Creatine Monohydrate

What the evidence says

Creatine increases the pool of rapidly available energy in muscle and has its clearest benefits during repeated high-intensity effort and resistance training. NIH guidance concludes that it can improve strength, power, and work during repeated maximal efforts but is of little value for steady-state endurance exercise.^[6][2]

Meta-analyses find that adding creatine to resistance training increases lean mass in both younger and older adults. In older-adult trials, the combination also improved chest- and leg-press strength, although protocols and participant health varied.^[1][4]

The evidence is strongest for physical performance and training adaptation, not for every proposed anti-aging use. Neurological, metabolic, and rehabilitation applications remain active research areas, but they should not be treated as equivalent to the established muscle and exercise findings.^[2]

Creatine monohydrate is also one of the few sports supplements with substantial safety literature. A 2025 kidney meta-analysis found a small rise in serum creatinine but no significant change in glomerular filtration rate, consistent with creatinine production rather than demonstrated renal injury; longer trials and data in kidney disease remain limited.^[5][2][3][6]