Creatine is a compound the body makes in the liver and kidneys and also gets from meat and fish. Muscle cells store it as phosphocreatine, which lets them rebuild ATP quickly during short, hard efforts. For years it was treated as a gym-only subject.
Longevity researchers care for two reasons. The first is muscle: mass and strength fall with age, and that loss (sarcopenia) travels with falls, fractures and loss of independence. Our grip strength article covers how tightly muscle strength tracks mortality risk. The second is the brain, another energy-hungry organ where creatine plays the same buffering role.
The evidence behind those two claims is not equally strong. We treat them separately below, because most coverage folds them into one line: "creatine is good for the brain too."
A systematic review by Sharifian and colleagues, published in 2025 in the European Review of Aging and Physical Activity, pooled 20 randomized controlled trials comparing creatine plus exercise with exercise alone in people aged 55 and over. That is 1,093 participants in total, 69% of them women.
2.1 kg sounds small. It is; this is not a miracle number. But it is the extra gain between two groups that were both already training. Protocols were mostly resistance training two or three times a week with 5-7 grams of creatine a day (or 0.1 g per kg), some after a 20-gram loading phase of 5-7 days. Effects were clearer in trials lasting longer than 12 weeks.
One more point: the review studies creatine together with exercise. It does not tell us that taking creatine without training produces the same result.
The most widely shared creatine-and-brain paper is a pilot from Aaron Smith and colleagues at the University of Kansas Medical Center, published in 2025 in Alzheimer's & Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions. Twenty people with Alzheimer's disease took 20 grams of creatine monohydrate a day for 8 weeks.
There was no placebo group. It was a single-arm, unblinded design. People who sit the same test twice, eight weeks apart, can score higher simply because the test is familiar. The researchers do not hide this: the trial is described as a feasibility study, and its conclusion is that a larger randomized trial is worth running. "Creatine treats Alzheimer's" does not follow from this data.
The dose also matters. Twenty grams is three to four times the 5-7 gram maintenance dose used in the muscle trials, and it was given under supervision.
What the data supports: if you are over 55 and do regular resistance training, creatine appears to add a small but consistent amount to your strength gains. If you are not training, starting to will make a far bigger difference than any supplement.
There is not yet enough evidence to recommend creatine for cognition or dementia prevention.
Two things on safety. The meta-analysis authors state plainly that long-term safety data is insufficient for older people with impaired kidney or liver function. Creatine can also raise the creatinine value on a blood test, so tell your doctor you take it before any lab work. If you have kidney disease, take regular medication or are pregnant, make the decision with a doctor.
No study shows creatine extends human lifespan. A 2025 meta-analysis found that, combined with exercise, it raised strength by about 2.1 kg more in adults over 55. Muscle strength is a marker linked to healthy aging, but that is not the same as living longer.
Most trials in the meta-analysis used 5-7 grams a day or 0.1 g per kg of body weight, some after a 20-gram loading phase of 5-7 days. This is a research summary, not a personal dosing recommendation. Anyone with kidney disease or on regular medication should speak to a doctor first.
It is too early to say. In a University of Kansas pilot published in 2025, 20 people with Alzheimer's saw brain creatine rise by an average of 11% over 8 weeks, with improvements on some cognitive tests. The study had no placebo group, so randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm the result.
"Creatine works in muscle, but alongside training. What is said about the brain is, for now, a promising start and nothing more."
— Vivelong Longevity Science Team