When building muscle, a high protein intake is important for the muscles to develop normally. Most of the time, when a GFR analysis is performed, the results of the tests indicate kidney failure, due to the creatine consumption and the high protein diet that one had to consume during the weight training programme.
Yet you feel fine and have no symptoms of kidney problems. What should we think then? Is this dietary supplement dangerous?
Should we stop taking creatine? How should it be consumed so as not to damage health? Focus on the subject.
What is creatine?
Creatine is a very well known food supplement in the world of bodybuilding. It is an amino acid derivative. In a more natural way, it can be found in meat, fish and poultry. The body automatically synthesises creatine into three amino acids: arginine, methionine and glycine.
What is creatine used for?
Creatine is a source of rapid energy renewal. It is highly prized by bodybuilders because it contributes enormously to the acceleration of mass gain. It also plays an important role in recovery. Combined with intensive workouts, impressive progress can be seen when using creatine. Its effects on the human body are impressive, so much so that one might think it is a doping product. But you should know that creatine is not a doping product.
For all its benefits, creatine is not only used in the field of bodybuilding. It is also used in other sports such as combat sports, basketball, volleyball, football.
How does creatine work to build muscle?
The energy in our cells generally comes from adenosine tri phosphate. When we make intense efforts and the energy demand is high, creatine phosphate transfers its molecule to adenosine di phosphate.
The latter converts the molecule into adenosine tri phosphate. This molecule is then recycled by the body to produce backup energy and to increase resistance to fatigue. The increase in the body's creatine then provides a greater energy reserve for short, intense efforts.
When creatine reaches the muscles, it attracts and retains water in the cells. This causes the muscles to swell and increase in size to give the impression of more volume. Creatine not only has the ability to retain water in the cells, but it can also increase muscle protein synthesis.
Within the first few weeks of taking creatine supplements, the exerciser can see palpable results at a rate of 3kg per week. Not only do the muscles increase in volume, they also become stronger and more resistant to withstand more intense efforts.
Creatine is dangerous for your health?
Since its use, creatine has already been the subject of several studies. Each generation of creatine already used in the world of bodybuilding has already been the subject of criticism but despite all the controversy, no undesirable effects have yet been noted among users.
Cramps are one of the most common complaints about creatine consumption. However, cramps are caused by dehydration during sports activities, not by the consumption of protein. Drinking two litres of water a day, especially during physical exertion, is enough to make muscle cramps disappear.
As far as kidney problems are concerned, creatinine analysis is used to determine them. Creatinine is produced after the breakdown of creatine by the kidneys.
A high creatinine level is often associated with kidney failure. However, it is important to read the results of the analysis carefully, as they do not usually take into account the muscle mass, weight, age or height of the subject. However, these elements play an important role in the synthesis of creatine by the muscles.
The intense physical efforts made by the athlete and the creatine supplementation can also distort the result of the kidney failure analysis. In order to determine whether the athlete really has a kidney problem, an observation of the urea level, for example, is more useful in order to have less erroneous results.
How to take creatine without damaging your health?
Even for a product that is completely harmless to health, any abuse can lead to possible problems. That is why creatine consumption must be dosed so that the desired effects are maximised.
It is important to know how many grams of pure creatine to take and when to take it to get results. For bodybuilding, a dose of 3g of creatine to be taken one hour before a training session is more than enough to provide the body with the energy it needs.
According to a Canadian study, creatine should be consumed in the period following or preceding exercise. This way the amino acids have time to move to the muscles.
Also, it works best when taken after training to speed up recovery. If you are not training, there is no point in taking it. In general, taking creatine is not recommended for beginners, as their body is not yet able to assimilate it.