Oral Creatine Supplements Lower Plasma Homocysteine Concentrations in Humans

Clinical Laboratory Science, Spring 2004 by Korzun, William J

In contrast to the results of this study, Steenge found an insignificant decrease in tHcy in females after eight weeks of creatine supplements with or without concurrent resistance training.18 This discrepancy in results cannot be explained by the inclusion of male subjects in the present study because three of the four subjects in EX with significant decreases in tHcy were female. The authors of the earlier study suggest that the level of methionine in the diets of their subjects may have maintained their tHcy levels in spite of the potential effect of the creatine supplements.

CONCLUSION

The results of this study suggest that oral creatine supplements may lower tHcy in some individuals. This study should be repeated with a larger number of subjects and with more rigorous control over the diets of the subjects and the mode of delivery of the creatine. Furthermore, the study should be extended to include subjects with hyperhomocysteinemia, particularly those whose tHcy is not normalized by vitamin supplementation.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This work was supported by the University of South Alabama Research Committee. The author wishes to thank Misty Sanders and Marie White for their technical assistance with portions of this project.

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