Creatine Supplementation (3 g/d) and Bone Health in Older Women: A 2-Year, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial

Background: Creatine supplementation could be a nonexpensive, safe, and effective dietary intervention to counteract bone loss. The aim of this study was to investigate whether long-term creatine supplementation can improve bone health in older, postmenopausal women.

Methods: A double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, randomized trial was conducted between November 2011 and December 2017 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Two hundred postmenopausal women with osteopenia were randomly allocated to receive either creatine monohydrate (3 g/d) or placebo for 2 years. At baseline and after 12 and 24 months, we assessed areal bone mineral density (aBMD; primary outcome), lean and fat mass (through dual X-ray absorptiometry), volumetric BMD and bone microarchitecture parameters, biochemical bone markers, physical function and strength, and the number of falls and fractures. Possible adverse effects were self-reported.

Results: Lumbar spine (p < .001), femoral neck (p < .001), and total femur aBMD (p = .032) decreased across time; however, no interaction effect was observed (all p > .050). Bone markers, microarchitecture parameters, and the number of falls/fractures were not changed with creatine (all p > .050). Lean mass and appendicular skeletal muscle mass increased throughout the intervention (p < .001), with no additive effect of creatine (p = .731 and p = .397, respectively). Creatine did not affect health-related laboratory parameters.

Conclusion: Creatine supplementation more than 2 years did not improve bone health in older, postmenopausal women with osteopenia, nor did it affect lean mass or muscle function in this population. This refutes the long-lasting notion that this dietary supplement alone has osteogenic or anabolic properties in the long run.

Clinical trial registry: Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT: 01472393.