{"id":177291,"date":"2025-12-05T22:32:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-05T22:32:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/177291\/"},"modified":"2025-12-05T22:32:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-05T22:32:08","slug":"why-creatine-is-a-game-changer-for-women-over-40-and-the-science-behind-taking-10g-daily","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/177291\/","title":{"rendered":"Why creatine is a game-changer for women over 40 \u2013\u00a0and the science behind taking 10g daily"},"content":{"rendered":"

Creatine<\/a> has gone fully mainstream, graduating from a niche bodybuilding aid to something you\u2019ll find in almost every gym-goer\u2019s supplement stash. And among women, its popularity is only growing.<\/p>\n

Melissa Neill<\/a>, founder of Body by Bikini<\/a> and a coach who has helped more than 13,000 women transform their bodies, has been one of its long-time champions. \u2018I\u2019ve been taking creatine monohydrate as my go-to supplement for six plus years and recommend it to my clients, particularly women over 40,\u2019 she says. But even as her belief in the supplement hasn\u2019t wavered, her advice has evolved. \u2018Since then, there\u2019s one massive thing that I\u2019ve changed my mind about \u2013 the dosage.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u2018In the beginning, in 2019, I took creatine as a bodybuilding supplement while prepping for shows and it transformed my body into a leaner, more muscular<\/a> shape,\u2019 she says. \u2018I\u2019ve always added one 5g scoop into my water. But now the research is telling us to take 10g a day.\u2019 <\/p>\n

Creatine is well-studied and considered safe for most people, but if you have an underlying health condition, speak with your doctor before starting.<\/p>\n

Why women over 40 can benefit from 10g of creatine<\/p>\n

For women over 40 \u2013 during perimenopause and menopause<\/a> \u2013 oestrogen<\/a>, progesterone, and testosterone decline, putting them at risk of losing muscle mass, bone density and energy metabolism. However, evidence<\/a> shows that creatine can help to mitigate these damages, and may support cognitive resilience and neuroprotection. <\/p>\n

Upping the dose means that the supplement circulates more widely and is distributed beyond muscle. ‘At 10 grams a day, you’re not just reaching muscle tissue; you’re reaching bone, brain, and other tissues, which are going to be hugely beneficial,’ says Neill. <\/p>\n

Research backs her up. SupplySide Global 2025<\/a>, the leading conference for the dietary supplement industry, featured input from creatine’s eminent researchers such as Richard Kreider, Ph.D<\/a> and Susan Kleiner, Ph.D.<\/a> They suggested 5g might soon be ‘a starting point than a ceiling, especially for ageing populations and those chasing benefits beyond muscle’ and that ‘8-10g of creatine daily is becoming the new standard for achieving many full-body benefits.’ <\/p>\n

1. Creatine combats muscle loss<\/p>\n

You lose<\/a> around 1.5lbs of lean muscle per year during perimenopause. However, a 2021 review<\/a> found that post-menopausal women aged between 63-75 who consumed higher doses of creatine \u2013 0.3g per kilogram \u2013 combined with resistance training<\/a> increased fat-free mass and improved their muscle strength in the leg press and bench press, says Neill. ‘This is especially important for women over 40 who often want to lose fat but can struggle with building muscle when in a calorie deficit.’<\/p>\n

Similarly, a 2025 review<\/a> on creatine in older adults found that it may help manage age-related sarcopenia [loss of skeletal muscle mass], osteoporosis and frailty. Another review<\/a> found that there was no universal ‘best’ creatine dose for everyone and optimal amounts can vary depending on personal goals. As doses over 5g per day produced gains in leg press strength, authors concluded that higher doses of creatine were required for lower-body strength in older adults. <\/p>\n

2. Supports cardiometabolic health<\/p>\n

One earlier study<\/a> found that taking 20g of creatine for the first five days, followed by 10g per day for the next 51 days, reduced plasma total cholesterol, triacylglycerols and very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL-C). In simple terms, it lowered blood fats \u2014 a shift that supports heart and metabolic health because the body is transporting fewer harmful lipids that can contribute to arterial build-up. <\/p>\n

\"cropped<\/p>\n

Anastasiia Krivenok\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

3. Improves brain health<\/p>\n

‘A lot of people are now taking creatine just purely for their cognitive health, as emerging research finds that creatine can help with fatigue, cognitive health, mood, and even sleep, especially in the ageing population,’ says Neill. ‘Women over 40 may struggle with sleepless nights, [in turn causing] recovery issues from training \u2013 it takes us far longer to recover from workouts than it used to.’ A review published in the Journal of International Society of Sports Nutrition<\/a> backs this up, finding that creatine may improve sleep and cognitive resilience in perimenopausal women. <\/p>\n

That may be due to creatine\u2019s impact on the production and breakdown of adenosine, a molecule crucial in sleep regulation and reducing oxidative stress in the brain.<\/a> <\/p>\n

How to take 10g of creatine<\/p>\n

Often taken in powder form, creatine monohydrate can be taken as gummies or tablets. Panelists at SupplySide Global agreed that lower doses of creatine taken often produced a better effect than one large dose, increasing absorption and lowering risk of passing excess creatine as waste. <\/p>\n

‘I don’t know if it’s feasible for a lot of people to take 20-30 grams…at once,’ says Darren Candow, Ph.D<\/a>. ‘We have a brief in review right now where we’ve shown that if you take smaller, more frequent doses, it will accumulate and produce the same, if not better, effect.<\/p>\n

‘The hypothesis…came from one study in 2009 in younger adults, where they took 1 gram per hour for several hours. That seemed to accumulate more (with less excretion).’<\/p>\n

Of course, as Neill reminds us, ‘Creatine must be taken in combination with the right nutrition and exercise [like resistance training], especially when you want to see the muscle building and the metabolic effects.’ <\/p>\n

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