Andy Galpin

“Creatine seems to help stabilize and regulate calcium handling in mitochondria, which is related to acute injuries but also to long-term mitochondrial function which then supports long-term cell function in the brain.”

“There was a recent paper that showed that after one night of sleep deprivation, creatine can overcome some of those cognitive deficits. That was also shown a few years ago with skill-specific tasks in rugby players, where they gave them either creatine or caffeine and saw similar improvements compared to placebo.”

“I think most of us would agree at this point that copious amounts, excessive amounts of caffeine particularly in kids is not good for bone health.”

“There have been randomized control trials in postmenopausal women looking at specific collagen peptides, and in general it seems to be pretty positive. Bone mineral density in the spine and femoral neck increased significantly with collagen intake at just five grams per day. You're talking about 4 to 7% increases in bone mineral density over a 12-month span.”

“The biggest potential risk is GI distress. Some people have gas or bloating or stomach cramps at even five grams a day, so taking them to 20 or 30 may cause some serious issues. It's not that frequently reported but it is a real thing.”

“Most of the data on creatine monohydrate for brain injuries uses dosages of about 20 grams per day. That's four times the typical dose you'll see for performance benefits. Often the protocol is five grams administered four times per day.”

“The original doses we were doing were 50 milligrams per kilogram body weight. And then by the time we started the firefighter study, we decided to give a standard three grams for everybody, not based on body weight.”

“Betaine basically helps as an osmolyte and as a cellular hydration factor. Water follows it into the cell and perhaps it keeps your cell hydrated longer. It also has some properties that show it might protect proteins from degrading in hot temperatures.”

“You'll see typical protocols instead of taking 20 grams at once are things like 5 grams administered four times per day.”

“Me personally, based on the work that I've read, I think 5 to 10 grams per day is probably plenty for most people as a prophylactic. Seven days or so prior to a high-risk situation, a competition, a race, we're going to up that dose to 20 to 30 grams for those seven days.”