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Originally posted August 2024 / Updated February 2025
Creatine is one of the most popular dietary supplements. However, its use has been historically more popular with men. That is changing as more women of all ages are discovering the many health benefits of creatine including muscle health and exercise performance, anti-aging effects, and beneficial effects on mood, brain function, quality of life, and heart health. In fact, research indicates that women may benefit more from creatine supplementation than men.1
Creatine is a naturally produced compound in the body. It is made from the amino acids arginine, glycine, or methionine. The average person has about 120 grams of creatine in their body but can store up to 160 grams mainly as creatine phosphate. Most of the body's creatine is stored in skeletal muscle. Small amounts of creatine are also found in the brain, heart, testes, and other organs.
The main body function of creatine phosphate is to enhance energy production in muscles for quick bursts of power and speed, but it is also important to brain function. When a muscle cell contracts it requires energy produced by the release of one phosphate group from adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is then converted to adenosine diphosphate (ADP). Creatine phosphate donates its phosphate group to convert ADP back to ATP, allowing it to release the phosphate group donated by creatine phosphate for energy.
The energy-producing effects of creatinine phosphate also occur in other tissues, in particular, the brain and heart. In fact, the brain has the highest energy needs of any body tissue. Boosting energy levels in any cell boosts its function. And that is an important goal in improving overall health. In addition to its role in boosting cellular energy, creatine exerts antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immune-supportive effects.2
Women may benefit more from creatine supplementation than men as women have 70–80% lower levels of creatine in their bodies compared to men, including in the brain. Supplementation with creatine results in an increase in body and brain stores of creatine phosphate, which is the active form of creatine.
Creatine has been shown to enhance athletic performance, build strength, and support muscle growth. These effects are well-known, but there are many additional health benefits for women that are not as well known.1 Here are the top 5 health benefits of creatine supplementation for women.
Creatine contributes to rapid energy production in your cells to enhance the burst of power or speed required during short periods of anaerobic exercise or activity. Creatine also helps muscles store glycogen, the storage form of glucose (blood sugar). During anaerobic exercise, glycogen is converted to glucose, which is then burned for energy. This can help with athletic performance, especially for short, repeated bursts of anaerobic activity, such as those required for weightlifting, sprinting, cross-fit, and many sports. Creatine also helps muscles recover after exercise, as glucose-derived energy is needed for healing.1-5
It is important to note that creatine supplementation alone does not build muscle, it must be combined with resistance exercise training such as lifting weights or performing exercises that use body weight as the resistance. The combination of regular resistance training, adequate protein intake, and creatine supplementation can help women build lean muscle mass.1,6,7 However, because women do not have the additional muscle-promoting effects of high testosterone, the degree of growth in muscle mass is not on the same level as men.
When creatine supplementation was combined with weight or resistance training in men, regardless of age, it produced an average increase in lean body mass of 1.46 kg (3.2 lbs) while in women, this increase was significantly less at 0.29 kg (0.6 lbs).7 That is still an important increase in women.
Creatine supplementation is an important consideration in helping against age-related sarcopenia, the loss of muscle mass and function that happens as we grow older. Creatine supplementation in postmenopausal women produces improved muscle strength and increased muscle mass. It also lowers markers of inflammation, oxidative damage, and bone loss. Creatine supplementation combined with resistance training improves both muscle and bone health for postmenopausal women. What all of this research indicates is that creatine supplementation is an important adjunct to diet and exercise in helping women preserve muscle mass and bone density as they age.1,8-10
Since higher levels of brain energy are associated with more positive mood scores and improved mental function, creatine’s ability to enhance brain energy metabolism suggests it might have benefits in these areas. Research has shown that creatine supplementation enhances brain energy production in key areas of the brain and is able to improve feelings of anxiety or stress, mood, and mental fatigue in women.1,8-13
It makes a lot of sense that creatine would show these benefits as the brain requires a substantial amount of ATP to perform multiple tasks. Creatine supplementation boosts phosphocreatine levels in the brain, which in turn leads to enhanced ATP formation required to support brain functions.
A woman’s brain may be more susceptible to low creatine levels as findings show that women have lower brain creatine levels compared to men, especially in the frontal lobe, the area of the brain that controls emotion, mood, cognition, and memory.1 Creatine supplementation boosts mental tasks relying on the frontal cortex, such as learning, memory, and attention. In addition, age-related declines in mental function may also be reduced by creatine supplementation.10,13
The bottom line from all of these data is that creatine supplementation provides as much positive effects on mental health for women as it does for physical health.
Creatine is also important for skin health as it is an important contributor to energy production in skin cells. Preliminary research indicates that creatine supplementation may help protect the skin from damage and thereby prevent the loss of skin elasticity and the development of sun damage, fine lines, and wrinkles.14 In addition to oral supplementation, many facial anti-aging creams and topical lotions have creatine as an ingredient to help boost collagen synthesis, skin firmness, and skin elasticity, and reduce fine lines and wrinkles. Topically applied creatine was shown to boost collagen production.15
The International Society of Sports Nutrition recommends 3-5 grams of creatine per day. Studies show that loading up on a higher dose of creatine offers no advantages.2
Creatine monohydrate is the most commonly used form and the one most studied. It is generally considered to be the most effective form. Creatine monohydrate can increase phosphocreatine levels in the body by 15–40%.2
Creatine supplements are typically taken in the form of a powder, capsule, or tablet. The powdered form is the most common given the 3-5 gram dosage range. Creatine is odorless and tasteless, making it ideal to be mixed in water, juice, or a smoothie without altering the taste. As for timing, there may be some advantages in taking creatine after workouts in terms of improving muscle mass and strength.
The International Society of Sports Nutrition has concluded that creatine is safe and well-tolerated in both short and long-term use. This opinion is based upon over a thousand human clinical studies with participants ranging in age from infancy to advanced age. Creatine has also been in the marketplace since the 1990s with billions of servings of creatine. Previous reports of side effects or potential adverse reactions have all been refuted in well-controlled human clinical studies. In particular, the use of creatine monohydrate over other forms of creatine is the most well-tolerated form of creatine.16
Creatine can lead to temporary weight gain in women. However, this effect is not due to an increase in body fat, but rather to the ability of creatine to help muscles store more glycogen and water. This can increase muscle mass, leading to an increase in total body weight.
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