Creatine supplementation protocols with or without training interventions on body composition: a GRADE-assessed systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis.
Level 1 - systematic review of randomized trials
Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
PubMed 39042054 · doi:10.1080/15502783.2024.2380058
What was done
Authors conducted a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) searched across PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus through July 2023. The analysis evaluated the effects of creatine supplementation parameters on body mass, fat-free mass, and body fat percentage using random-effects models reporting weighted mean differences (WMD) and 95% confidence intervals.
What was found
Across 143 included studies, creatine supplementation resulted in: - Increased body mass: WMD 0.86 kg (95% CI: 0.76 to 0.96, I² = 0%) - Increased fat-free mass: WMD 0.82 kg (95% CI: 0.57 to 1.06, I² = 0%) - Reduced body fat percentage: WMD -0.28% (95% CI: -0.47 to -0.09, I² = 0%) Greater improvements were found in protocols that included a maintenance dose or combined supplementation with resistance training.
Why it matters
This review provides quantitative estimates of creatine's modest average effects on body composition, highlighting that combining supplementation with resistance training yields larger gains.
Limits
The abstract does not report total participant count, participant demographics (e.g., age, sex, training status), specific dosing strategies, or intervention durations. Fat-free mass estimates may reflect intracellular water retention rather than contractile muscle tissue accretion.