More Information About Creatine

CREATINE is better than doping!
This statement is intentionally provocative and perhaps incorrectly worded. Creatine is not actually a doping product. Neither will it ever be classified as such. But if you equate performance boosting food additives with doping then this statement is correct. THE EFFECT OF CREATINE IS QUITE CLEARLY TO PRODUCE A BOOST IN PERFORMANCE.

What is Creatine and how does it work?
Creatine is a water-soluble, totally natural substance which the body itself produces. Creatine is also a derivative (chemical compound) of the amino acid Glycin. Amino acids are a group of organic compounds amongst which are 23 components of particular importance (Glycin is one of them) in that they function as components of the chains used to create proteins.
Creatine in itself is ineffective. An effect is produced when the creatine (which has to be taken in its monohydrate form, otherwise the creatine cannot pass through the cell walls in the muscle cells) is converted into phosphocreatine, or creatine phosphate, as it is also called, in the muscle itself.
Creatine phosphate is a prerequisite for all muscle work. The energy which generates all muscle work comes from ADP (adenosine diphosphate) created when ATP (adenosine triphosphate) is broken down. Creatine phosphate is the prime source of ATP production. The process whereby ADP produced from ATP and, in turn, from creatine phosphate is burnt up, takes place in the body at lightning speed. The smaller the amount of creatine phosphate there is in the body, the more ADP has to be produced by breaking down muscle glycogen into lactic acid.
Since the production of ADP in this process takes longer, the energy supply to the muscles is reduced. resulting: in a reduction in muscle performance. If, on the other hand, the amount of creatine Phosphate in the body is increased by an intake of creatine monohvdrate, an immediate improvement in muscle action capacity is experienced (in this respect it could be said that creatine indirectly delays production of the lactic acid which signals that the muscles have reached the limit of their capacity). Research scientists, such as Professor Eric Hultman, have demonstrated in scientific experiments that the body's crea tine phosphate level can be increased from between 20 and 50% by taking creatine monohydrate.

Where is creatine found?
Creatine is produced naturally in the liver, the kidneys and the pancreas. Human beings have, on average, approximately 120 mmol of creatine per kilo of body weight, but this level may vary considerably from person to person. Creatine is found primarily in the muscles around the skeleton, and high levels of creatine are also found in the heart muscles, nerve cells and sperm.
The required daily dosage is a minimum of 2 grams, the most common source of creatine being all types of meat, fish and, amongst other things, mountain cranberries.

Who can benefit from creatine?
Creatine can benefit all of us because we all work with our muscles all the time.
However, athletes, in particular, are perhaps the ones who would derive the greatest benefit from a creatine boost, as they are the ones aiming for the best possible performance. It has, in particular, been demonstrated that athletes who expend energy in short intensive bursts benefit greatly from creatine. Ice hockey, football, handball, sprinting up to 1000 m and all types of power sports/bodybuilding and mountaineering, etc, are typical examples of this. But it is also quite likely that athletes in typical fitness sports would benefit from extra amounts of creatine. There is also everything to suggest that it would have a beneficial effect on animals, such as horses in equestrian sports, because their muscles also contain creatine phosphate.

Is it possible to take an overdose of creatine? How much of it is one supposed to take?
It is impossible under normal circumstances to take an overdose of creatine. Our daily requirement is approximately two grams. Up to 30 grams per day has been taken in experiments with no resulting side effects. In fact, the body filters out what it does not need through urine. A two-gram-a-day supplement may well seem enough for the average person, while athletes can take up to 20 grams a day prior to periods of intensive training or special competitions.

Do we get enough creatine in our normal diet?
The average level of creatine is approximately 120 mmol per kilo of body weight. Tests carried out at the Karolinska Institute and at Huddinge University Hospital under the direction of Professors Eric Hultman and Bjorn Ekblom show that the creatine phosphate level may be increased to between 160 and 170 mmol per kilo of body weight.
The tests also show that it is not possible to raise the level any higher than this, even when doses are increased even further. The normal level of creatine, by analogy with these facts, thus seems to be approximately 160 mmol, which again shows that we do not get an adequate amount of creatine through our normal diet.

Why isn't creatine classified as doping?
One would think that creatine should be classified as doping since the preparation so obviously boosts athletic performance. All other similar performance- boosting substances are classified as doping, but there are no risks with creatine owing to the fact that creatine is a natural substance found in the body. Apart from that, it is impossible to gauge whether or not a person has taken an additional dose of creatine, because creatine levels vary from person to person. Most experts in the international sports federations, which Arne Ljungquist: President of International Amateur Athletic Federation doping commission, is one are also clearly against classifying creatine doping.

THE RESEARCH BEHIND CREATINE
Eric Hultman, professor of clinical chemistry the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, has 20 years carrying research on creatine Prof. Hultman's special area of research has been muscle diseases, and has been through this research that creatine's special properties have been discovered.

Prof. Hultman has conducted a series of scientific studies in cooperation with a number of other well known research scientists from Sweden and Britain which clearly demonstrate the positive effects of creatine. Eric Hultman's theories are based on the fact that creatine phosphate is the prime source of energy in the first 30 seconds of muscle action. So several years ago he and his fellow scientists began investigating whether or not it was possible to increase the level of creatine in the muscles and, if so, whether or not this would produce any effect. What was revolutionary about Prof. Hultman's research was the fact that it was possible to increase the amount of creatine with the result that greater efficiency in muscle action was achieved. These studies have been published in such reputable journals as "Clinical Science" and "The Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports". Further studies, including those under the direction of Prof. B. Ekblom of the Karolinska Institute, are under way.

The most important effects of creatine
* Creatine increases performance by supplying muscles with a higher level of creatine phosphate. By increasing the level of creatine phosphate the following effects are achieved:

* A delay in the lactic acid souring of the muscles,
* Increased training capacity,
* Longer endurance span, i.e. full muscle strength sustained over a longer period of time,
* Restoration of full muscle strength takes place much faster and increases compared to when no additional dose of creatine is taken, particularly when muscles are subjected to repeated strain with short periods of rest (such as in ice hockey, football, weight lifting).

How should creatine be taken?
Active athletes should start off with a dose of 4x5 grams of powder per day for the first 4-5 days. After that only a 5-gram maintenance dose 2-3 times a week needs to be taken. Before important competitions a top-up dose of 20 grams per day can be taken for a period of three days, but no more often than once a month. Creatine is odorless and tasteless and dissolves easily in all types of drinks, including sports drinks.