{"id":83810,"date":"2025-08-22T00:23:11","date_gmt":"2025-08-22T00:23:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/83810\/"},"modified":"2025-08-22T00:23:11","modified_gmt":"2025-08-22T00:23:11","slug":"signs-youre-taking-too-much-creatine-and-why-youre-probably-not","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/83810\/","title":{"rendered":"Signs You’re Taking Too Much Creatine (and Why You\u2019re Probably Not)"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the most popular \u2013 and well-researched \u2013 performance supplements<\/a> on the market, creatine is everywhere right now. Along with its long-time users in training and bodybuilding circles, creatine<\/a> has now reached the mainstream, and its powers are being hailed as an everyday supplement as much as they are in the gym<\/a>. But that begs the question: can we have too much of a good thing?<\/p>\n

American golfer Ben Griffin thinks you can. The World No. 17 has said that he believes he \u2018overdosed\u2019 on the supplement at the start of the final round at the BMW Championship after mistakenly swallowing a \u2018large rock\u2019 of creatine. <\/p>\n

Griffin, who multiple news outlets have reported said he usually takes 15mg of creatine daily, described becoming \u2018super shaky\u2019 and feeling like he \u2018had tremors\u2019 after accidentally swallowing the large clump. <\/p>\n

What to read next<\/p>\n

\u2018The problem was, I have a tub and I was basically down to the very end, and I just had this rock of creatine that was all built up together,\u2019 the 29-year-old told CNN Sports<\/a>. He said that this meant it didn\u2019t dissolve properly and ultimately led to him swallowing a large amount at once and his body acting \u2018weird\u2019 soon after.<\/p>\n

Can You Overdose on Creatine?<\/p>\n

MH\u2019s fitness director Andrew Tracey says it\u2019s \u2018highly, highly unlikely that creatine<\/a> is the culprit here\u2019 and that the 15mg figure must be mistaken. <\/p>\n

It\u2019s much more likely they mean grams here because 15mg is equivalent to 0.015g, and the standard dose of creatine is around 3-5g (5,000mg). <\/p>\n

\u2018It would be hard to even measure out such a small dose, and even a large lump of dried creatine is only likely to be around a standard dose of 5g,\u2019 says Tracey. \u2018There’s no real mechanism via which creatine could have caused the effect Griffin describes, especially at such a pedestrian dosage. It seems more likely that either he was using a creatine blend that contained other ingredients, such as caffeine<\/a> and other stimulants.\u2019<\/p>\n

For visual reference, even a \u2018solid lump\u2019 of 20-25g of creatine \u2018would be the size of a tennis ball\u2019 and \u2018would not have the effect\u2019 Griffin describes.<\/p>\n

What Is the Optimum Dose of Creatine?<\/p>\n

Confusing mis-measurements aside, what is the recommended dose? \u2018Most research conducted on creatine<\/a> and strength\/muscle gains<\/a> has been done with dosages of around 3-5g,\u2019 says Tracey. \u2018Traditionally, an initial \u201cloading phase\u201d of around 20-25g per day for a week was encouraged to help to saturate muscles, but studies have shown this level of saturation still occurs on lower doses (3-5g), over 28 days.\u2019<\/p>\n

Should You Super-dose Creatine?<\/p>\n

Are there any performance benefits to be reaped from exceeding the 3-5g standard dose? Tracey says that while emerging research suggests that \u2018super-dosing\u2019 creatine at around 20-25g a day may lead to cognitive benefits, the research is still in its infancy. <\/p>\n

\u2018But there has been some promising evidence that high-dose creatine may improve cognitive performance \u2013 especially when sleep deprived<\/a>,\u2019 he adds.<\/p>\n

Related StorySigns You Could be Taking Too Much Creatine<\/p>\n

While you may experience some side effects following creatine supplementation, they can usually be managed by adapting your intake method. If you\u2019re struggling with stomach issues, for instance, \u2018this can often be mitigated by splitting your creatine dosage evenly across the day, instead of punching yourself in the guts with all of it in one go,\u2019 advises Tracey. <\/p>\n

The two main side effects are gastrointestinal distress and headaches<\/a>. The latter is usually down to dehydration<\/a> because creatine causes water to be drawn into the muscles<\/a>, and can be managed by drinking more water. <\/p>\n

Related StoryIs Creatine Dangerous?<\/p>\n

The short answer: no. Creatine is one of the most well-researched supplements out there, with its health and performance benefits touted by experts far and wide. <\/p>\n

If you have any pre-existing kidney conditions, however, you should approach with caution. \u2018People with pre-existing kidney dysfunction may find that creatine \u2013 or more accurately \u201ccreatinine\u201d, the waste product that creatine converts to \u2013 worsens their symptoms,\u2019 highlights Tracey. \u2018But studies have shown that creatine does not have any adverse side effects on otherwise healthy kidneys.\u2019<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also always worth checking what exactly is in your creatine supplement<\/a> and cross-referencing it with other things you might be taking. Rather than the creatine itself, it might be something else that\u2019s causing you discomfort or worrying symptoms, as was likely the case with Griffin\u2019s \u2018overdose\u2019. <\/p>\n

Related Stories\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Hannah Bradfield is a Senior Nutrition Writer across Women\u2019s Health UK\u00a0and Men\u2019s Health UK. An NCTJ-accredited journalist, Hannah graduated from Loughborough University with a BA in English and Sport Science and an MA in Media and Cultural Analysis.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She has been covering sports, health and fitness for the last five years and has created content for outlets including BBC Sport, BBC Sounds, Runner\u2019s World\u00a0and Stylist. She especially enjoys interviewing those working within the community to improve access to sport, exercise and wellness. Hannah is a 2024 John Schofield Trust Fellow and was also named a 2022 Rising Star in Journalism by The Printing Charity.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A keen runner, Hannah was firmly a sprinter growing up (also dabbling in long jump) but has since transitioned to longer-distance running. While 10K is her favoured race distance, she loves running or volunteering at parkrun every Saturday, followed, of course, by pastries. She\u2019s always looking for fun new runs and races to do and brunch spots to try.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"One of the most popular \u2013 and well-researched \u2013 performance supplements on the market, creatine is everywhere right…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":83811,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[12362,102,6636,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-83810","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nutrition","8":"tag-creatine","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-nutrition","11":"tag-uk","12":"tag-united-kingdom","13":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83810","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83810"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83810\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/83811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}