Original ArticleCreatine Use Among a Select Population of High School Athletes
Section snippets
SUBJECTS AND METHODS
This study was designed as an anonymous survey to be completed during the 1999 annual PPE program at the Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine Center. In the state of Minnesota, PPEs are required every 3 years. Each year, the Sports Medicine Center provides a PPE service for 5 regional high schools during a single day in August. The details of the examination process have been published previously.27 In summary, the Sports Medicine Center uses a multidisciplinary, station-based approach. Examinations are
Subjects
Table 1 demonstrates the frequency of creatine use among our high school athletic population and the relevant characteristics of the creatine users and nonusers. A total of 328 students completed the anonymous questionnaire, representing 100% of the high school-aged subjects (14-18 years) attending the PPE program on that day. Of these 328 students, 27 (8.2%) had used creatine: 26 males and 1 female. Males comprised a larger proportion of the creatine user group compared with the nonuser group
Creatine User Profile
This study is the first formal epidemiological survey of creatine use among a select population of high school athletes. The participation rate among our athletes was 100%. The results generally support our hypotheses. Of the 328 high school athletes surveyed, 27 (8.2%) had used creatine in the past, 14 (52%) of whom were using creatine at the time of the survey (Table 1, Table 2). Creatine users were significantly older than nonusers (mean, 16.5 vs 15.0 years), but athletes as young as 14
CONCLUSIONS
In our study, 8.2% (27/328) of high school athletes have used creatine. Male football players most commonly use creatine. Dosing patterns were highly variable. Many athletes are either unaware of how much creatine they have taken or are taking more than the recommended amounts. This finding may reflect a lack of education about creatine use because athletes do not seem to be obtaining the majority of their information from health care professionals. Reported side effects are infrequent and
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We thank Angela D. Hartman for statistical support.
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