Creatine is vegan. It’s just an amino acid that the body synthesizes it. Vegan can take high amounts only from supplements, though. Creatine isn’t naturally found in plant-based foods.
Benefits of creatine for athletes!
Actually, creatine is vegan. It’s just an amino acid, well-known for its many benefits to athletes. Creatine in important for athletes because it:
- supplies the muscles with energy
- enhances glycogen storage in the muscle
- increases strength and workload
- enhances post-exercise recovery
- prevents injuries
Creatine may help athletes of bodybuilding or weightlifting to tolerate heavy training loads.[1]
How much creatine can the body synthesize daily?
The body synthesizes about 1 gram of creatine per day. Mainly in the liver and the kidneys. The amino acids, glycine, arginine, and methionine are necessary for the production of creatine.[2]
So, vegans and vegetarians should consume a well-balanced diet in order to get all essential amino acids. Actually, only a few vegan foods, such as hemp seeds, chia seeds, buckwheat, quinoa, amaranth, moringa powder, and pumpkin seeds. are a complete protein. Consuming them could help the body produce creatine.
Are there vegan sources of creatine?
Although creatine is vegan, there aren’t vegan sources of creatine. Plants don’t contain any creatine. Only meat and other animal-derived foods contain creatine.
Vegans, vegetarians, and people who follow a plant-based diet can boost their daily creatine intake only from supplements. Actually, dietary supplements are the only vegan creatine sources.
Nowadays, creatine is created synthetically in laboratories without the use of animals. Hence, creatine supplements are vegan. Only certain capsules may contain bovine gelatin. Hence, vegans better consume creatine monohydrate powder or creatine supplements that are labeled as vegan.
You’ll find a wide variety of vegan creatine supplements on iHerb.
Low doses of creatine of 3-5 grams a day are considered pretty safe. Even short-term consumption of much higher dosages of 30 grams is unlikely to cause any adverse effects.
Another amino acid that vegans can’t get from food is taurine.