The Science

How Creatine Works

Creatine isn’t a stimulant. It’s a compound your body makes naturally and also gets from foods such as meat and fish. Most of it is stored in your muscles, with smaller amounts in other tissues, including your brain.

Your Cells Run on ATP

Adenosine triphosphate, or ATP, is a molecule your cells use to power their work. When ATP releases energy, it loses a phosphate group and becomes ADP. Your body then needs to rebuild ATP so it can be used again.

Creatine Helps Recharge That Energy

Some creatine is stored as phosphocreatine. Through an enzyme called creatine kinase, phosphocreatine can donate a phosphate group to ADP, helping regenerate ATP. Think of it as a rapid energy buffer, especially when energy demand rises quickly.

What That Means for Your Muscles

Supplementation can increase muscle creatine stores. This can support performance during repeated, short bursts of high-intensity activity and help people get more from resistance training over time. Creatine works alongside training, nutrition, and recovery, not instead of them.

What About the Brain?

Your brain also uses the creatine–phosphocreatine system to help manage energy demands. Researchers are studying whether supplementation can support aspects of cognitive performance. Findings vary by population and testing conditions, so benefits such as better focus or mental clarity should not be treated as guaranteed.

Consistency, Not a Quick Buzz

Creatine works by building tissue stores rather than delivering an immediate stimulant effect. Responses vary, and taking more does not necessarily mean getting more benefit.

Beyond Exercise: What Does the Research Show?

Not every area of creatine research has the same strength of evidence. Human trials, pooled analyses, and laboratory or animal studies answer different questions. The studies below concern creatine, not clinical testing of our finished product.

Memory: Promising Human Evidence

A 2024 systematic review and meta-analysis included 16 randomized trials involving 492 adults across its cognitive outcomes. It found a positive pooled effect on memory, with moderate certainty of evidence, but no significant improvement in overall cognitive function or executive function. This supports further investigation, not a promise that everyone will experience better memory.

Read the systematic review of creatine and cognitive function (2024)

Healthy Aging: Muscle Health, Not Age Reversal

A meta-analysis of 22 studies involving 721 older adults found that creatine combined with resistance training produced greater gains in lean tissue mass and strength than training with placebo. These findings concern muscle health during aging. They do not establish that creatine reverses biological aging or extends human lifespan.

Read the meta-analysis of creatine and resistance training in older adults (2017)

Depression: An Investigational Addition to Treatment

In an eight-week randomized trial involving 52 women with major depressive disorder, those receiving creatine alongside escitalopram showed greater improvement in depression scores than those receiving escitalopram with placebo. A separate eight-week pilot trial involving 100 adults also reported greater symptom improvement with creatine plus cognitive-behavioural therapy than with placebo plus therapy. These findings are encouraging but do not establish creatine as a standalone treatment or a replacement for prescribed medication or therapy. Anyone considering supplementation alongside depression treatment should discuss it with their treating clinician.

Read the randomized trial of creatine alongside escitalopram

Read the pilot trial of creatine alongside cognitive-behavioural therapy

Cancer Biology: Early and Conflicting Research

Researchers are exploring how creatine metabolism affects both immune cells and cancer cells. One study found that creatine supported anti-tumor T-cell activity and suppressed tumor growth in mouse models. However, other preclinical research has reported that creatine can promote cancer invasion and metastasis in some models. A review titled “The two sides of creatine in cancer” discusses these opposing findings. This is not evidence that taking a creatine supplement prevents cancer, kills cancer cells in people, or treats cancer. People with cancer should discuss any supplement with their oncology team.

Read the mouse-model study of creatine and anti-tumor T-cell immunity (2019)

Read “The two sides of creatine in cancer”