Review supports creatine’s effects on body composition

A recent systemic review supports creatine’s ability to positively affect body composition, although the effects were small when the ingredient was used alone without the addition of a training regimen. 

The new research was published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. It was the work of researchers associated with institutions in Canada and Iran. 

The authors’ stated purpose was to provide a “comprehensive evaluation regarding the influence of creatine protocol parameters (including dose and form) on body mass and estimates of fat-free and fat mass.” 

Unlike many other sports nutrition ingredients, creatine is the subject of ample research. The authors first amassed a set of 298 studies, and after applying exclusion criteria, ended up with 143 studies for further analysis. 

Validated assessment tool employed 

The authors employed a GRADE analysis to sort through the evidence found in the studies. GRADE, which stands for Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations, is said to be a “a transparent framework for developing and presenting summaries of evidence and provides a systematic approach for making clinical practice recommendations.” 

According to the publication BMJ Best Practice, the GRADE approach is endorsed by more than 100 organizations worldwide. 

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The tool, while subjective, provides a reproducible and transparent way to rate the quality of evidence in the studies to be analyzed. The studies are assessed for their risk of bias (both evidentiary and publication bias), and for their precision and direct applicability to the research question. The question in this case was whether creatine can help users increase their fat-free mass and/or reduce their body fat percentage. 

Of the 143 overall studies, 81 were conducted on males and 21 on females, with the remaining 41 studies done on both. 

Small but measurable effects seen 

Overall, the authors said the analysis revealed that creatine supplementation exerted measurable effects on fat-free mass (which increased) and body fat percentage (which decreased). The participants in the studies also tended to gain a small amount of weight, which was attributed to greater water retention in muscle tissue. 

The effects observed in the studies were small, and some of them pertained more to men than to women. Also, all effects were enhanced by combining creatine supplementation with a strength training regimen, according to the researchers. 

“In summary, creatine supplementation has a very small effect on body mass, fat-free mass and body fat percentage over time,” the authors wrote. “These changes were apparent when creatine was combined with resistance training. Creatine appears to increase fat-free mass more in males compared to females. Collectively, variations in dosing protocols, training status and age do not appear to influence the effectiveness of creatine supplementation.” 

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The authors concluded, “Based on previous research findings, which did not report any adverse effects related to the use of creatine supplements on the overall well-being of participants, it seems that people who are apparently healthy may experience benefits from the performance-enhancing properties of creatine supplementation.”