal. If you supplement, ask your clinician about using cystatin C or directly measured GFR to assess kidney function.
• Pregnancy and breastfeeding. Data are insufficient for routine use; discuss with your obstetric provider.
• Children and adolescents. While creatine is used clinically in specific pediatric metabolic disorders under medical supervision, discretionary supplementation for performance should be guided by a pediatrician or sports medicine professional.
• People with a history of recurrent kidney stones, severe dehydration risk, or on nephrotoxic medications. Use caution and medical guidance.

Safety, side effects, and myths

• Overall safety. In healthy adults, long-term use of creatine monohydrate at recommended doses has a strong safety record. Trials spanning months to years report few serious adverse events.
• Water weight vs. fat gain. Early scale increases are mostly water inside muscle cells, not fat. Clothes may fit the same or slightly tighter across worked muscles.
• Cramps and dehydration. Contrary to old gym lore, controlled studies generally do not show higher cramping or dehydration risk. Some evidence suggests fewer cramps in hot environments when hydration is adequate.
• Hair loss claims. A small study once reported increased DHT (a hormone) after creatine intake; direct links to hair loss have not been demonstrated in robust trials. If you have androgenic alopecia concerns, discuss with a dermatologist.
• GI discomfort. Large single doses—especially during “loading”—can cause bloating or loose stools. Split doses or switch to a smaller daily amount without a loading phase.
• Caffeine interactions. Early findings hinted caffeine might blunt some performance effects; later research is mixed. Many athletes use both without issues. If you’re chasing marginal gains, test your routine during training rather than on race day.
• Lab confusion. Creatine can raise serum creatinine independent of kidney damage. Make sure clinicians know you supplement, and consider cystatin C if interpretation is unclear.

How to use it (if you choose to)

• Form: Choose creatine monohydrate. It’s the most studied, effective, and affordable. “Micronized” versions may mix easier but aren’t inherently more effective. Other forms (HCl, ethyl ester) lack consistent superiority and can be pricier.
• Dose options:
  • Loading: 20 g/day split into 4 doses for 5–7 days, then 3–5 g/day maintenance.
  • No loading: 3–5 g/day. You’ll reach saturation in roughly 3–4 weeks—with fewer GI complaints for many.
• Timing: Not critical. Take it daily, whenever you’ll remember. Pairing with a meal (especially one containing carbs and protein) may help uptake and tolerability.
• Consistency: Benefits hinge on saturating muscle and brain stores. Skipping a few days isn’t catastrophic, but consistent intake works best.
• Hydration: Drink fluids as normal. There’s no need for extreme water loading.
• Stacking with protein: Fine. Protein supports muscle building; creatine supports training capacity and cellular energy. They’re complementary.
• Quality: Look for third-party testing (NSF Certified for Sport, Informed Choice/Informed Sport, or USP Verified). Single-ingredient powders from reputable brands are rarely adulterated, but verification adds assurance.

What it won’t do

• Replace training, sleep, or nutrition. Creatine can nudge gains upward, not conjure them from thin air.
• Instantly transform endurance performance. While it may aid sprint finishes or repeated high-intensity bursts, it doesn’t replace aerobic base work.
• Cure disease. Trials in neurodegenerative conditions like ALS and Parkinson’s have yielded mixed or negative results. Don’t treat creatine as a therapeutic unless directed by a specialist.

The broader context: why creatine went mainstream

• Aging population, strength deficit. People are living longer and want to live well. Losing muscle (sarcopenia) is tied to falls, frailty, and hospitalizations. Creatine plus resistance training offers a low-cost, low-friction lever against that trend.
• Demand for efficient wins. With time-strapped schedules, supplements that reliably improve training quality appeal. Creatine is one of few with consistent, measurable effects for most users.
• Meat moderation and plant-based diets. As more people reduce animal intake, an exogenous source of creatine through supplementation can restore muscle stores to omnivore-like levels.
• Brain-health marketing. While evidence is nuanced, the promise of even small cognitive gains under stress resonates with students, shift workers, and new parents—populations that often operate in sleep debt.

Key takeaways

• Creatine monohydrate is one of the most studied and effective supplements for increasing high-intensity performance and supporting greater strength and muscle gains—when paired with training.
• Benefits likely extend to older adults and plant-based eaters, and may include small cognitive advantages under acute stressors.
• In healthy adults, it has a solid safety profile. Kidney concerns are largely misplaced unless you have underlying disease; clarify labs with your clinician.
• The simplest, most evidence-based protocol is 3–5 g per day of creatine monohydrate, taken consistently, with or without a short loading phase.
• It’s not a magic bullet for endurance, fat loss, or disease treatment; think of it as a supportive tool, not a solution.

What to watch next

• Larger, longer cognitive trials. Expect more studies in older adults, sleep-restricted workers, and individuals with mild cognitive impairment to test whether benefits are durable and clinically meaningful.
• Recovery and injury contexts. Research is probing whether creatine helps preserve muscle during immobilization (casts, bed rest) and speeds return-to-play when combined with rehab.
• Heat and environmental stress. Trials in athletes and military personnel continue to explore whether creatine improves performance and safety in hot, humid, or hypoxic conditions.
• Precision nutrition. As consumer genomics matures, we may see research into genetic variants in creatine transport/synthesis that predict who benefits most.
• Quality control and regulation. With booming demand, third-party testing and sourcing transparency will matter more. Expect brands to highlight origin (e.g., well-known German or U.S. manufacturing) and certifications.

Practical buying checklist

• Choose “creatine monohydrate” as the only ingredient.
• Aim for brands with NSF Certified for Sport, Informed Choice/Informed Sport, or USP.
• Ignore “proprietary blends” with underdosed creatine; you want 3–5 g per serving.
• Micronized powder for easy mixing; capsules if you dislike powder.
• Start at 3 g/day with a meal. If you tolerate it well and want faster saturation, briefly load later.

A quick note on lab tests and doctors’ visits

If you take creatine, tell your clinician. A slight bump in serum creatinine can reflect your supplement, not kidney damage. If there’s concern, ask about cystatin C or a direct GFR estimate for a clearer picture. Keeping a list of all supplements on your medical record helps avoid confusion.

Not medical advice

Creatine is generally safe for healthy adults, but individual needs vary. If you have chronic conditions, take prescription medications, or are pregnant or breastfeeding, discuss supplementation with your clinician first.

FAQ

• Does timing matter—pre or post workout?

  • Not much. Consistency beats timing. If one slot helps you remember, use it.

• Will I gain fat on creatine?

  • No. Early weight changes are mostly water inside muscle. Body fat depends on diet and activity.

• Can I take creatine on rest days?

  • Yes. Daily intake helps maintain saturated stores.

• Is creatine bad for my hairline?

  • Evidence linking creatine to hair loss is weak. If you’re predisposed to androgenic alopecia, discuss concerns with a dermatologist.

• I’m an endurance athlete—should I take it?

  • If your sport has repeated high-intensity surges (soccer, rowing sprints, cycling crits), creatine may help. For pure long steady efforts, benefits are smaller and added water weight may be a trade-off.

• What about creatine in gummies or “functional” drinks?

  • Check the actual dose per serving and added sugars. Many products underdose. Plain powder is usually cheaper and more reliable.

• Do I need to cycle off?

  • No evidence supports mandatory cycling for safety. Some athletes pause during competitions where small water weight changes matter.

• I’m vegan—do I need a higher dose?

  • Not necessarily. Standard dosing (3–5 g/day) works well. You may notice larger relative benefits due to lower baseline stores.

• What if creatine upsets my stomach?

  • Reduce to 2–3 g with a meal and build up slowly. Split doses if needed.

• Can creatine interact with medications?

  • Few well-documented interactions exist, but if you take nephrotoxic drugs, diuretics, or have kidney concerns, consult your clinician first.

Source & original reading: https://www.wired.com/story/should-you-be-taking-creatine-supplements/