Creatine is a popular nutritional supplement that is also synthesized in your body by your pancreas from the amino acids arginine, glycine, and methionine. Creatine is primarily used by athletes as a performance enhancing supplement due to its ability to increase energy availability to your skeletal muscles during exercise, as well as its possible effects on muscle growth. High doses of creatine intake have been associated with several well documented side effects, such as kidney stress, fluid retention, mood swings and energy loss.
Kidney Stress
Creatine supplementation may increase the stress placed on your kidneys due to a decrease in plasma volume and an increase in metabolites that are filtered through your kidneys and excreted in your urine. Synthetically manufactured creatine is usually attached to other compounds to increase its absorption into your blood stream and skeletal muscles, where they will be separated from creatine and excreted in your urine. An increase in the amount of these chemicals being filtered through your kidneys can increase kidney stress. If you have weak kidneys or suffer from kidney disease, creatine intake may make the symptoms of your condition worse.
Fluid Retention
One of the main effects of creatine supplementation is muscle hydration, which causes water to be pulled into your skeletal muscles along with the creatine molecule. An increase in muscle fluids may make less water available for the rest of your body, increasing your risk for dehydration. Dehydration may lead to nausea, dizziness, decreased sweating, confusion, muscle tremors, and in rare cases, seizures and coma. Drinking adequate amounts of water while using creatine may help reduce the risk of developing symptoms of dehydration.
Mood Swings
Some creatine users report an increase in mood swings and aggression attributed to a high creatine intake. Although there is no clear link between creatine and the brain chemicals that influence emotions, such as neurotransmitters, creatine may influence mood as a secondary effect of dehydration. Dehydration has been known to promote feelings of anxiety, depression and anger due to the suppression of dopamine and serotonin, two important chemicals that are released by your brain that directly influence your emotional state.
Energy Loss
Creatine allows your muscles to be able to perform more work by making more energy available to it in the form of creatine phosphate. Once you stop supplementing with creatine, the creatine levels in your skeletal muscles will drop, making less energy available for your muscles to contract, especially during exercise. This may lead to symptoms of fatigue and a decrease in workout intensity. You may also experience weight loss after stopping creatine use, due to a drop in water retention in your muscles.
References
- "Journal of Hyperplasia Research"; Creatine: A Meta-analysis; J.D. King; 2005
- "Nutritional Supplements in Sports and Exercise"; Mike Greenwood, Douglas Kalman and Jose Antonio; 2010
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