Making Muscle: More Evidence About The Benefits Of Creatine Supplements

This past July, we highlighted the growing evidence that the natural compound creatine, long used by athletes for their workouts, appears to be beneficial for supporting muscle health and even cognitive health, not just for athletes, but for a wider swath of the population. The use of creatine has become a big business, with reports of a market value of $1.4 billion in 2025, expected to rise to $1.7 billion by the end of 2026. While creatine is produced by your body and also found in many foods, including meat and fish, it’s perhaps most commonly known as a supplement (the most popular version of which is creatine monohydrate) with much scientific evidence to support its safety and value. For a good explanation of how creatine affects muscles and the growing evidence of its value for brain health, find your scooper and click here. In fact, one Cornell physician doesn’t recommend whey protein to his older patients to support and create muscle mass, given the costs and the alternative of just getting sufficient protein by eating more of it every day. However, this same physician touted the value of 5 grams of creatine supplement each day to support and improve muscle building, in conjunction with exercising, and because creatine is a low-cost, evidence-supported supplement you can safely use. 

But what if you’re more sedentary and not regularly exercising? Could a creatine supplement still be of benefit for your muscle mass? Well, an interesting new study seems to suggest that may be the case. According to this new research published in The Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, even if you’re not regularly exercising, you still might benefit from a creatine supplement to preserve your muscle mass, improve your fitness, and possibly provide additional support for your cognitive function. This study involved 73 sedentary adults, aged 45 to 65, half of whom continued their sedentary lifestyle and the other half of whom were put on a diet and exercise regimen for the 12 weeks of the study. Each half of the participants was then further divided so that half consumed 10 grams of creatine monohydrate daily and the other half received a placebo. In both groups that consumed the creatine, whether or not they were exercising, the participants had evidence of increased lean tissue mass, better strength, and more muscle endurance. While the exercise group had the best results, even those who did not exercise but consumed the creatine supplement saw improvement. While no one would argue that creatine supplementation should replace exercise (exercise has many important benefits beyond muscle maintenance), as we become older, our muscles do become less responsive to exercise, so creatine supplementation may be a useful add-on to help support your muscle mass, whether or not you regularly exercise. 

It’s important to note that this was one small study, and your decision to try creatine should be one discussed with your physician. Furthermore, in this study, participants consumed 10 grams of creatine a day, while the usually recommended dose is closer to 3-5 grams per day. 

Creatine use is expected to rise as the population gets older, as more people use GLP-1s (which can cause you to lose muscle mass and may mean you are not taking in enough creatine in your diet), and as we find out more about the possible benefits for brain health that can come from creatine supplementation. If you’re looking to start your own creatine supplement regimen, you may want to take a look at a recent list of 11 recommended creatine supplements for women over 50, with a focus on muscle growth, value and recovery.