The Study
Effects of acute creatine monohydrate supplementation on leucine kinetics and mixed-muscle protein synthesis.
This study gives us a hint that creatine might help your body stop breaking down protein a little bit — but only in guys, and only for a few days. We can't say for sure it's because of creatine, because we didn't see the whole study.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
Scientists gave young men and women creatine for about a week and checked if it helped build muscle or stop muscle breakdown.
Where does this study sit?
Systematic Reviews & Meta-analyses
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control
Max 58Cross-Sectional
Max 44Case Reports & Series
Max 30Expert Opinion
Max 547 / 100
Quality score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. Considered the gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1The reduction in protein breakdown in men is measurable but doesn't translate to visible muscle growth in this short time.
- 2Creatine raised muscle creatine by 13.1%.
- 3In men, it lowered muscle breakdown by 19.6% and reduced protein breakdown in the body by 7.5%.
- 4It did not make muscles grow bigger or increase body weight in men or women.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Journal of applied physiology
Year
2001
Authors
G. Parise, S. Mihić, D. MacLennan, K. Yarasheski, M. Tarnopolsky
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.