Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Creatine supplementation does not impair kidney function in type 2 diabetic patients: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical trial

  • Original Article
  • Published:
European Journal of Applied Physiology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Creatine supplementation may have a therapeutic role in diabetes, but it is uncertain whether this supplement is safe for kidney function. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of creatine supplementation on kidney function in type 2 diabetic patients. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was performed. The patients were randomly allocated to receive either creatine or placebo for 12 weeks. All the patients underwent exercise training throughout the trial. Subjects were assessed at baseline and after the intervention. Blood samples and 24-h urine samples were obtained for kidney function assessments. Additionally, 51Cr-EDTA clearance was performed. To ensure the compliance with creatine intake, we also assessed muscle phosphorylcreatine content. The creatine group presented higher muscle phosphorylcreatine content when compared to placebo group (CR Pre 44 ± 10, Post 70 ± 18 mmol/kg/wt; PL Pre 52 ± 13, Post 46 ± 13 mmol/kg/wt; p = 0.03; estimated difference between means 23.6; 95% confidence interval 1.42–45.8). No significant differences were observed for 51Cr-EDTA clearance (CR Pre 90.4 ± 16.9, Post 96.1 ± 15.0 mL/min/1.73 m2; PL Pre 97.9 ± 21.6, Post 96.4 ± 26.8 mL/min/1.73 m2; p = 0.58; estimated difference between means −0.3; 95% confidence interval −24.9 to 24.2). Creatinine clearance, serum and urinary urea, electrolytes, proteinuria, and albuminuria were unchanged. CR supplementation does not affect kidney function in type 2 diabetic patients, opening a window of opportunities to explore its promising therapeutic role in this population. ClinicalTrials.gov registration number: NCT00992043.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Dalbo VJ, Roberts MD, Stout JR, Kerksick CM (2008) Putting to rest the myth of creatine supplementation leading to muscle cramps and dehydration. Br J Sports Med 42(7):567–573

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Edmunds JW, Jayapalan S, DiMarco NM, Saboorian MH, Aukema HM (2001) Creatine supplementation increases renal disease progression in han:Sprd-cy rats. Am J Kidney Dis 37(1):73–78

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ferreira LG, De Toledo Bergamaschi C, Lazaretti-Castro M, Heilberg IP (2005) Effects of creatine supplementation on body composition and renal function in rats. Med Sci Sports Exerc 37(9):1525–1529

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Groeneveld GJ, Beijer C, Veldink JH, Kalmijn S, Wokke JH, van den Berg LH (2005) Few adverse effects of long-term creatine supplementation in a placebo-controlled trial. Int J Sports Med 26(4):307–313

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gualano B, Novaes RB, Artioli GG, Freire TO, Coelho DF, Scagliusi FB, Rogeri PS, Roschel H, Ugrinowitsch C, Lancha AH Jr (2008a) Effects of creatine supplementation on glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity in sedentary healthy males undergoing aerobic training. Amino Acids 34(2):245–250. doi:10.1007/s00726-007-0508-1

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gualano B, Ugrinowitsch C, Novaes RB, Artioli GG, Shimizu MH, Seguro AC, Harris RC, Lancha AH Jr (2008b) Effects of creatine supplementation on renal function: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. Eur J Appl Physiol 103(1):33–40. doi:10.1007/s00421-007-0669-3

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gualano B, Artioli GG, Poortmans JR, Lancha Junior AH (2009a) Exploring the therapeutic role of creatine supplementation. Amino Acids 38(1):31–44

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gualano B, Coelho DF, Seguro AC, Sapienza MT, Lancha Junior AH (2009b) Effect of short-term, high-dose creatine supplementation on measured GFR in a young man with a single kidney. Am J Kidney Dis 55(3):e7–e9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harris RC, Soderlund K, Hultman E (1992) Elevation of creatine in resting and exercised muscle of normal subjects by creatine supplementation. Clin Sci (Lond) 83(3):367–374

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Koshy KM, Griswold E, Schneeberger EE (1999) Interstitial nephritis in a patient taking creatine. N Engl J Med 340(10):814–815

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kreider RB, Melton C, Rasmussen CJ, Greenwood M, Lancaster S, Cantler EC, Milnor P, Almada AL (2003) Long-term creatine supplementation does not significantly affect clinical markers of health in athletes. Mol Cell Biochem 244(1–2):95–104

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kuehl K, Goldberg L, Elliot D (1998) Renal insufficiency after creatine supplementation in a college football athlete (abstract). Med Sci Sports Exerc 30:S235

    Google Scholar 

  • Levey AS, Coresh J, Balk E, Kausz AT, Levin A, Steffes MW, Hogg RJ, Perrone RD, Lau J, Eknoyan G (2003) National kidney foundation practice guidelines for chronic kidney disease: evaluation, classification, and stratification. Ann Intern Med 139(2):137–147

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Louis M, Lebacq J, Poortmans JR, Belpaire-Dethiou MC, Devogelaer JP, Van Hecke P, Goubel F, Francaux M (2003) Beneficial effects of creatine supplementation in dystrophic patients. Muscle Nerve 27(5):604–610

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Op‘t Eijnde B, Urso B, Richter EA, Greenhaff PL, Hespel P (2001) Effect of oral creatine supplementation on human muscle glut4 protein content after immobilization. Diabetes 50(1):18–23

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Op’t Eijnde B, Jijakli H, Hespel P, Malaisse WJ (2006) Creatine supplementation increases soleus muscle creatine content and lowers the insulinogenic index in an animal model of inherited type 2 diabetes. Int J Mol Med 17(6):1077–1084

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Persky AM, Rawson ES (2007) Safety of creatine supplementation. Subcell Biochem 46:275–289

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Poortmans JR, Francaux M (1999) Long-term oral creatine supplementation does not impair renal function in healthy athletes. Med Sci Sports Exerc 31(8):1108–1110

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Poortmans JR, Francaux M (2000) Adverse effects of creatine supplementation: fact or fiction? Sports Med 30(3):155–170

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Poortmans JR, Auquier H, Renaut V, Durussel A, Saugy M, Brisson GR (1997) Effect of short-term creatine supplementation on renal responses in men. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol 76(6):566–567

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Poortmans JR, Kumps A, Duez P, Fofonka A, Carpentier A, Francaux M (2005) Effect of oral creatine supplementation on urinary methylamine, formaldehyde, and formate. Med Sci Sports Exerc 37(10):1717–1720

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pritchard NR, Kalra PA (1998) Renal dysfunction accompanying oral creatine supplements. Lancet 351(9111):1252–1253

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sewell DA, Harris RC (2002) Effect of creatine supplementation in the thoroughbred horse. Equine Vet J 18:239–242

    Google Scholar 

  • Shao A, Hathcock JN (2006) Risk assessment for creatine monohydrate. Regul Toxicol Pharmacol 45(3):242–251

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Taes YE, Delanghe JR, Wuyts B, van de Voorde J, Lameire NH (2003) Creatine supplementation does not affect kidney function in an animal model with pre-existing renal failure. Nephrol Dial Transplant 18:258–264

    Google Scholar 

  • Tarnopolsky MA, Bourgeois JM, Snow R, Keys S, Roy BD, Kwiecien JM, Turnbull J (2003) Histological assessment of intermediate and long-term creatine monohydrate supplementation in mice and rats. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 285:R762–R769

    Google Scholar 

  • Thorsteinsdottir B, Grande JP, Garovic VD (2006) Acute renal failure in a young weight lifter taking multiple food supplements, including creatine monohydrate. J Ren Nutr 16(4):341–345

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wyss M, Kaddurah-Daouk R (2000) Creatine and creatinine metabolism. Physiol Rev 80(3):1107–1213

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

Bruno Gualano, Antonio Carlos Seguro and Guilherme G. Artioli received financial support from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico. The authors declare that the present experiment complies with the current research ethics laws of the country it has been performed in. The experimental protocol has been approved by the institution’s Ethical Committee in Research and all the subjects have signed an informed consent.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Applied Nutrition and Metabolism, School of Physical Education and Sports, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    Bruno Gualano, Vitor de Salles Painelli, Hamilton Roschel, Rebeca Lugaresi, Guilherme Giannini Artioli & Antonio Herbert Lancha Junior

  2. Division of Rheumatology, School of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    Bruno Gualano, Vitor de Salles Painelli, Hamilton Roschel, Guilherme Giannini Artioli, Fernanda Rodrigues Lima & Eloisa Bonfá

  3. University of Sao Paulo, University Hospital, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    Egidio Dorea

  4. Laboratory of Medical Investigation, LIM18, Division of Endocrinology, School of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    Maria Elizabeth Rossi da Silva & Maria Rosária Cunha

  5. Division of Nephrology, School of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    Antonio Carlos Seguro & Maria Heloisa Shimizu

  6. Division of Radiology, LIM44, School of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    Maria Concepción García Otaduy & Cláudia da Costa Leite

  7. Division of Nuclear Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    Marcelo Tatit Sapienza

  8. Av Mello de Moraes, 65, Sao Paulo, SP, 05508-030, Brazil

    Bruno Gualano

Authors
  1. Bruno Gualano
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Vitor de Salles Painelli
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Hamilton Roschel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Rebeca Lugaresi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Egidio Dorea
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Guilherme Giannini Artioli
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Fernanda Rodrigues Lima
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Maria Elizabeth Rossi da Silva
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Maria Rosária Cunha
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Antonio Carlos Seguro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. Maria Heloisa Shimizu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. Maria Concepción García Otaduy
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  13. Marcelo Tatit Sapienza
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  14. Cláudia da Costa Leite
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  15. Eloisa Bonfá
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  16. Antonio Herbert Lancha Junior
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Bruno Gualano.

Additional information

Communicated by Susan Ward.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Gualano, B., de Salles Painelli, V., Roschel, H. et al. Creatine supplementation does not impair kidney function in type 2 diabetic patients: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical trial. Eur J Appl Physiol 111, 749–756 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-010-1676-3

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-010-1676-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation