Creatine + brain performance

PurpleFistMixer

Not a recent study, but anyway, this might be of interest to vegans/vegetarians: Oral creatine monohydrate supplementation improves brain performance: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial.

Abstract:

Creatine supplementation is in widespread use to enhance sports-fitness performance, and has been trialled successfully in the treatment of neurological, neuromuscular and atherosclerotic disease. Creatine plays a pivotal role in brain energy homeostasis, being a temporal and spatial buffer for cytosolic and mitochondrial pools of the cellular energy currency, adenosine triphosphate and its regulator, adenosine diphosphate. In this work, we tested the hypothesis that oral creatine supplementation (5 g d(-1) for six weeks) would enhance intelligence test scores and working memory performance in 45 young adult, vegetarian subjects in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over design. Creatine supplementation had a significant positive effect (p < 0.0001) on both working memory (backward digit span) and intelligence (Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices), both tasks that require speed of processing. These findings underline a dynamic and significant role of brain energy capacity in influencing brain performance.

I might perform some highly unscientific tests on myself regarding this whenever my exams finish.

Midlife Crashes

Do you have to cycle creatine if you only take 5g a day ?

PurpleFistMixer

Not sure if they cycled it in the study for reasons other than scientific method (ie switching which was the "control" group).

Dubhlinner

Interesting study.

For weightlifting or endurance creatine has to be taken in a certain way. Best absorbed after training when your muscles are receptive to it. Also you have to take it with something to cause an insulin spike such as grape or apple juice. Otherwise you just piss it out. Important not to take it with something acidic like orange juice.

I don't know how important this is for vegetarians who have lower creatine stores. I would err on the side of caution and at least take it with something sugary. If you can take it after exercise its probably better too

JTMan

Where would you purchase this? Thanks.

Dubhlinner

www.myprotein.com

any health food store