#25 - Creatine while breastfeeding - SHOULD YOU?

(upbeat music) Hello, and welcome back to the Virtue Podcast. Rescience meets self-leadership. Today's episode is by far one of the most requested topics I have had all year. Can I take Cretan while breastfeeding? And the better question might actually be, should you? Because yes, Cretan is one of the most effective, one of the most researched and safest supplements in the world. But once you become a mom, the goal posts they slightly shift. And the information gets a little murky, especially when it comes to safety during breastfeeding. So today, we're gonna go deep, deep into the science, the safety, and the, I think, surprising benefits of Cretan that go far, far beyond building muscle. (upbeat music) I have been flooded with questions lately. Women in my DMs, clients in the post-partum space, all asking, you know, I'm exhausted. I'm lifting again. I wanna feel strong. Can I take Cretan while nursing, right? And here's the thing, in all the evidence that we have around Cretan, very little has been focused on post-partum women. We've had decades of research on male athletes, but when it comes to breastfeeding women, obviously, Cretan's, right? And it's kind of fair. It's really hard to ethically trial post-partum women, knowing that it might impact their babies. And as a result, many researchers and funding bodies steer very clear of this population entirely and it's a real problem. And the main problem is that we end up with this big gap in the research and it becomes a gap in confidence. And that gap in confidence becomes a barrier to support. So what ends up actually happening is that instead of saying, we don't know yet, let's find out, the default becomes like, oh, just avoid it. And in the meantime, mums were left running marathons of broken sleigh, rebuilding our bodies, regulating emotions, managing families, all without access to the same performance enhancing tools that we offer athletes. So that's the context for today's episode, not just the science of Cretan, but actually the systemic silence around maternal physiology and why I really think that we need to bring it into light. (upbeat music) Okay, so the roadmap for today, we're gonna be discussing what is Cretan? Cretan, some people say Cretan, some people say Cretan. I like Cretan, I feel like it has a nicer ring to it. We're also gonna be talking about Cretan and the brain is it safe while breastfeeding? We'll look at a study on rats. I know, don't I roll, just give it time. And then finally, I'll go through, if you have decided to take it, what I recommend in terms of taking it, what to be mindful of. And then finally, in terms of product quality, like what to really look out for. I wanna dive straight into this episode, so let's get on with it. Thank you for being here. Well, let's go. (upbeat music) So what is Cretan? Let's ground this in science without overcomplicating it. Cretan is made up of three amino acids, glycine, argonine, or arginine, depending on where you from, and how you say it, and methyonine. Now, your body produces it naturally, and then you get more from food, mostly from red meat and fish. Now, it's stored in your muscles around 95% and in your brain, around 5%. And its role is in regenerating ATP. This is your body's main energy molecule. When you're lifting, you're sprinting, you're carrying a baby up the stairs, your body burns through ATP, very, very fast. Now Cretan helps recharge that system on the spot by donating a phosphate to ADP, which allows you to keep going stronger for longer. Now, from a performance perspective, Cretan helps with strength and power output, muscular endurance, recovery between sets, and generally reducing that kind of like post-exercise fatigue. Post-partum? Well, that can very much translate to rebuilding all that muscle that we lose, improving strength, recovering faster from your workouts when you're like completely time poor, right? Or just the general physical demands of motherhood and childbirth even. Now, it doesn't stop at performance. So I want to talk about cognition, right? Because motherhood isn't just all physically demanding, it's actually kind of like a mental marathon. Your brain uses massive, massive amounts of energy. And what happens when you add sleep deprivation to the mix, right? Multitasking, emotional regulation, if you have any capacity for that post-partum, like, congratulations. Anyway, Cretan has been shown to very much improve working memory, enhance mental clarity, reduce cognitive fatigue, and support mood regulation. Now, several studies, I'll check them in the show notes, have demonstrated very, very clear cognitive benefits, particularly in stressed or sleep deprived populations. Like, hello, it's just, it's magic to feel seen in that time. And so for women who feel foggy, drained, when we feel mentally scattered post-partum, this isn't just a performance supplement, right? It's actually a bit of a secret weapon. Actually, that sounds a little bit. I don't want to say something violent. It's a negative connotation. It's a secret power, although it's actually not a secret. It's making full eye contact with us. It's waving at us. It's like, hello, I'm here. But is it safe while we breastfeed? Well, this is really where most people kind of pause, right? Is Cretan safe while breastfeeding? I'm going to be clear with you. Cretan is found naturally in red meat and fish. It's also actually present in breast milk. And your body makes it indulgenously every single day. But, currently, here's the clincher, there are no large-scale human trials on Cretan during lactation. But that doesn't mean that it's unsafe. It just means no one's studied it yet. What we do know is that the ISSN, the International Society of Sports Nutrition, it does consider Cretan to be one of the most safest and effective supplements that are on the market. There are no red flags from lact-med or other safety databases that I have seen today. And there's no evidence that Cretan negatively affects breast milk or infant health. And interestingly, some animal studies suggest that it might even benefit infant brain development. So let's do a little study breakdown. 2023 study by Govella and colleagues. I hope I'm pronouncing your name right, Govella. They explored Cretan's supplementation in a rat model of cerebral palsy. Now, cerebral palsy is a condition marked by brain inflammation in pet motor development and reduced strength. Now, perhaps you're thinking, Shona, did you say rats? Like rats? What do they have to do with human babies? And that would be completely fair. But here's the thing, animal models are chosen because of their biological similarities to humans in specific systems. So in neuroscience, for example, rats are actually widely used because of their brain structure and inflammatory responses. Very much or can very closely mimic what we see in human development. Cats, pigs, even primates are used in different contexts. But for hippocampal development and immune response, rats tend to be like the animal of choice. I know, like, ethically, this is a lot. And there's lots of conversations around that. But just for the sake of this particular podcast, let me just continue to unpack this particular study. These pups, rat pups, were given Cretan during the postnatal period. And it improved their body weight and strength. They had better locomotion. And most significantly, Cretan reduced the expression of pro-inflammatory IL-6 in the hippocampus. And that's the brain region involved in memory learning and emotional regulation. So not only did Cretan improve physical development, it actually appeared to have a neuroprotective effect on the brain under inflammatory stress. Now, I know it was an animal study, but I do think that it raises a very important possibility. Could Cretan help support healthy brain development and regulate inflammation in breastfeeding infants too? Well, we don't know yet. But it does give us a reason to keep asking. And to definitely, please, please, please, keep funding women's health research. Now, before we get into the hell, I want to touch on the why. Or rather, the weather. Because, like, anything in health, the real question isn't, is it safe or is it good? It's always, is the potential benefit worth the potential risk for you? And that's where there's, like, a big lack of data, right? And there often is with postpartum women. And we need to move beyond fear-based messaging and instead, focused on informed, individualized if we can decision-making. So I want you to ask yourself, what are you hoping that Cretan will support? Like, is it performance? Is it cognitive clarity? Is it recovery? Have you considered the potential risks, even if they're theoretical? And I'll talk a little bit about some of the risks, or at least some of the, I guess, things you have to consider. And then finally, do you have a care team that you can talk to about this? Because the goal here isn't blind optimization, right? It's agency. It's awareness. And it's very much about aligning with your current needs. Now, one important nuance, especially if you're taking Cretan for cognitive benefits rather than just physical performance, is that there's actually emerging evidence to suggest that the typical three to five grams per day may be more sufficient only for muscular support, right? But upwards of 10 grams is needed for effective enhancing of cognition, particularly in the sleep deprived individuals. Also, in actually vegetarians and women who tend to have lower baseline brain Cretan stores. So if you are actually focused on taking it for brain fog or mental stamina or just like feeling better, some mood regulation, then it might actually be worth discussing it with your health practitioner as to whether a slightly high dose is appropriate for you, especially during that postpartum period. Now, if after all that, you've decided that you actually feel like you want to try some Cretan, here's what I recommend. First of all, stick to Cretan monohydrate. It's the most researched. It's the most bioavailable and it's the most cost-effective form. In terms of dosage, start with three to five grams daily. If you're focusing on cognitive support, discuss the option of increasing towards eight to 10 grams, but only with your provider. Like, 'cause sometimes it can be a little bit irritating on the gut. You may find that like just straight up going to eight to 10 grams is like completely unnecessary, and then actually is really irritating, and then you'll just be completely put off. So don't start there necessarily, but consider the idea that if you are wanting to have those cognitive benefits and you only take like three grams, you might not feel anything. In terms of timing, doesn't really matter, morning, evening, before, after training, what really matters is actually the consistency. In terms of how to take it, I personally just mix mine with coconut water. It blends so well, and it means that I'm also getting a little bit of hydration, a little bit of sugar with it as well, and some electrolytes in the coconut water. You can also add it to your smoothie as well, and it won't taste like anything. I'll also put it with my protein shake. I do want to touch on product quality, please make sure that you choose third party tested products because those gummies are absolutely lying to you. They often do not have what they say they have on the package inside them. And then finally, and this is what I flagged earlier, if you have a history of kidney issues, it's really essential to speak to your doctor first when it comes to all supplements, to be honest. And this is not because creatine is inherently dangerous, but because it's filtered through the kidneys, and so it may not be appropriate in certain clinical cases. And that's really the case for all supplements truly, particularly if you have kidney issues. And as always, I really can't stress that it's super beneficial to get personalized or individualized advice where you possibly can. So if you do have like very specific concerns here, speak to a dietician, speak with your GP, particularly if you're managing other conditions as well. Now, I could touch a little bit on some of the criticisms of creatine, and I think that would be beneficial. When you look at the research, you find that creatine is not a magic bullet, but it's one of the very few supplements with consistent and replicable effects in both physical and cognitive domains. Now, the effects aren't always dramatic. So in some cases, we're talking like five to 15% improvement in power, cognition, or maybe recovery. So it may feel quite small in the acute stages, but then over time, that can be quite big. And the other thing is that most of the criticisms come from two places, right? They come from unrealistic expectations or a lack of context. If you're not training, if you're not eating enough protein, if you're inconsistently using it, you're probably not going to notice very much. Many of the criticisms that people have on the studies are based on the studies that are conducted in young, healthy males. But emerging research suggests that women vegetarians, and like I said, sleep deprived individuals, can actually benefit more from creatine, particularly for these cognitive outcomes. So no, creatine, it isn't magic. It's not going to suddenly put on a whole bunch of muscle. You still have to do the work. You still have to be eating protein. You still have to be training consistently and taking it consistently. But for the right person at the right time and used very intentionally, it's actually a game changer. So to quickly wrap up this little mini episode, creatine is a very robust supplement, in terms of evidence, for both muscle performance and brain health. It is safe for most populations. It is likely safe for breastfeeding, but data is very, very limited. So I can't give you this like straight answer. But it's like, yep, just take it and take this much. You really have to make that decision for yourself. If you are unsure, speak to your healthcare professional. If you do take it, choose monohydrate, three to five grams, per day, potentially more if you want the cognitive benefits from a clean and third-party tested source. And finally, please just remember mama, like you're not just feeding a baby, you're rebuilding your body. And that body deserves support, not just sacrifice, right? So creatine supplementation, but also eating enough protein, hydrating, all the things are about actually loving your body and loving the vessel that you're in and respecting it. If you found that this episode brought you clarity, please, please share it with another mom, another coach or another health professional who maybe needs this information. Screen shot it, tag me on Instagram, send me questions for a part two. If there's anyone that you want me to interview on this topic or an expert to bring in to go even deeper, particularly on the cognitive benefits, I definitely feel like that is like a whole episode in and of itself. More importantly, like talking about this stuff more and more loudly helps us to potentially get more funding in the direction of women and supplementation and just performance support in general. Like I said, like even this isn't even about performance, right? This isn't even about performance in the gym. Even if you have no interest in that area, but you're just there for the cognitive benefits, like imagine if this is that there's like absolute gold mine that we are just like sitting on and don't realize. So at the risk of ranting for another 25 minutes, I want to maintain this as a mini episode for you guys. So until next time, please, train smart, rest deeply and make sure that you continue to lead yourself with compassion and clarity and if you need help with that, the virtue method and the virtue crew were here for you. Don't forget to check out my website, shownavirtue.com. If you have any questions about any of my programs or any of the content that I put out, my DMs are open for you. I'm also thinking of having like a phone number attached to this podcast and then we can like voice note each other and you can voice note me and then I can have segments where you might ask a question or maybe you offer an opinion on something or your experience or something because the problem that I'm finding with podcasts is just so one-sided. And so, yep, I love when you guys comment, by the way, if you're listening on Spotify, I know that you can make comments. I see those comments and I reply whenever I see them come up, so please make sure you're doing that. Please also, while I'm here, leave a review. If you're listening on Apple, it really supports the podcast, so it helps get this information out there and spread it with the mom, spread it with the world, spread it with women and of course, spread it with the bodies that are funding this research. I'm gonna stop and I can't wait to be inside your earholes again soon.