|
|
|
|
"The physiological and health effects of oral creatine suplementation" Med Sci Sports & Exerc vol 32 no.3 pp706-717 www.msse.org Could be useful in rugby, but not guaranteed as people respond individually Its not magic and not de facto "essential" to sport achievement Adaptive changes that occur in muscle due to training do not occur by merely taking creatine Do not use if under 18 without medical say so. Few studies have looked at yongsters and we simply do not know whether it affects natural growth in a negative way Risk of contamination of creatine with banned substances is there, as it is with most supplements due to poor regulation and legal loopholes If you want the effects of creatine, just take creatine (monohydrate) not a combination of things such as gingseng, amino acids or HMB Chose a brand which does not produce other products that are likely to produce positive sample (contamination risk may be higher) Find out if kidneys ok - discuss with team doc; may want to consider a closer look at kidney function Remember that kidneys have to deal with excretion of all unwanted - excess vitamins, urea (from protein de-amination etc) so bear in mind if taking other supplements (rightly or wrongly) in addition to creatine. If taken, take after exercise with carbohydrate-containing drink e.g. a sports drink to encourage insulin release and therefore better uptake of creatine by muscle? However, the amount of carbohydrate needed to really produce an effect is 100g of simple CHO per 5g creatine and so practically this is difficult to recommend. Keep hydrated - check hydration status with urine colour, weight before/after exercise etc. Make sure your intake of nutrients such as magnesium and potassium is good (green vegetables, wholegrains, fruit and potatoes) Not necessary to lead with 20g for 5 days; 3g a day for 30 days has same effect (see reference) The bottom line: Its his choice. He takes the risk.
|
