Benefits Creatine Use example essay topic

1,192 words
The Safety and Benefits of Creatine Topic: The Safety and Benefits of Creatine General Purpose: To inform Specific Purpose: To inform my audience of the safety of creatine use and also to inform them of the benefits creatine use can provide. Central Idea: Many people are misinformed on the subject of creatine use and exactly what it is and what creatine can do. Organizational Pattern: Topical Introduction I. How would you like to be able to increase your strength or even increase your bench press by 25 pounds in less then ten days? Or how about improving your endurance. What if I were to say this can be accomplished without taking any harmful or illegal substances. These types of results have been recorded with the use of the supplement creatine.

II. I first became interested in weight training when I was in high school. After poor gains from weight training alone I stumbled upon the keys to success, proper nutrition and supplementation. Creatine is a supplement I have used for awhile and strongly believe it has accelerated my strength and size gains. In three and a half years amount of time I have gained 62 pounds from 153 at the beginning of my senior year in high school to currently 215 pounds.. Today, I will explain how creatine use can be beneficial and also safe to use with no harmful side effects.

Also, I hope to inform you of what and how natural the substance creatine really is. Body. How many people here have heard creatine is bad for you, or heard stories of creatine hurting someone who has taken it? A. Many studies have been performed on creatine to determine if there are any adverse side effects from creatine consumption when taken at an amount of 3-5 grams. II. Creatine is a natural occurring substance.

Ray Sahelian MD has done extensive research on creatine. A. Sahelian states "Creatine is not an herb, mineral, vitamin, hormone, or steroid". 1. Creatine is a natural nutrient found in our bodies and the bodies of most animals. 2. Approximately 95% of the body's creatine supply is found in the skeletal muscles. B. Creatine is easily absorbed through the intestinal tract and into the bloodstream.

1. Creatine production occurs in the liver, pancreas and kidneys. C. From Sahelian study it is easy to see that creatine is a natural substance found in food. By taking creatine as a supplement all you are doing is increasing the amount of natural creatine the body has.. Creatine is not only safe but has also been found to be beneficial for overall health. A. Bill Phillips Founder of Muscle Media, EAS a supplement company, and health and fitness expert who has also allocated money to Kent State and many other colleges for studies in science and sports nutrition. B. In Phillips Sports Supplement Review 3rd issue a study is done to test the safety of creatine use and its benefits on normal people. C. Phillips study took men and women between the ages of 32-70 and found that creatine loading at 20 grams of creatine a day for 5 days, followed by 10 grams a day maintenance dose for 51 days, produced no adverse effects. D. The study did show some beneficial results.

22% decrease in VLDL cholesterol and 23% decrease in blood triglycerides. VLDL cholesterol and triglycerides are complementary risk factors in heart disease and adult-onset diabetes. E. This study shows that not only is creatine not harmful but it can also be helpful for other health risks. IV. In an article in the June 2003 Flex magazine Brian Rowley provides other health benefits that creatine provides. A. Rowley states that creatine can decrease the levels of a damaging blood metabolite called homo cysteine, which is a strong warning marker for heart disease in humans. B. It is reasonable to say creatine may help prevent heart attacks. C. Rowley also states that creatine may protect brain and spinal-cord cells against premature destruction. V. Layne Norton is a Bio-Chemistry Graduate, natural bodybuilder, and an author of many articles on bodybuilding. com. A. In Norton's article Creatine Fact and Fiction, Norton talks about the effects of creatine he has found from research and studies. B. Norton states by supplementing with creatine you will increase these (creatine) stores, thus giving you more energy for your workouts. There is another anabolic property that creatine holds and this is its ability to hydrate muscle cells. C. When muscle cells are hydrated a few things happen. The most notable being an increase in protein synthesis.

The second being an increase of ions into the cell. D. Since the cell is holding more water, it can also hold more ions since ions will follow water into the cell in order to keep the concentration the same. E. Basically an increase in protein synthesis means muscles will be built quicker providing you more benefits from your workouts. The extra ions going into the muscle cells especially nitrogen help aide protein synthesis. Also the increase of water in your muscle cells will increase the size of your muscles. F. One of the most important thing creatine does is it converts ADP back into ATP. ATP is responsible for driving just about every body process there is. This means more energy and allowing a person to push out a couple more reps when working out or just giving that extra bit of energy or endurance to go on longer then they could have with out creatine. VI.

Finally we will look at a study that examined if there are any long term effects in athletes who use creatine. A. Researchers Mayhew DL, Mayhew JL, Ware JS from the Institution of Exercise Science Program at Truman State University performed the research. B. Twenty-three members of an NCAA Division II American football team ages 19-24 years with at least 2 years of strength training experience were divided into two groups. C. First group was the creatine mono hydrate group, in which they voluntarily and spontaneously ingested creatine. Regular daily consumption of creatine was 5 to 20 grams of creatine for. 25 to 5.6 years. Second group was the control group in which they took no supplements. E. The study concluded that oral supplementation with creatine has no long-term effects on kidney or liver functions in highly trained college athletes in the absence of other nutritional supplements.

Conclusion I. I hope this gave you a better understanding of creatine. II. Creatine is not an herb, mineral, vitamin, hormone, or steroid. Creatine is a safe and effective supplement and one well worth checking out. It can provide strength gains as well as increase muscle size and endurance. It might just give you that edge you need to out do your competitors or to just help you push your self to the max in any physical activity.

Bibliography

Phillips, Bill, (1997).
Sports supplement review: 3rd issue. Golden, Colorado: Mile High Publishing Sahelian, Ray MD. Creatine ( page). Url web Norton, Layne. Creatine Fact & Fiction ( page). Url web Mayhew, DL, Mayhew, JL, Ware, JS. Effects of Long-term Creatine Supplementation on Liver and Kidney Functions in American College Football Players ( page). Url web Rowley, Brian. (2003).