Compound
creatine
Nitrogenous organic acid; substrate of the creatine kinase phosphagen system. Supplement forms are recorded on the edge, not as separate nodes.
Studied for
10 endpoints, 13 findings, from 10 papers — 3 of them found no effect.
- Countermovement jump heightraisesGrade A, Well established. Replicated human trial evidence, consistent direction.
- Serum creatinine concentrationraisesGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.
- Upper-body muscular strength (pooled composite)raisesGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.
- C-reactive protein concentrationno detected effectGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.
- Fat massno detected effectGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.
Structure
Loading the model…
- Class
- Organic compound
- Formula
- C4H9N3O2
- Mass
- 131.135 g/mol
- Charge
- 0
- InChIKey
- CVSVTCORWBXHQV-UHFFFAOYSA-N
- SMILES
- CN(CC(=O)O)C(=N)N
- Look it up
- ChEBIPubChemBy InChIKey
Identity from ChEBI, geometry from PubChem. Not evidence — none of it carries a grade.
What the evidence says
How to read these marks13 findings across 10 endpoints, from 10 papers, strongest first, 3 of them null.
What moved
10 findings
Increases countermovement jump height
Well establishedGrade A, Well established. Replicated human trial evidence, consistent direction.Finding“CMJ height also increased significantly in the creatine group (p = 0.005).”
Quoted verbatim from Effectiveness of a soccer injury prevention program based on creatine supplementation and internal load monitoring: a randomized controlled pilot study.. - Study
- RCT
- Participants
- 23
- Duration
- 3 months
- Dose
- 3 g/day creatine monohydrate, five days per week
- Population
- amateur male soccer players aged 18-35; secondary outcome
Effectiveness of a soccer injury prevention program based on creatine supplementation and internal load monitoring: a randomized controlled pilot study.2026PMID:41704196
Increases serum creatinine concentration
LikelyGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.Findingreplicated ×2“Regarding the biochemical tests, creatine supplementation was associated with higher serum creatinine levels (p = 0.04) and decreased PGRN (p = 0.04) compared to the placebo group.”
Quoted verbatim from Influence of CReatine Supplementation on mUScle Mass and Strength After Stroke (ICaRUS Stroke Trial): A Randomized Controlled Trial.. - Study
- RCT
- Duration
- 7 days
- Dose
- creatine 10 g orally twice daily during 7 days of hospitalisation
- Population
- adults aged 60 years and older hospitalised for acute ischaemic stroke; secondary endpoint
Influence of CReatine Supplementation on mUScle Mass and Strength After Stroke (ICaRUS Stroke Trial): A Randomized Controlled Trial.2024PMID:39683542
Increases upper-body muscular strength (pooled composite)
LikelyGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.Findingreplicated ×1“In comparison with a placebo, creatine supplementation combined with resistance training significantly increased upper-body (WMD = 4.43 kg, p < 0.001) and lower-body strength (WMD = 11.35 kg, p < 0.001).”
Quoted verbatim from Effects of Creatine Supplementation and Resistance Training on Muscle Strength Gains in Adults <50 Years of Age: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.. - Study
- meta-analysis
- Population
- adults <50 years of age undertaking resistance training
Effects of Creatine Supplementation and Resistance Training on Muscle Strength Gains in Adults <50 Years of Age: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.2024PMID:39519498An author is affiliated with a producer
Increases one-repetition maximum strength
LikelyGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.Finding“Leg-press 1RM (k = 3; n = 111) improved with creatine: MD + 7.5 kg (95% CI + 2.2 to + 12.8; I² = 0%).”
Quoted verbatim from Creatine monohydrate for lean mass, strength, and bone density in postmenopausal women: a systematic review and meta-analysis.. - Study
- meta-analysis
- Participants
- 111
- Population
- postmenopausal women
Creatine monohydrate for lean mass, strength, and bone density in postmenopausal women: a systematic review and meta-analysis.2026PMID:42141930An author is affiliated with a producer
Increases lean body mass
LikelyGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.Finding“Both novice and experienced lifters gained FFM with Cr supplementation compared to placebo.”
Quoted verbatim from Creatine supplementation and resistance training: a comparison between novice and experienced lifters - a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis.. - Study
- meta-analysis
- Population
- trained and untrained adults undergoing resistance training
Creatine supplementation and resistance training: a comparison between novice and experienced lifters - a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis.2025PMID:41433021An author is affiliated with a producer
Increases serum creatinine concentration
LikelyGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.Findingreplicated ×2“Creatine supplementation was associated with a small but statistically significant increase in serum creatinine (MD: 0.07 µmol/L; 95% CI: 0.01 to 0.12; p = 0.03).”
Quoted verbatim from Effect of creatine supplementation on kidney function: a systematic review and meta-analysis.. - Study
- meta-analysis
- Population
- adults supplementing with creatine
Effect of creatine supplementation on kidney function: a systematic review and meta-analysis.2025PMID:41199218
Show the remaining 4
Increases lower-body muscular strength (pooled composite)
LikelyGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.Finding“In comparison with a placebo, creatine supplementation combined with resistance training significantly increased upper-body (WMD = 4.43 kg, p < 0.001) and lower-body strength (WMD = 11.35 kg, p < 0.001).”
Quoted verbatim from Effects of Creatine Supplementation and Resistance Training on Muscle Strength Gains in Adults <50 Years of Age: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.. - Study
- meta-analysis
- Population
- adults <50 years of age undertaking resistance training
Effects of Creatine Supplementation and Resistance Training on Muscle Strength Gains in Adults <50 Years of Age: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.2024PMID:39519498An author is affiliated with a producer
Increases upper-body muscular strength (pooled composite)
LikelyGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.Findingreplicated ×1“Overall, Cr significantly increased measures of upper-body strength (7 studies, n = 142, p = 0.04), with no effect on lower-body strength or measures of muscle mass.”
Quoted verbatim from Efficacy of Creatine Supplementation Combined with Resistance Training on Muscle Strength and Muscle Mass in Older Females: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.. - Study
- meta-analysis
- Participants
- 142
- Population
- Older females performing resistance training
Decreases estimated glomerular filtration rate
SuggestiveGrade C, Suggestive. Weak human evidence, or strong evidence in a mismatched population.Finding“Specifically, there was an increase in serum creatinine (mean difference 12.63 μmol/L, 95% CI 1.14 to 24.12) and decrease in eGFR (−25.79 mL/min/1.73 m2, 95% CI −44.3 to −7.25) in individuals on creatine supplementation compared to placebo.”
Quoted verbatim from Effect of creatine monohydrate on motor function in children with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy: A multicenter, randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled crossover trial.. - Study
- crossover
- Duration
- 3 months
- Dose
- creatine monohydrate ~100 mg/kg/day (2.5-10 g daily by weight band) for 12 weeks per crossover period
- Population
- children aged 5-18 years with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy; safety outcome, not the primary endpoint; eGFR by the modified Schwartz creatinine-based equation
Effect -25.79 mean difference, 95% CI -44.3 to -7.25
Increases serum creatinine concentration
SuggestiveGrade C, Suggestive. Weak human evidence, or strong evidence in a mismatched population.Findingreplicated ×2“Specifically, there was an increase in serum creatinine (mean difference 12.63 μmol/L, 95% CI 1.14 to 24.12) and decrease in eGFR (−25.79 mL/min/1.73 m2, 95% CI −44.3 to −7.25) in individuals on creatine supplementation compared to placebo.”
Quoted verbatim from Effect of creatine monohydrate on motor function in children with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy: A multicenter, randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled crossover trial.. - Study
- crossover
- Duration
- 3 months
- Dose
- creatine monohydrate ~100 mg/kg/day (2.5-10 g daily by weight band) for 12 weeks per crossover period
- Population
- children aged 5-18 years with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy; safety outcome, not the primary endpoint
Effect 12.63 mean difference, 95% CI 1.14 to 24.12
What did not
3 findings
Measured, and no effect detected. These are findings, not gaps — a trial that looked and found nothing is the most easily lost result in this field.
No detected effect on interleukin-6 concentration
LikelyGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.FindingNull result“Chronic effects of creatine on CRP (SMD = -0.11; 95% CI: -0.69 to 0.48; p = 0.73; I² = 0%) and IL-6 (SMD = -0.06; 95% CI: -0.64 to 0.53; p = 0.84; I² = 0%) were also no significant.”
Quoted verbatim from Impact of creatine supplementation on inflammation: evidence from a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized double-blind placebo trials.. - Study
- meta-analysis
- Population
- healthy individuals, athletes and clinical populations
Impact of creatine supplementation on inflammation: evidence from a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized double-blind placebo trials.2026PMID:41798953
No detected effect on fat mass
LikelyGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.FindingNull result“Collectively, in adults < 50 years of age, the combination of resistance exercise and creatine supplementation produces a very small reduction in body fat percentage without a corresponding decrease in absolute fat mass.”
Quoted verbatim from Resistance Exercise and Creatine Supplementation on Fat Mass in Adults < 50 Years of Age: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.. - Study
- meta-analysis
- Population
- adults <50 years of age performing resistance exercise
Resistance Exercise and Creatine Supplementation on Fat Mass in Adults < 50 Years of Age: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.2023PMID:37892421An author is affiliated with a producer
No detected effect on C-reactive protein concentration
LikelyGrade B, Likely. Human evidence, limited replication or design limits.FindingNull result“Pooled analysis showed no significant acute effects of creatine on CRP (SMD = 0.32; 95% CI: -0.29 to 0.94; p = 0.30; I² = 28%).”
Quoted verbatim from Impact of creatine supplementation on inflammation: evidence from a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized double-blind placebo trials.. - Study
- meta-analysis
- Population
- healthy individuals, athletes and clinical populations
Impact of creatine supplementation on inflammation: evidence from a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized double-blind placebo trials.2026PMID:41798953
What it touches on the way
A finding says creatine moved an endpoint. This is the biology in between: the proteins and reactions it runs through to get there. It is where to look for the two things a list of findings cannot answer — why a result might happen, and what else acts on the same machinery.
8 of these are proteins with a page of their own, and that is the door: a protein page says what else it carries, which is how one compound leads to the next.
Mechanistic reach
8 entities
8 entities reached, most connected first. Hub metabolites are excluded, so this is not a claim that the compound touches everything.
0 reported hop8 assembled from the scaffold
- SLC6A8ProteinUNIPROT:P48029transported byInferred only59 paths59 endpoints
- CKBProteinUNIPROT:P12277substrate ofInferred only8 paths8 endpoints
- GAMTProteinUNIPROT:Q14353substrate ofInferred only7 paths7 endpoints
- SLC16A9ProteinUNIPROT:Q7RTY1transported byInferred only7 paths7 endpoints
- CKMT2ProteinUNIPROT:P17540substrate ofInferred only3 paths3 endpoints
- CKMProteinUNIPROT:P06732substrate ofInferred only3 paths3 endpoints
- CKMT1AProteinUNIPROT:P12532substrate ofInferred only3 paths3 endpoints
- ALPLProteinUNIPROT:P05186substrate ofInferred only3 paths3 endpoints
Where it reaches
8 systems, 11 regions, 63 tissues, 66 transporter routes.
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