What Are The Pros And Cons Of Creatine Monohydrate
Creatine is a naturally occuring substance in the human body that supplies energy to muscles and nerve cells.
Pros - Taken in moderate doses creatine is an effective performance enhancer and muscle builder. A number of high quality studies have shown an increase in muscle mass with the use of creatine. Studies examining creatine's effect in aging suggest that creatine may increase bone mass when combined with resistance training.
Cons - Continuous intake of excessively high dosages of creatine may lead to a number of side effects. Short term and long term use of creatine in healthy individuals is considered safe. There are possible side effects from using excessively high dosages of creatine. It has been hypothesized that consistently high dosages could lead to hypertension because of increased water retention.
Photo Credit: Men's Health
Pros - Taken in moderate doses creatine is an effective performance enhancer and muscle builder. A number of high quality studies have shown an increase in muscle mass with the use of creatine. Studies examining creatine's effect in aging suggest that creatine may increase bone mass when combined with resistance training.
Cons - Continuous intake of excessively high dosages of creatine may lead to a number of side effects. Short term and long term use of creatine in healthy individuals is considered safe. There are possible side effects from using excessively high dosages of creatine. It has been hypothesized that consistently high dosages could lead to hypertension because of increased water retention.
Photo Credit: Men's Health
Creatine Kinase on Wikipedia
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Creatine kinase (CK), also known as creatine phosphokinase (CPK) or phospho-creatine kinase (and sometimes wrongfully as creatinine kinase), is an enzyme () expressed by various tissues and cell types. CK catalyses the conversion of creatine and consumes adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to create phosphocreatine and adenosine diphosphate (ADP). This CK enzyme reaction is reversible, such that also ATP can be generated from PCr and ADP.
Category: Image - :Creatine kinase rxn.png|500px
In tissues and cells that consume ATP rapidly, especially skeletal muscle, but also brain, photoreceptor cells of the retina, hair cells of the inner ear, spermatozoa and smooth muscle, phosphocreatine serves as an energy reservoir for the rapid buffering and regeneration of ATP in situ, as well as for intracellular energy transport by the phosphocreatine shuttle or circuit. Thus creatine kinase is an important enzyme in such tissues.
Clinically, creatine kinase is assayed in blood tests as a marker of myocardial infarction (heart attack), rhabdomyolysis (severe muscle breakdown), muscular dystrophy, and in acute renal failure.
Need More Info About Creatine Kinase?
- Pros and Cons of Creatine Monohydrate
- In 1992, creatine supplements were introduced as a performance enhancing supplement because of evidence showing that the skeletal muscles total creatine content increases with oral creatine supplementation.
- What is Creatine?
- The chemical name for Creatine is methyl guanidine-acetic acid. Creatine is a natural substance found in our muscle cells, especially around the skeletal muscle with about 95% of the body's creatine supply, and the remaining 5% is stored in other parts of the body.
- Is Creatine Safe?
- I don't usually like to write whole articles about supplements because I believe diet and training to be far more important than any combination of supplements. However there are a few supplements that work, creatine being the most notable of all of them. It is the best selling supplement ever, period. Creatine sales totaled over 100 million dollars in last year alone!
- Creatine Levels
- Creatinine is a chemical waste molecule that is generated from muscle metabolism. Creatinine is produced from creatine, a molecule of major importance for energy production in muscles. Approximately 2% of the body's creatine is converted to creatinine every day. Creatinine is transported through the bloodstream to the kidneys. The kidneys filter out most of the creatinine and dispose of it in the urine.
- How Does Creatine Affect Cellular Respiration
- The affect of creatine on cellular respiration shall be discussed in two parts. The first part attempts to explain the process of cellular respiration and the second part of the discussion attempts to explain the role of creatine in the cellular respiration.
- How To Get Completely Ripped And Shredded
- Regardless of how many times you've tried and failed, I'm going to prove to you once and for all that you CAN have the body fat levels you want to have and you're going to do it without supplements, without drugs, without magic pills and without rubbish equipment.
Different Ways to Take Creatine
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In this article we will go over the different forms of creatine supplements. We will look at if one delivery method is most beneficial. Everyone should read The Beginners Guide To Creatine before starting this article.
* What forms of creatine supplements are there?
Creatine can come in powder, liquid (serum), pill, gum or effervescent powder form. Let's take a quick look at each one:
Creatine Powder
Powder creatine is by far the most popular form of creatine supplements. You mix the powder up in some juice and drink it down. While this is the most popular - and cheapest form of creatine supplementation, it does have some problems.
For starters many people find creatine powder has a very gritty taste. This can be helped by "micronized creatine powder". This is just very finely ground creatine powder that dissolves better in liquid.
The other major problem is that creatine powder is not very effective when you look at absorption rates. The powder passes through the stomach and the acids in the stomach start to digest the creatine. This is not what you want, since you want the creatine to reach your muscles. Studies have shown that as much as 40-50% of the creatine powder you take is lost before it ever reaches your muscles.
Finally the powder tends to absorb more water - which can lead to an upset stomach and possible dehydration. If you drink enough water - these should not be major problems.
All that being said - creatine powders still remain the most popular form for supplements. Some of the main reasons are that it is relatively cheap and easy to make creatine powder. If you are looking for the best value - powder is the way to go. In addition, most of the studies were done using powder - so it is very well tested.
Creatine Liquid or Serum
You can also take creatine in liquid or serum form. In theory there are many advantages to liquid creatine over powder. It is a more effective delivery mechanism so much more creatine is absorbed. This means you can take less creatine in liquid form and still get the same results. In addition, you don't need to leave as much time between when you take your creatine and when you can start working out.
The major down side to liquid creatine is it is very hard to make. If creatine is just mixed in a liquid it starts to breakdown into a waste product (creatinine) after about 20 minutes. So, to make liquid creatine effective the creatine must be stabilized. If the creatine is stabilized it will not break down into a waste product - and it will remain as creatine monohydrate.
Time for another quick personal note. In an earlier article I mentioned a few of us have been trying the creatine serum with very good results. I don't want to plug products here - but I figured I would share since it has worked for us. We are using MMUSA's Xtra Advantage Creatine. We researched and bought it at PowerSupplements.Com. They had some good info on all the benefits of the serum and very nice customer service. I should state they have bought ads on our site - but this really is not the reason I mention them. Just want to pass along our personal experience.
Personal Note Number 2: On 5/1/02 the friendly folks at PowerSupplements convinced us to try a new creatine serum from Germany - DiMaxx Muscle Creatine Plus. We have been using it since 5/1/02 and we are very impressed. We have had all had great results and most of us have now converted from the Xtra Advantage. A little bonus for you vegetarians and vegans - the DiMaxx is the only creatine on the market that is derived from plants!
Creatine Pills
Pills really just work the same way as the powder. They are easier to take because you don't have to mix up anything. What we really don't like about the pills is that it is very hard to vary the dosage. If you decide you only want to take 4 grams a day - and the pills are 5 grams each - your stuck. At least with the powder you could just use one less teaspoon.
Creatine Gum
The idea behind the creatine gum is that as you chew the gum the creatine is released. The fact that it is absorbed in your mouth should yield better absorption rates. We don't have any real experience with the gum and it is not that popular among athletes.
Effervescent Powder Form
This is the stuff that drop into a glass of water and it fizzes up. In the end it works on the same principle as the liquid - trying to increase absorption rates. There have been some preliminary studies that show that effervescent powder may be an effective delivery mechanism. The down side is that they come in pre-measured individual packets - so it is very hard to vary the dosage.
* So what is the best form?
You know there is no easy answer to this right? If price is your prime concern we would go with the powder. If ease of use and maximum absorption are most important you may want to look at the serum. Whatever form you choose - make sure you are getting pure creatine monohydrate.
In this article we will go over the different forms of creatine supplements. We will look at if one delivery method is most beneficial. Everyone should read The Beginners Guide To Creatine before starting this article.
* What forms of creatine supplements are there?
Creatine can come in powder, liquid (serum), pill, gum or effervescent powder form. Let's take a quick look at each one:
Creatine Powder
Powder creatine is by far the most popular form of creatine supplements. You mix the powder up in some juice and drink it down. While this is the most popular - and cheapest form of creatine supplementation, it does have some problems.
For starters many people find creatine powder has a very gritty taste. This can be helped by "micronized creatine powder". This is just very finely ground creatine powder that dissolves better in liquid.
The other major problem is that creatine powder is not very effective when you look at absorption rates. The powder passes through the stomach and the acids in the stomach start to digest the creatine. This is not what you want, since you want the creatine to reach your muscles. Studies have shown that as much as 40-50% of the creatine powder you take is lost before it ever reaches your muscles.
Finally the powder tends to absorb more water - which can lead to an upset stomach and possible dehydration. If you drink enough water - these should not be major problems.
All that being said - creatine powders still remain the most popular form for supplements. Some of the main reasons are that it is relatively cheap and easy to make creatine powder. If you are looking for the best value - powder is the way to go. In addition, most of the studies were done using powder - so it is very well tested.
Creatine Liquid or Serum
You can also take creatine in liquid or serum form. In theory there are many advantages to liquid creatine over powder. It is a more effective delivery mechanism so much more creatine is absorbed. This means you can take less creatine in liquid form and still get the same results. In addition, you don't need to leave as much time between when you take your creatine and when you can start working out.
The major down side to liquid creatine is it is very hard to make. If creatine is just mixed in a liquid it starts to breakdown into a waste product (creatinine) after about 20 minutes. So, to make liquid creatine effective the creatine must be stabilized. If the creatine is stabilized it will not break down into a waste product - and it will remain as creatine monohydrate.
Time for another quick personal note. In an earlier article I mentioned a few of us have been trying the creatine serum with very good results. I don't want to plug products here - but I figured I would share since it has worked for us. We are using MMUSA's Xtra Advantage Creatine. We researched and bought it at PowerSupplements.Com. They had some good info on all the benefits of the serum and very nice customer service. I should state they have bought ads on our site - but this really is not the reason I mention them. Just want to pass along our personal experience.
Personal Note Number 2: On 5/1/02 the friendly folks at PowerSupplements convinced us to try a new creatine serum from Germany - DiMaxx Muscle Creatine Plus. We have been using it since 5/1/02 and we are very impressed. We have had all had great results and most of us have now converted from the Xtra Advantage. A little bonus for you vegetarians and vegans - the DiMaxx is the only creatine on the market that is derived from plants!
Creatine Pills
Pills really just work the same way as the powder. They are easier to take because you don't have to mix up anything. What we really don't like about the pills is that it is very hard to vary the dosage. If you decide you only want to take 4 grams a day - and the pills are 5 grams each - your stuck. At least with the powder you could just use one less teaspoon.
Creatine Gum
The idea behind the creatine gum is that as you chew the gum the creatine is released. The fact that it is absorbed in your mouth should yield better absorption rates. We don't have any real experience with the gum and it is not that popular among athletes.
Effervescent Powder Form
This is the stuff that drop into a glass of water and it fizzes up. In the end it works on the same principle as the liquid - trying to increase absorption rates. There have been some preliminary studies that show that effervescent powder may be an effective delivery mechanism. The down side is that they come in pre-measured individual packets - so it is very hard to vary the dosage.
* So what is the best form?
You know there is no easy answer to this right? If price is your prime concern we would go with the powder. If ease of use and maximum absorption are most important you may want to look at the serum. Whatever form you choose - make sure you are getting pure creatine monohydrate.
Creatine Tips and Advice
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- BartonMurray BartonMurray Apr 14, 2009 @ 11:19 pm
- Great to get a balanced perspective on the benefits of creatine....I personally can't live without it. I would call it a level 1 supplement right along with a good protein supplement. especially one that is free of excito-toxins like splenda....."Whey Advanced" is an excellent choice and so is "Sun Warrior" Protein powder. Also, I think Jay Robb has some choices there as well
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