Creatine

Research summary

• Creatine supplementation combined with resistance training consistently increases muscle strength and mass across multiple independent meta-analyses, including specifically in older adults and postmenopausal women, and improves upper-body and lower-body strength and power.
• Network meta-analyses on timing and type of protein/creatine dosing add nuance about how to optimize its use rather than whether it works.
• A meta-analysis of memory outcomes also found a modest cognitive benefit in healthy individuals, though this evidence is thinner than the strength literature.
• On safety, meta-analyses specifically examining kidney function found no evidence of harm in people with normal kidney function at standard doses.
• Overall this is one of the more robustly evidenced supplements in this category, with effects that are consistent, replicated, and grounded in randomized trials rather than observational associations.