Do you have to take creatine for menopause signs? Let’s speak about it.
Creatine is the brand new large factor, particularly for ladies in menopause. Touted as a miracle for every thing from mind fog to bone well being, creatine is exhibiting up extra incessantly in dietary supplements marketed towards girls over 40. However does creatine really work? Is creatine good for menopausal girls?
Let’s discover how the scientific analysis stacks up in opposition to the most typical claims.
Declare #1: Creatine Improves Bone Density
Verdict: False
Bone well being is a serious concern throughout menopause. As estrogen ranges drop, bone mineral density (BMD) declines, rising the danger of osteoporosis. Due to this, many dietary supplements declare to enhance bone energy or density — and creatine is not any exception.
Some have hypothesized that creatine might assist with bone well being by bettering muscle energy, thereby enhancing mechanical loading on the bones. Nonetheless, the medical proof doesn’t assist this principle.
A randomized managed trial (PMID: 25386713) involving postmenopausal girls discovered that though creatine improved muscle operate, it had no important impact on BMD. Equally, a complete 2023 meta-analysis (PMID: 37144634) concluded that creatine doesn’t forestall bone loss or osteoporosis.
In comparison with vitamins with well-documented results on bone well being — resembling calcium, vitamin D, and magnesium — creatine lacks a powerful physiological mechanism or medical proof for bettering BMD in menopausal girls.
In abstract, whereas creatine might contribute not directly to musculoskeletal operate, it doesn’t enhance bone density and shouldn’t exchange confirmed osteoporosis prevention methods.
Declare #2: Creatine Helps with Cognition
Verdict: In all probability False
Many ladies going by menopause report signs like mind fog, reminiscence lapses, and problem concentrating. This has led to rising curiosity in brain-boosting dietary supplements like creatine.
Creatine performs a central position in mobile power manufacturing, together with in mind cells. The idea is that declining endogenous creatine ranges with age might impair mind operate, and supplementation would possibly assist replenish these shops.
A 2018 assessment (PMID: 29704637) checked out creatine’s results on cognitive efficiency and located combined outcomes, with solely modest cognitive advantages in very particular conditions. For instance, some research used extraordinarily excessive doses (as much as 20g/day) and centered on sleep-deprived or cognitively harassed people. These situations should not consultant of the overall menopause inhabitants.
There’s additionally restricted proof on creatine’s position in bettering temper or melancholy. A 2024 pilot examine (PMID: 39488067) discovered that creatine would possibly improve the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral remedy (CBT) in individuals with melancholy. Nonetheless, extra sturdy trials are wanted to substantiate this potential profit.
Different analysis has examined creatine’s results in neurodegenerative ailments, however findings are preliminary and never straight relevant to the typical girl experiencing menopause.
In conclusion, creatine will not be a confirmed answer for cognitive decline or melancholy in menopause, and any potential advantages are seemingly small and context-specific.
Declare #3: Creatine Helps with Muscle Power
Verdict: True
Probably the most well-documented results of creatine is its means to improve muscle energy and energy, particularly when mixed with resistance coaching.
Menopause usually accelerates sarcopenia, the age-related lack of muscle mass and performance. This contributes to a decline in mobility, metabolic fee, and total high quality of life.
A number of meta-analyses assist creatine as a helpful ergogenic help for older adults:
- A 2021 assessment (PMID: 34836013) confirmed that creatine supplementation improved upper-body energy in older adults.
- One other 2024 evaluation (PMID: 40292479) reported that creatine, paired with resistance coaching, led to higher enhancements in energy and lean physique mass than train alone.
Creatine will increase intramuscular phosphocreatine shops, which in flip helps produce extra ATP throughout brief bursts of high-intensity train. This results in higher coaching efficiency, higher workload capability, and quicker restoration.
Though creatine doesn’t straight construct muscle with out coaching, it does assist improve the advantages of weightlifting, making it a superb complement for bodily energetic menopausal girls.
Is Creatine Protected for Menopausal Girls?
Verdict: Sure
Creatine is without doubt one of the most extensively studied sports activities dietary supplements and has a robust security profile, together with in older populations.
A 2021 place paper by the Worldwide Society of Sports activities Diet (PMID: 33800439) concluded that long-term creatine supplementation (3–5g/day) is secure for wholesome people. Widespread myths about kidney harm have been disproven repeatedly by medical trials.
Creatine is usually well-tolerated. Some customers might expertise delicate water retention or bloating early in supplementation, however these results are non permanent. Importantly, creatine doesn’t negatively have an effect on hydration standing, liver enzymes, or kidney operate in wholesome adults.
Girls with kidney illness or different continual situations ought to seek the advice of their healthcare supplier earlier than beginning any new complement, together with creatine.
Ought to You Take Creatine Throughout Menopause?
For those who’re questioning whether or not creatine is value including to your complement routine throughout menopause, right here’s the brief reply:
- Don’t take it for bone well being or cognitive efficiency — the proof simply isn’t robust sufficient.
- Do contemplate it for those who’re doing resistance coaching and desire a secure, efficient means to enhance energy and restoration.
On this context, creatine is a device to boost efficiency, not a magic capsule. However for energetic girls in midlife, it may be a part of a complete technique to take care of muscle, enhance exercise capability, and keep robust by menopause and past.
Learn how to Use Creatine for Finest Outcomes
For those who determine to attempt creatine, right here’s methods to use it safely and successfully:
- Dosage: 3–5 grams per day of creatine monohydrate (probably the most researched type)
- Loading: Not vital. Simply begin with the every day dose.
- Timing: Anytime of day is okay, although some proof suggests post-workout might provide slight advantages.
- Hydration: Keep nicely hydrated, as creatine attracts water into muscle cells.
- Consistency: Take it every day to take care of muscle saturation, even on relaxation days.
Closing Ideas on Creatine for Menopause
Creatine will not be a miracle treatment for menopause signs, but it surely generally is a beneficial device for ladies centered on energy, mobility, and total well being.
Right here’s the underside line:
- Creatine doesn’t enhance bone density or considerably enhance cognitive operate.
- It might improve temper when paired with different therapies, however extra analysis is required.
- It improves muscle energy and efficiency, particularly with resistance coaching.
- It’s secure and well-tolerated in most wholesome people.
For those who’re lifting weights, recovering from exercises, or managing age-related muscle loss, creatine is likely to be value including to your routine.
References:
- Candow DG, et al. (2015). Results of creatine supplementation and resistance coaching on bone mineral content material in postmenopausal girls. PMID: 25386713
- Forbes SC, et al. (2023). Creatine and bone well being: A scientific assessment and meta-analysis. PMID: 37144634
- Avgerinos KI, et al. (2018). Results of creatine supplementation on cognitive operate. PMID: 29704637
- Silva S, et al. (2024). Creatine in adjunct with CBT for melancholy: A pilot examine. PMID: 39488067
- Chilibeck PD, et al. (2021). Impact of creatine supplementation throughout resistance coaching on muscle mass and energy in older adults. PMID: 34836013
- Candow DG, et al. (2024). Creatine and resistance coaching in growing older: A vital assessment. PMID: 40292479
- Kreider RB, et al. (2021). Worldwide Society of Sports activities Diet place stand: Security and efficacy of creatine supplementation in train, sport, and drugs. PMID: 33800439