You may remember that back in February of this year, we highlighted some supplements recommended by Dr. Erik Verdin, CEO and President of the Buck Institute For Research on Aging. Among the suggestions he made was the supplement creatine. Long known as a safe and effective supplement used by bodybuilders and gym rats to boost energy for workouts, interest in this supplement has exploded in recent years. A recent post in Bloomberg reports that women and older adults are driving a surge in sales of creatine. According to this post, GNC, the vitamin and supplement shop, has seen sales of creatine climb by 75% since 2020. What exactly does creatine do? It’s a compound that’s naturally produced in your body and mostly resides in your muscles, delivering energy to those muscles when you engage in exercise. Trying to up your strength training reps? Creatine likely has a role in allowing you to plow ahead. While your body makes creatine, about half of your daily creatine requirement needs to come from food, especially from meats and fish. But for those who don’t take in sufficient amounts of meat or fish, or perhaps are vegetarians, there may be value in using a supplement to enhance your creatine intake. Athletes have been using the supplement (probably easiest and best to use is creatine monohydrate powder). The question then arises, could a supplement that boosts muscle energy be valuable for older adults losing muscle mass or even suffering from sarcopenia? There’s growing research to support this use, along with interest in demonstrating the value of creatine for such other health benefits as better bone health and even a boost to brain health and cognitive functioning.

First, let’s consider the general use of creatine by older adults, especially as a way to boost muscle energy. While no one should start using a supplement without first checking in with their doctor, it does appear that creatine supplementation may have a valuable role in supporting muscle mass in older adults. As you likely know, as we age, we gradually lose muscle mass, especially once we hit age 70, at which point we may lose as much as 15% of our muscle mass per decade. Maintaining strength and muscle mass is critical to staying functional and preventing falls as we get older. While it appears that merely taking the supplement on its own without physical activity will be of little value, it does appear that, combined with resistance training, creatine supplementation may help build muscle and strength. 

What about the value of creatine supplementation to support brain health and even improve cognition? The evidence is beginning to build, though more thorough research needs to be conducted. A recent article in Time highlighted some of the new research coming out. According to this article, the human brain burns 20% of the body’s resting energy. It’s hypothesized that creatine supplementation could be especially helpful when the brain suffers from such energy-draining assaults as stress, injury, or the brain stressors of aging, such as sleep deprivation or strokes. A recent study published in Nutrition Reviews examined the evidence supporting the use of creatine for cognition in aging adults. The evidence is apparently limited and awaiting higher-quality clinical trials, but there is some evidence to suggest that creatine may be associated with cognitive benefits in generally healthy older adults. Researchers from the University of Kansas Medical Center, publishing in an Alzheimer’s Association journal, report that in a pilot study of people with dementia, creatine supplementation produced moderate improvements in cognitive function. While this was a study focused primarily on safety and efficacy, the fact that improvement in working memory and executive function was also demonstrated provides the support necessary to conduct these trials among larger groups. All of this preliminary evidence is building toward a better understanding of creatine as a valuable supplement for older adults to consider. 

Years of use by athletes have demonstrated that creatine is a safe supplement, with few side effects beyond possible weight gain (possibly from water retention) and possible GI discomfort. While it’s not considered a miracle drug, and its value for muscle mass and strength building must be in conjunction with resistance training, it may be an option for older adults looking to enhance their muscles and strength, and possibly improve bone health, with little downside- and the possible additional upside of cognitive support. So put it on your list of discussion topics for your next doctor visit, and read more here.