Creatine and Aggression

**JarheadRI** · November 20th, 2006, 07:56 PM

Help! Has anyone ever experienced anything like this? I just completed a loading phase and was a total nutcase. Angry at everything and when I had a few drinks it got even worse! I seem to be over it now that I am out of the loading phase. Just wonder if anyone else experienced this. I took creatine in the past and don't recall having this problem. Thanks!

mattmatt755 · November 20th, 2006, 08:41 PM

When I take creatine, especially loading I get a lot of energy and a higher state of "well being" you know that happy feeling.

I've never felt aggresive. If you went out and had a few drinks you may have lost a lot of the creatine. The alcohol may have pushed it out of your body or atleast for me drinking would mess up my loading phase. The agression may have been just the good feeling. Like you cannot be beaten.

**JarheadRI** · November 21st, 2006, 04:39 PM

Drain the creatine out? So do I have to re-load again? That sucks if I do!

**Saurian** · November 21st, 2006, 08:36 PM

alcohol will cause dehydration. One of the arguable effects of creatine is simply that it causes your cells to swell with more water as they absorb creatine, giving the increase in strength vs the creatine actually working. However, I believe that creatine works, when taken right.

When taking creatine, I wouldn't recommend drinking anything that would dehydrate. Drink a TON of water to maximize your volume in your muscles, and avoid sodas, alcohol, and the like. Wouldn't do more then maybe a glass of wine or a beer, ya know? Plus, your body won't want to repair muscles if its busy cleaning your body of toxins (alcohol is a toxic substance).

**Adonis** · November 22nd, 2006, 02:53 PM

Creatine will not cause aggression.

**JarheadRI** · November 23rd, 2006, 08:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adonis

Creatine will not cause aggression.

Firstly thanks for the reply! However, with all due respect is there any scientific evidence you are basing your response on? I am not being a jerk and in fact I probably honor your advice more than almost anyone in the forum but I would like to see some evidence of this. I looked around and couldn't really find any evidence either way. I did find people on other msg boards and forums say they did in fact have aggression/mood swings. To me it MAY make sense. This supplement effects many people in different ways, and I think you will concur with that. It only makes sense that this may make some people a little wacky. I have gotten everything I could want out of creatine and never had problem with it up until now. The only other problem I have had with this was an increased heart rate and a euphoria rush. Again I am not trying to sound flipant I just would like to see ANY research done on this. Wish the medical community would actually do some more research on this and all supplements.

**pliny_2001** · November 23rd, 2006, 09:02 AM

Creatine helps to keep the amount of ATP high, relative to ADP (it helps to keep energy available to your body for short periods of intense work). No increased heart rate, no euphoria, no being a nut job. A number of studies have been performed, and I've never seen any that refer to this.

I'd be concerned about these symptoms, as increased heart rate can be more than a little dangerous. Did you take stacker? Red Bull? Something else? Those could explain your symptoms.

And, while I love drinking - alot - to excess - often - and regularly - it should be avoided if you want to take creatine. Creatine fills your muscles w/ water, and alcohol takes it all away - it's just wasting money.

**Presa_Canario** · November 23rd, 2006, 10:41 AM

I've used creatine on a load/maintenance/off, a steady five gram per day, as well as five grams pre and post-workout on training days only basis. Never experienced any aggression.
I really think you're experiencing a placebo effect...
I don't have links but if you run a search in any engine for creatine, just run through your results and decide what is valid in terms of author and research. I read at least fifteen articles on creatine and none of them mention aggression, but make sure you stay away from advertisements or blog-style BS that talks about how people doubled their 60 pound bench as soon as they started taking creatine.

**Adonis** · November 23rd, 2006, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JarheadRI

Firstly thanks for the reply! However, with all due respect is there any scientific evidence you are basing your response on? I am not being a jerk and in fact I probably honor your advice more than almost anyone in the forum but I would like to see some evidence of this. I looked around and couldn't really find any evidence either way. I did find people on other msg boards and forums say they did in fact have aggression/mood swings. To me it MAY make sense. This supplement effects many people in different ways, and I think you will concur with that. It only makes sense that this may make some people a little wacky. I have gotten everything I could want out of creatine and never had problem with it up until now. The only other problem I have had with this was an increased heart rate and a euphoria rush. Again I am not trying to sound flipant I just would like to see ANY research done on this. Wish the medical community would actually do some more research on this and all supplements.

Most of the unexplained side effects can be summarized as a placebo effect, as the user is relating the supplement to an Anabolic Androgenic Steroid. That and or other fillers in the products.

You would have an easier time finding studies that linked creatine with aggression, than I could proving it is not. Creatine has been proven safe so many times over that the studies are sometimes to much to go through. If there ws a study linking creatine levels and agression (remember we produce creatine naturally, and also ingest a fair amount through our red meat consumption), it would be easy to find, but I can't seem to find it.

Last time: Creatine will not work like AAS, never has and never will despite what the ads tell you.

This is from another source, creatinemonohydrate.com I believe

"
Rumors & Unexplained Side Effects: Side effects that cannot be explained from what is scientifically known about creatine are sometimes reported. Whether these side effects represent fact or fiction is still a matter of controversy. Some unexplained side effects may be merely rumor and arise from creatine being mistakenly associated with anabolic steroids. On the other hand, other incidences of unexplained side effects may be real and stem from contaminants or additives present in cheaper brands of creatine. This second set of unexplained side effects may have previously escaped detection owing to the fact that most scientific studies use only the highest-grade creatine products, WITHOUT unstudied additives that could confound the analysis of the data.
Unsubstantiated side effects reported include breast formation in men (gynecomastia), a reduction in penis size, hair loss (men), hair growth (women) and stunted growth in children. Unexplained incidences of aggression and acne have also been linked to creatine use.

"

**burntrat** · November 24th, 2006, 07:11 AM

a friend took liquid creatine before
and he said it made him feel a little 'crazy' while taking it

**FitnessPhotos** · November 24th, 2006, 07:37 AM

I've used creatine as part of my supplement program for months and I can say without a doubt that creatine had no effect on my overall disposition. Fat burners like Hydroxycut, on the other hand, gave me shakes and anxiety issues.

Creatine is a natural amino acid found in meat and other products; there is simply no reason to think that by eating alot of meat I'll be more aggressive.

Anyone who suggest they experienced something different was either taking something else in combination that had the effect or simply hyped themselves up by the thought of taking a supplement they didn't know about.

**chuckg** · November 24th, 2006, 07:51 AM

I would feel tense, though not aggressive. But I contributed that moreso to how my systme was taking the creatine. I later found out that it was upsetting my stomach to no end. So I stopped and now take the ethyl ester. But I also found that even if I didn't load I still got the same results from creatine.

Hope that helped.

**TheManWhoCan** · November 24th, 2006, 11:48 AM

To throw in another opinion about this subject, I experience no such thing while taking creatine. As someone else mentioned, it could be another supplement you were taking, or an energy drink that caused that effect. If you weren't stacking anything else with creatine, it's probably a placebo. You might have just been telling yourself you feel invincible when you're taking creatine (because you get bigger muscles, you get stronger etc.), so you get more aggressive, or something to that extent. Who knows, but it's the first I'm hearing about it.

**luggaguy** · November 24th, 2006, 11:59 AM

What brand of of creatine are you taking? We cant rule out there is an unlisted substance mixed in with the powder.

**Insex** · November 24th, 2006, 11:36 PM

I could be wrong, so correct me if I am. But I think the only thing that creatine affects in the human body is just water and energy production (ATP). I don't think creatine has anything to do with hormone levels. Messing with your hormones is a completely different issue, that involves steroids and other "hardcore supplements."

**JarheadRI** · November 25th, 2006, 10:40 AM

First off thanks for all the responses. I think I can't rule out anything at this point. I am leaning more to that creatine does not cause mood swings but something definately did hit me in an odd way. I am currently taking Prolab Creatine Monohydrate Powder (in a read bottle). This is the one Adonis reccommended. I took EAS before and had no effects. I also started taking this back in the spring but stopped due to a family member being sick and I couldn't maintain my workout regime. I didn't experience any problems with it before even for the 3 or so weeks I took it. The only other thing I can think of was my blood pressure. I have had LOW bp in the past and I think this may have given me a rush, I mean taking more water into the body and retaining it more I believe could affect this. I also drank my usual two cups of coffee that morning and I know that could mess it up but I drank more than two hours before I took very first loading dose. I also just read caffeine can stay in the body up to 4 -5 hours so... that could have done something.

One thing I will discount is the placebo effect! I would say I am more skeptical about any supplement and ALSO I have never read anything before about creatine having the mood swing effect so therefore I couldn't be predisposed to thinking I was invincible or whatever. With the exception of some vitamins, Creatine and Glutamine are the only two supplements I regularly take. These are the only two that seemed to do anything for me. Glutamine helps with the recovery and the one time I ran out and didn't take it for a week I was sore as F#@K, so I never let that happen again.

Therefore, that is my two cents and I will pretty much leave it at that. Again thanks for the discussion and I just wish there were some more research done on this. Seems like there are some dumb studies being done out there and more effort should be focused on studies on more important things.

Thanks again all!

**luggaguy** · November 25th, 2006, 01:39 PM

Good scientific article on the effects of creatine on the body:

http://www.rice.edu/~jenky/sports/creatine.html

**FitnessPhotos** · November 25th, 2006, 08:12 PM

Oh, one more thing. I've seen creatine supplements packaged with alot of other "stuff" - CreaDrive coming to mind. Creatine Monohydrate by itself has no calories, or carbs (no sugar, etc); but some companies mix it with a shitload of carbs as sell it as an energy source, only its not the Creatine, its the sugar they put in the mix.

I take GNC's Pro Performance Creatine Monohydrate.