Creatine good or bad
Have you had "the creatine discussion" with your MD? If not, you might be using it. I think it's great.
MDs do not recommend it,
but it is unclear why. It stimulates muscle growth and even escalates intelligence. The nitty griity can be found in numerous articles which can be easily Googled.
Interestingly what one reads is decidedly far more positive than negative. Like anything there is always the unwanted side effect after prolonged usage. But there doesn't seem to me anything too glaring in doses which the writer would never even consider, namely twenty grams in dose. The standard is five grams per day, which works quite nicely.
Creatine is found mostly in meat, which is possibly why meat has always been part of the the body builders diet. This was a large part of what the ancient Greeks consumed, possibly accounting for their extra-ordinary development if the sculptures are any real indication of the way that they actually were.
There have been studies done with older people, using Creatine as a way of correcting arthritis and of building muscle mass. Perhaps this will begin impacting longevity studies in the not too distant future.
For those on higher carb or vegetarian diets, creatine may well be a boon. There just is not enough of the muscle building that comes from substances like rice, and vegetables to satisfy many Westerners. We are generally made most happy by an attractive muscularity, the result of athletic commitment and presumably a higher protein diet. This is true nowadays for women as well as men. Creatine can supplement one's diet to attain these ends--ones which might not other wise have been achieved by mere exercise alone.
The rebuilding potential of creatine can never be stressed enough. Even for those not aspiring to look like Arnold Schwazennegar there is always the need to recover after their daily workouts. These truly do cause a break down of muscle fiber and do require daily attention. Creatine may be the cost effective (it's relatively cheap) answer. It is decidedly less than all of the chicken turkey you would need to consume (and digest) to attain the same effect.
