FREE ESSAY ON CREATINE IN SPORTS

CREATINE IN SPORTS

Creatine
One of the primary things an athlete will do is put supplements into their body. These
supplements range from protein shakes to illegal anabolic steroids. Some sports
supplements are incredibly safe and effective, yet others work for a while and then
fizzle out, while others still work well but do more damage than good in the long run. In
the past athletes had to turn to such things as anabolic steroids or blood doping (the
process of taking out blood and adding oxygen to it and putting it back into your body in
order to increase a persons endurance). However, these procedures have many drawbacks.
Mainly, they are illegal. An athlete may be suspended from playing their perspective
sport for using them. They have many long terms and short term side effects. Many
supplements are as simple as packaged energy and others require a strict exercise and
eating regimen. I will explore sports supplements focusing on creatine and it's effect on
the sport world.
The first and most basic sports supplements are protein weight gainers. This normally
comes in the form of powder and works best when mixed with milk. The main reason for
taking extra protein is to gain weight and muscle mass. In today's athletics, whether it
is high school, college, or professional, the athletes are getting bigger and stronger.
Protein works the best when the athlete is on a strict work out regimen. 
Many sports supplements are a combination of herbs and proteins. A popular supplement of
this sort is called Heat. Heat has many different ingredients in it that allow the
athlete to experience more energy by creating more heat. This allows the athletes' body
to work more efficiently and therefore work faster, stronger, and longer. This is very
important in the sports world because it is becoming harder and harder to compete at an
unsupplemented level. Athletes want every advantage that he or she can receive. 
Now there is a substance that can give an athlete the edge that they desire. One of the
most popular and effective sports supplements on the market today is Pure creatine
Monohydrate. Creatine was first introduced to the US in 1993 by a supplement company
called Experimental and Applied Sciences. Since that time it has become one of the most
demanded items on the market. The creatine that is bought in stores duplicates the
natural creatine that is produced by the kidney, liver, and pancreas. Creatine
Monohydrate has been proven to significantly enhance athletic performance in the areas of
power, strength, and muscle mass. Most importantly though, it doesn't seem to have any
serious side effects. Also, since Creatine is found naturally in the body and in foods,
it is likely that it will not be removed from sports. 
What is Creatine? Creatine is a nutrient that is found in many foods. It is most highly
concentrated in lean red meat. A half-pound of red meat contains about two grams of
Creatine. Every human body also produces Creatine in very small amounts, though some
people produce more than others. Creatine is necessary for proper cell functions and cell
reproduction, it is also a primary storage for energy in muscles. 
How does Creatine work? When somebody is exercising, his or her muscles demand energy.
The energy that the muscle gets is called adenosine triphosphate (ATP). As the muscles
keep contracting, the ATP is turned into adenosine diphosphate (ADP). ADP causes your
muscles to fatigue. Creatine Phosphate helps to convert ADP into ATP when the ATP is
gone. In doing this, the athlete has better endurance during his of her workout or event.

Creatine producers and users claim it to have many advantages, such as increased
endurance, increased overall work potential, increased speed of muscular action, and the
potential to further increase muscle mass. Creatine also accelerates protein synthesis.
If all this were true, it would be easy to see why athletes are turning to Creatine for
an edge on their competition. 
But are these claims real? Is their scientific proof of what Creatine does? Yes, since
Creatine came onto the supplement market it has been tested extensively. Research in
human sports science indicates that if you supplement a normal diet with Creatine it will
increase the Creatine content in the muscles. The Texas A&M football program,
experimented by putting only a few of their players on Creatine in 1994, and as a result
by 1995 they put their whole team on Creatine. The facts don't lie Creatine has definite
advantages. Since studies on Creatine loading have only been going on for less than a
decade, it is still unknown what long-term effects will have. 
Several small short- term side effects include dehydration, diarrhea, and muscle
cramping. Also, Creatine might not be able to help a person in their sport. For example,
Creatine does not always benefit an athlete who participates in an aerobic sport such as
swimming, and long distance running. From a long distance runner's point of view,
Creatine would be bad to take. Creatine causes an athlete to retain water, causing
them to gain weight. 
The Athletes that will receive the most benefit from creatine are athletes in power and
performance sports such as football and wrestling. Though even with wrestling creatine
can be dangerous because of the weight gaining factor, so more effective use my be during
the off-season. For such sports as football, Creatine can be very useful in gaining
strength and size, while maintaining or increasing speed and endurance. Bodybuilders can
also use Creatine as a legal and effective way to enhance muscle growth. 
Creatine use can best summed up pretty easy, a person can take all the Creatine they
want, but if the proper biological, physiological, and nutritional factors aren't in
place, it won't be of even the slightest benefit. Creatine is a true athletes supplement.
It allows an athlete to work out harder and more frequently. Plus, it helps an athlete to
become bigger, faster and stronger. In addition, Creatine delivers these benefits without
causing any serious harm, if any. The only proven side effect has been weight gain(AFQ,
pg. 44).
What is the positive side of sports supplements such as Creatine? With the rise of
popularity in sports supplements, sports are becoming more competitive. This creates new
interest in sports and helps athletes get in better shape. Creatine almost works like
magic and gives the athlete an extra boost when it is really needed, and the athlete is
struggling. With sports becoming more and more global, natural athletes are dominating
the playing field. Sports supplements are out there to help those with less natural
talent reach their full potential by helping them to become faster, stronger and to have
more endurance. As long as athletes are encouraged to accept the norms of the sport ethic
without question or qualification, they will continue to voluntarily try anything or take
anything to remain in sports(Coakley, pg.175). Sports Supplements have taken sports to a
new level of competition helping more athletes succeed. 
Creatine though is not without its down sides. Many people criticize and worry that
extensive use of this somewhat new supplement may be premature. The side effects are very
minimal so far and are restricted to cramping, nausea, and diarrhea. The cause of this,
many scientists believe, is because the user doesn't drink enough water while working
out, and with creatine the athlete can dehydrate much quicker because water gets absorbed
into the muscles faster. As of right now, it is perceived that creatine does more good
than evil and is, therefore, worth the occasional stomach ache. 
Though many reports say that Creatine may cause a person to dehydrate, some disagree with
this view. Steven Plisk, director of sports conditioning at Yale U., Creatine doesn't
have a dehydrating effect on individual muscle cells. If anything, creatine adds water to
the muscle-explaining some of the weight gain(AfQ, pg. 44). Many still argue the
credibility of negative comments toward creatine, but none argue its positive effects. 
Just shoving creatine into your body without proper exercise will result only in creation
of fat and waste. Creatine is not going to make someone a better athlete, he or she has
to go out and do it themselves. If anything creatine requires one to increase their
workouts and effort, because the body's tolerance to exhaustion is higher. 
Another problem that people may see with creatine is the cost factor. A Creatine supply
for a month will average close to forty-five dollars. With the cost of this and other
supplements being so high, it seems that the higher class athletes would have an
advantage, which causes many critics of creatine(or supplements in general) to deem it
unfair. Their case is, athletes of one group should not be permitted to have an advantage
over another due to something such as money. 
In conclusion, Creatine is and can be a very effective supplement for athletes, it
doesn't help everyone. Depending on the person and the sport they are participating in
creatine's effects can be either positive or negative. Though long term research on the
effects of creatine have not been confirmed, as of now the only side effects are
diarrhea, nausea, and weight gain. These are outweighed by the increased success that one
may have in their strength and performance in sports. Creatine has a positive effect on
sports as well as its negative effect, therefore each person should weigh the positive
and negative, then make the decision for themselves.