01/17/2026
Creatine is a great way to preserve muscle in the elderly. Unfortunately it's been given a bad rap by many in the "medical industry". I was once given a bad report by an MD for a life insurance policy because I was "taking creatine". It's probably been the most studied supplement on the planet over the last 20 years. If you are older and losing muscle mass do your research and decide if creatine is for you. I think you'll see the benefits
In a double-blind randomized controlled trial published in Arthritis Care & Research, Wilkinson et al. (2016) studied 40 patients with rheumatoid arthritis and rheumatoid cachexia who received 5 g/day of creatine monohydrate for 12 weeks without an exercise program. Using DXA scanning, the researchers found a statistically significant increase of ~0.52 kg in appendicular lean mass compared with placebo (p = 0.004)—a direct, objective increase in skeletal muscle in a population known for progressive muscle loss.
In RA and cachexia research, appendicular lean mass gains of 0.3–0.5 kg are considered clinically meaningful, because patients typically experience ongoing muscle decline, not growth. This magnitude of gain over just 12 weeks represents a true reversal of inflammatory muscle wasting, not noise or fluid shift alone. The authors also showed the increase aligned with intracellular water changes, supporting real muscle tissue accretion—making ~0.52 kg a meaningful biological improvement, even though strength gains had not yet emerged.
PMID: 26414681
