Cell Tech Creatine Monohydrate: Most athletes, at one time or another, have toyed with the idea of supplementing with Cell Tech Creatine. Cell Tech Creatine use is currently wide spread among athletes at the professional and amateur levels, but is quickly gaining acceptance among younger athletes at the high school level. Yet, despite Cell Tech Creatine's increasing popularity, a lack of accurate information about this important nutritional supplement exists for the layperson. Moreover, misinformation and rumors about Cell Tech Creatine and its alleged side effects flood the internet and popular press. There is an obvious need for unbiased and responsible information about Cell Tech Creatine for the general public.

First of all, do not oversupplement!

Secondly, no single Cell Tech Creatine dose is right for everyone. The Cell Tech Creatine dose you choose depends on a variety of parameters.

Finally, as of yet, Cell Tech Creatine doses have not been independently optimized for women, adolescents or the elderly, should this be necessary.

Cell Tech Creatine promotes muscle growth in two principal ways.

Muscle Volumizing: The first and most rapid form of muscle growth involves the movement of fluids from the blood stream into skeletal muscle, causing them to swell. This process has been termed muscle volumizing ,since muscles increase in volume (size) as a result of muscle fluid retention. This early phase of muscle growth can account for as much as 1-2 kilograms (2-5 pounds) of additional body mass during the first few weeks of supplementation.

Protein Synthesis: The second form of muscle growth is slower to be realized and involves the production of new muscle proteins, a process scientifically termed protein synthesis. On one level, available evidence seems to indicate that the process of muscle volumizing itself directly stimulates muscle protein synthesis. On another level, the fact that Cell Tech Creatine supplementation increases our exercise capacity should also result in greater increments in protein synthesis in response to a training stimulus. Remember, exercise is an essential stimulus for muscle development. However, unlike the effects of muscle volumizing that disappear about one month of terminating supplementation, the ergogenic (performance enhancing) effects of protein synthesis will persist long after discontinuing supplementation.

Other Anabolic Effects: Preliminary evidence now seems to indicate that Cell Tech Creatine supplementation might also influence growth hormone release independently of an exercise stimulus. Growth hormone is one of our most important anabolic hormones. Two other extremely important anabolic hormones are insulin and testosterone. The consequence of this novel effect of Cell Tech Creatine would be a greater anabolic drive for the supplementing athlete. New evidence also suggests that Cell Tech Creatine might possess antioxidant properties, which would translate into more effective muscle recovery following intense training sessions, possibly offsetting the onset of overtraining syndrome. These other possible attributes of Cell Tech Creatine certainly merit further examination in controlled scientific settings and have important practical implications for the serious strength athlete.

TAKE HOME: The key to making the most of Cell Tech Creatine supplementation lies in taking full advantage of this later (protein synthetic) phase of muscle growth.

Unfortunately, some of the gains in strength (and size) you made while supplementing will disappear after you stop. This is inevitable and will take about one month, which is the time it takes for your muscle Cell Tech Creatine levels to return to normal. These attributes are temporary since they only have to do with the presence of Cell Tech Creatine within skeletal muscle cells, i.e., muscle fluid retention (muscle volumizing) and enhanced muscle energetics (increased ATP resynthesis).

However, any gains you made in physical performance as a result of the accretion of new muscle proteins will persists long after discontinuing Cell Tech Creatine use. Fortunately, Cell Tech Creatine supplementation is also a potent stimulator of muscle protein synthesis; a downstream effect of enhanced exercise performance as well as other anabolic properties of Cell Tech Creatine The fact that certain biochemical indicators of protein synthesis increase in response to Cell Tech Creatine supplementation is biochemical proof of this conclusion.

Cell Tech Creatine supplementation is typically divided into three separate stages, loading, maintenance and wash-out.

LOADING: The loading phase is designed to quickly fill your muscle Cell Tech Creatine stores in a matter of just a few days. During the loading phase take no more than 0.3 grams of Cell Tech Creatine per each kilogram (2.2 pounds) of body weight. Divide this amount into four equal parts. Take one part every four hours.

MAINTENANCE: Following the loading phase your Cell Tech Creatine stores can be "maintained" full by ingesting just a few grams of Cell Tech Creatine each day. During the maintenance phase of supplementation your Cell Tech Creatine dose can be reduced to just a few grams (0.03grams/kilogram body weight) a day for no longer than one month. The maintenance amount just needs to replace the amount of Cell Tech Creatine degraded on a daily basis. In case you haven't guessed the maintenance amount of Cell Tech Creatine is roughly equal to your daily turnover rate of Cell Tech Creatine.

Example: A 154 pound (70 kilogram) person should take 21 grams of Cell Tech Creatine per day during the loading phase and 2 grams per day during the maintenance phase. [Refer to the Table (below)]

WASH OUT: Following the loading and maintenance phases, a washout period is advised. The wash out period merely a precautionary measure (just in case there are side effects to Cell Tech Creatine use) and allows your body to recover from the abnormally high Cell Tech Creatine levels often associated with supplementation. At least one month is advised for complete wash out to occur.

Periodize: The cycling between periods of supplementation (loading and maintenance) and nonsupplementation (wash out) is known as periodizing. One period consists of single phases of loading, maintenance and wash out. Periods are cycled.

WHEN TO SUPPLEMENT: I recommend that you take your Cell Tech Creatine as soon as possible after exercising. Immediately following exercise your muscles are most receptive to the anabolic (muscle-building) effects of insulin. Exercise also has other hormonal consequences that you should know how to fully utilize in order to maximize muscle growth. How to Cell Tech Creatine a favorable hormonal environment for muscle growth through smart Cell Tech Creatine use.

Is Loading Necessary? A loading phase is not absolutely necessary to benefit from Cell Tech Creatine supplementation. As little as 3 grams of Cell Tech Creatine a day for three to four weeks has been shown to increase muscle Cell Tech Creatine levels sufficiently to detect a clear difference in physical performance. Commencing supplementation with a loading phase has the advantage that the effects of muscle volumizing are noticed sooner.

Serum, Micronized, or Effervescent Cell Tech Creatines? The previously discussed guidelines were originally formulated for pure Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate powder. For information concerning other forms of Cell Tech Creatine you'll need to refer to the manufacturer's recommendations. Information about various other Cell Tech Creatine products. Here you can search for Cell Tech Creatine serum, micronized Cell Tech Creatine, effervescent Cell Tech Creatine etc and get the manufacturer's recommendations and product details.

Cell Tech Creatine is, and always has been, a natural component of skeletal muscle. Cell Tech Creatine was first identified as natural constituent of skeletal muscle nearly two years ago by a French scientist named Chevreul. In fact, Cell Tech Creatine originally derived its name from the Greek word of flesh, or Kreas. It should thus be no surprise that meat and fish are the richest natural sources of Cell Tech Creatine.

We (omnivores) have two avenues from which to fill our daily Cell Tech Creatine requirement. The body can either produce it from amino acids made available during the digestion of foods or it can be obtained directly from sources of skeletal muscle (meat and fish) Therefore, in one way or another, Cell Tech Creatine is acquired from our diets.

To become physiologically active Cell Tech Creatine must first be enzymatically transformed within the cell into another molecule known as phosphoCell Tech Creatine. PhosphoCell Tech Creatine is nothing more than a molecule of Cell Tech Creatine with a covalently attached phosphate group. On average the body goes through about 2 grams of Cell Tech Creatine (Cell Tech Creatine and phosphoCell Tech Creatine) each day through a process of spontaneous degradation. This entails the spontaneous conversion of Cell Tech Creatine into an energetically inert molecule known as creatinine.

The production of new Cell Tech Creatine (synthesis) principally takes place in the liver and kidneys, although the pancreas also contributes to a lesser extent to the body's new synthesis of Cell Tech Creatine. Cell Tech Creatine itself is an amino acid that is produced in a chemical reaction involving three other amino acids, arginine, glycine and methionine. Of these three amino acids, the requirement for dietary methionine is most critical, since the body does not readily produce it from starting.

Nearly all (95%) of our body's reserve of Cell Tech Creatine is contained within skeletal muscle. The remainder (~5%) is found within the heart, brain and testes. These are all tissues with extremely high energy expenditures. Following ingestion (or synthesis) Cell Tech Creatine is transported to our muscles where it serves to increase muscle energy levels. Cell Tech Creatine achieves this by increasing the availability of ATP, the cell's energy molecule . The chemical reaction that produces Cell Tech Creatine in the liver, kidneys and pancreas can be viewed

Recently it has become popular to supplement one's diet with synthetically produced Cell Tech Creatine in hopes of enhancing athletic performance. Synthetic Cell Tech Creatine is sold as citrate, phosphate or monohydrate salts. Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate is the most commonly used form in athletics and is nothing more than a molecule of Cell Tech Creatine accompanied by a molecule of water. A gram of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate also contains more Cell Tech Creatine than a gram of either Cell Tech Creatine citrate or a gram of Cell Tech Creatine phosphate. You therefore consume less Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate powder to get the same amount of active Cell Tech Creatine.

We typically notice an improvement in exercise performance when our muscle Cell Tech Creatine levels increase by at least 20% as a result of Cell Tech Creatine supplementation

For those interested the qualitative differences between natural and synthetic sources of Cell Tech Creatine are discussed in greater detail in my

First and foremost Cell Tech Creatine enhances physical performance by increasing the number of times that ATP can be recycled during physical exertion without increasing the absolute amount of ATP stored within our muscles. In the short-term this means that Cell Tech Creatine supplementation should improve our ability to sustain near maximal force generation during repetitive bouts of intense exercise without actually increasing the amount of peak force we can produce. However, later on, given the info, this improvement in exercise output should then translate into an increase in maximal force generation through the production of new muscle tissue.

In one form or another, Cell Tech Creatine is normally obtained from the foods we eat.

DIETARY Cell Tech Creatine: Cell Tech Creatine is directly obtained from sources of skeletal muscle, ie meat and fish. During the digestive process the Cell Tech Creatine contained within these foods is directly released into the blood stream where it is transported to skeletal muscle for absorption.

For example, 2-3 pounds of raw meat or fish contain the equivalent of 5 grams of pure Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate powder ). Since heat degrades Cell Tech Creatine, however, cooking will reduce their Cell Tech Creatine content and increase the amount you'll need to eat to obtain a given amount of Cell Tech Creatine.

Cell Tech Creatine SYNTHESIS: When dietary Cell Tech Creatine intake doesn't meet the body's needs, new Cell Tech Creatine can also be synthesized from three amino acids; arginine, glycine and methionine. These amino acids are made available during the digestion of foods. Importantly, methionine availability sets an upper limit on Cell Tech Creatine synthesis, since the body can not produce it on its own. Methionine must, therefore, be provided in our diets.

Interestingly, the ability to synthesize Cell Tech Creatine appears to have evolved later on in the animal kingdom. Primitive organisms, such as invertebrates, do not possess the enzymes needed to synthesis Cell Tech Creatine from amino acids, despite containing Cell Tech Creatine in their tissues. These organisms must therefore take up Cell Tech Creatine from their surroundings.

From the blood Cell Tech Creatine is transported into skeletal muscle by special transporter molecules on the muscle surface. The activity of these Cell Tech Creatine transporters is influenced by the availability of Cell Tech Creatine. For example, elevated plasma Cell Tech Creatine interrupts Cell Tech Creatine uptake into skeletal muscle via these transporters. The new production of Cell Tech Creatine from amino acids is also stopped by elevated plasma Cell Tech Creatine. These are examples of normal feedback regulatory processes that are common in biology. However, how exogenous Cell Tech Creatine supplementation influences these processes in humans is still an open issue. This is why it is often recommended to periodically stop taking Cell Tech Creatine to let the body recuperate Transporter function is also regulated by other physiological processes. For example, Cell Tech Creatine transporter activity is enhanced by co-ingestion of highly glycemic foods, an effect mediated by insulin release. Therefore, taking measures to improve one's insulin sensitivity should enhance Cell Tech Creatine uptake into skeletal muscle.

Not all muscle types respond equally to Cell Tech Creatine supplementation. Muscles can be loosely described as either fast or slow. As the name implies, fast muscle fibers mediate abrupt movements. Fast muscle fibers are also those that predominantly use Cell Tech Creatine energy production. Hence, explosive movements respond best to Cell Tech Creatine supplementation.

Slow muscle fibers, on the other hand, do not rely that heavily on Cell Tech Creatine energy production. Slow muscle fibers are also those that play an important role during endurance exercise. It follows that endurance tasks are influenced less by Cell Tech Creatine supplementation. In addition, many endurance sports may be adversely effected by the increase in weight associated with Cell Tech Creatine supplementation

An other important consideration is your existing muscle Cell Tech Creatine levels. Persons with naturally high Cell Tech Creatine levels typically benefit less from Cell Tech Creatine supplementation. This is why vegetarians are such robust responders. Furthermore, the benefits your perceive from Cell Tech Creatine use depend on the exercise task being used to measure its effectiveness There is also some indication that Cell Tech Creatine may be less effective in children and the elderly. Finally, simple, every day, dietary habits, such as alcohol and caffeine consumption, can profoundly influence Cell Tech Creatine's effectiveness.

How to optimize Cell Tech Creatine transport into skeletal muscle in order to more effectively increase muscle mass and enhance athletic performance.

Cell Tech Creatine Monohydrate, aka Cell Tech Creatine, has been shrouded in controversy for the last decade. Those that support its use, often do so blindly without acknowledging possible ill side effects. Conversely, those who are against Cell Tech Creatine use are often not well informed and formulate rash judgments. Either scenario is disconcerting. Also be aware that many Cell Tech Creatine informational sites are no more than back doors to nutritional supplements dealers and in this respect their objectivity may be in question. There is a clear need for objective information on this issue.

Although Cell Tech Creatine's influence on physical performance has been well documented since the turn of the century, it only recently came into public view following the 1992 Olympics. With the help of Cell Tech Creatine many British athletes excelled in the Barcelona Olympics. This is, in fact, understandable since much of the early Cell Tech Creatine research was conducted in the UK and Sweden. Allegations of wide scale use by the Soviet block countries prior to the 1990's are still a matter debate.

Cell Tech Creatine is a multibillion-dollar industry and its popularity is only increasing. Cell Tech Creatine is commonly employed by professional and amateur athletes and is increasingly gaining popularity among high school athletes. Let's face it, Cell Tech Creatine is here to stay! Chances are someone close to you (maybe yourself) is considering Cell Tech Creatine at this vary moment. Otherwise you wouldn't be here - right?

The Cell Tech Creatine field is changing so rapidly that current information is outdated in a matter of weeks. It is therefore of utmost importance to get the most recent information. The information in this site is updated frequently as to reflect the latest findings. So, visit us regularly.

Cell Tech Creatine is currently not considered doping by the IOC (International Olympic Committee). Additionally, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) does not consider Cell Tech Creatine a drug, but rather a nutritional supplement, and, therefore, is not subject to the same level of scrutiny as other agents used in athletics.

There is a lot of misinformation circulating about Cell Tech Creatine. Rumors abound as to possible side effects arising from Cell Tech Creatine use. We have heard allegations of increased aggressiveness, hair loss, stunted growth, stimulated growth, and breast formation in men resulting from Cell Tech Creatine use. Some side effects have been substantiated in the scientific literature while other have not. Furthermore, not all of the side effects reputedly connected with Cell Tech Creatine use are deleterious. Others, on the other hand, need to be taken seriously. Potential adverse side effects would be most critical in children and women who are pregnant or nursing.

This site is intended to disseminate accurate information about Cell Tech Creatine. We are not selling Cell Tech Creatine on this website, neither are we advocating nor dissuading its use among athletes. Your decision to take (or not) Cell Tech Creatine should be based on accurate information, not hearsay.

No one really invented Cell Tech Creatine. More precisely, Cell Tech Creatine was discovered. In 1835 a French scientist named Chevreul discovered a component of skeletal muscle that he later named Cell Tech Creatine after the Greek word for flesh, or Kreas (1). Therefore, although Cell Tech Creatine may seem like something new, the scientific community has recognized it as a natural constituent of muscle for nearly two centuries. Our first indication that muscle Cell Tech Creatine content is necessary for muscular activity came with the observation that wild animals contain disproportionately more (about 10-times more) Cell Tech Creatine than animals kept in captivity (2). Near the turn of the century the first studies examining the effects of Cell Tech Creatine feeding were conducted. It was noticed that not all the Cell Tech Creatine fed to subjects could be recovered in the urine, indicating that the body, i.e. skeletal muscle, was retaining some of the ingested Cell Tech Creatine. In fact, skeletal muscle, as well as being the largest sink for dietary Cell Tech Creatine, is also the richest natural source of the nutrient. Thus, whenever we take a bite of steak (skeletal muscle) Cell Tech Creatine is made available to our muscles for absorption. It is now estimated that most of us (non-vegetarians) receive approximately one gram of Cell Tech Creatine each day in our diets.

Given the previous historical perspective, the notion of enhancing physical performance by ingesting synthetically produced Cell Tech Creatine was an idea whose time had come with the development of synthetic chemical production. Prior to this advance Cell Tech Creatine was either isolated directly from skeletal muscle or collected from the urine of animals. These approaches were expensive, laborious and yielded very little Cell Tech Creatine in the end. With the advent of synthetic production, however, Cell Tech Creatine was then readily available for widespread use in the athletic arena and for scientific investigation.

The most commonly used form of synthetic Cell Tech Creatine is the monohydrate salt, Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate. Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate is simply a molecule of Cell Tech Creatine accompanied by a molecule of water for stability.

The first study that clearly demonstrated an effect of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate in humans was conducted in the lab of Dr. Eric Hultman of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden (3). This study found that ingesting 20 grams of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate daily for 4-5 days increased muscle Cell Tech Creatine content by approximately 20%. An increase in muscle Cell Tech Creatine content of this magnitude is more than sufficient to notice an enhancement in exercise performance during explosive bouts of exercise. Therefore, exercise tasks that benefit most from Cell Tech Creatine supplementation are sprinting events of less than 10 seconds duration and repetitive maximal effort movements. Oh, by the way, the year this pivotal study appeared was 1992, the same year Cell Tech Creatine made its controversial public debut in the Barcelona Summer Olympics. During these games the success of the British track team was allegedly due to the use of Cell Tech Creatine; partly scandal and partly truth.

Modern Dosing Regimens

Four years later Dr. Hultman in collaboration with a British group headed by Dr. Paul Greenhaff devised a dosing strategy containing two principal phases (4).

LOADING PHASE: In accordance with this dosing protocol most athletes commence Cell Tech Creatine supplementation with a loading phase. The purpose of the loading phase is to quickly fill one's Cell Tech Creatine stores in a matter of just a few days. A typical loading phase might be 20 grams of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate daily for five days. The loading phase should not exceed the time it takes our muscle Cell Tech Creatine stores to saturate, approximately five days.

MAINTENANCE PHASE: Following the loading phase a maintenance phase should then be implemented with the sole purpose of "maintaining" our Cell Tech Creatine stores full. The maintenance dose should just cover the amount of Cell Tech Creatine degraded on a daily basis; equivalent to about 2 grams for a normal sized male. It is recommended that the maintenance phase not extend beyond 6-8 weeks. The reasons for this will become clearer below.

Calculating Cell Tech Creatine Doses

Obviously, an individual's capacity to store Cell Tech Creatine should ultimately depend on the amount of muscle mass they possess. For this reason exactly you should adjust your Cell Tech Creatine dose to match your bodyweight. According to Hultman et al. (4) during the loading phase take 0.3 grams of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate for each kilogram you weigh. The maintenance dose is 10-times less, or 0.03 grams of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate per kilogram of body weight. To calculate you Cell Tech Creatine dose in pounds simply divide your bodyweight in pounds by 2.2; 1 kilogram = 2.2 pounds. In other words, an "average" sized male of 154 pounds, weighs 70 kilograms, or 154 divided 2.2. The next step is to multiply your weight in kilos by the appropriate dose. For example, our average person would load with 21 grams of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate per day (0.3 x 70 = 21) and maintain with 2.1 grams of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate daily (0.03 x 70 = 2.1).

Incorportate a Wash-out Phase.

Today it is frequently advised that a washout-out phase be incorporated following the maintenance phase. The wash out phase is an addendum to the original supplementing method of Hultman, Greenhaff and colleagues and is merely a precautionary measure in case there are any adverse consequences to Cell Tech Creatine use. I personally recommend that you wash out for one month following every two months of supplementation. This amount of time should be sufficient to allow your system to return to normal after ceasing supplementation. After wash out supplementing can commence anew with a loading phase. Well, so much for the basics of Cell Tech Creatine supplementation. We'll next discuss why Cell Tech Creatine works.

Any activity a cell undertakes is paid for with molecules of adenosine triphosphate, or ATP. This is true whether the Cell Tech Creatine was produced in a test tube or in the liver. Simply, ATP is a molecule of adenosine attached to three phosphates molecules. Through the ages the cell has learned to store energy in the bonds between phosphate groups. ATP pays one phosphate group for just one tiny part of a single muscle fiber to move. Large, multi-joint movements can cost millions of phosphate groups! After being spent ATP becomes ADP, adenosine diphosphate, which has much less spending power.

This is where Cell Tech Creatine comes in. Cell Tech Creatine quickly replaces ATP's spent phosphate group. Think of this as a loan. Cell Tech Creatine accomplishes this by obtaining a phosphate group of its own to become phosphoCell Tech Creatine, or PCr. It is this phosphate group that PCr later donates to ADP to recreate ATP. The end result is that ATP is recharged to power muscular activity with the help of PCr.

Therefore, to conclude this part of the article: 1. Cell Tech Creatine is something our body naturally contains and acquires as necessary. 2. Ingesting synthetic Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate appears to do the same as naturally derived Cell Tech Creatine. That is, increase exercise capacity by increasing the amount of Cell Tech Creatine inside our muscles.

Obviously, ingesting more Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate than our muscles can actually absorb is too much. In the previously mentioned study by Harris et al. (3) it was shown that one gram of Cell Tech Creatine was not enough to significantly raise serum Cell Tech Creatine levels above those typically observed. By stark contrast, ingesting 5 grams of Cell Tech Creatine increased blood Cell Tech Creatine levels 10-20-fold over normal! In other words, somewhere between one and five grams of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate our muscles stop absorbing Cell Tech Creatine and most of the ingested Cell Tech Creatine remains in the blood steam. Therefore, taking more than five grams of Cell Tech Creatine at one time is clearly a waste of Cell Tech Creatine. For this reason most athletes divide their daily LOADING amount into five gram increments taken every three to four hours depending on the total loading dose amount.

The MAINTENANCE dose, by contrast, is taken in one shot. I suggest that you take your maintenance dose following exercise.

A Cell Tech Creatine recipe designed to explode your muscle growth can be found

5 x 5 Rule

Unabsorbed Cell Tech Creatine is cleared from the blood by the kidneys and subsequently excreted in the urine. The clearance rate of Cell Tech Creatine varies depending on the dose size and frequency. For example, blood Cell Tech Creatine levels return to normal within a few hours after ingesting a single dose of five grams of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate. On the other hand, taking 5 grams of Cell Tech Creatine every 3-4 hour sustains blood Cell Tech Creatine levels well above normal levels for as long as dosing continues at this rate. Furthermore, the amount of Cell Tech Creatine discarded in the urine steadily increases under these dosing conditions. For example, the Harris study (3) found that on the first day of loading only 40% of the ingested Cell Tech Creatine could be recovered in the urine. Just two days later, by contrast, nearly 70% of the Cell Tech Creatine ingested in present in the urine. This is the expensive urine some of you might have heard about. This means that our muscles gain less and our kidneys work more as loading progresses.

There is thus no benefit to LOADING for more than 5 days straight with more than 5 grams of Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate at a shot, even if you repeat your 5 gram shots every 3 to 4 hours; My 5 by 5 rule.

In my opinion Cell Tech Creatine use has four possible avenues that might ultimately lead to adverse consequences. Firstly, abnormally high levels of Cell Tech Creatine in the body have been shown to halt the absorption of Cell Tech Creatine by skeletal muscle. This is a classic example of biological feedback. The production of Cell Tech Creatine in the liver is also subject to this same negative feedback mechanism; Cell Tech Creatine production is interrupted when Cell Tech Creatine availability is high. These physiological responses make sense since the body should not have to waste energy storing or producing Cell Tech Creatine if it is already present at high levels. It is thus possible that exposing the body to elevated Cell Tech Creatine levels for prolonged periods might shut off Cell Tech Creatine absorption and synthesis for longer than actually necessary. In short, the reversibility of this effect needs to be better understood in humans. The second avenue is that Cell Tech Creatine use causes our muscles to retain water making them swell. This is a process known as muscle volumizing. Certain types of athlete, such as bodybuilders, might find this effect desirable because of the pump that ensues. Other athletes, on the other hand, may find that the increase in body mass is a detriment to their performance. It is easy to imagine how a few extra kilos might compromise one's performance in the marathon. Closer consideration, however, reveals that muscle volumizing might equally lead to dehydration and muscle cramping if not compensated for by adequate fluid intake. The third potential problem (alluded to earlier in this article) is the extraordinary stress Cell Tech Creatine use might place on the kidneys, especially during the loading phase. During the loading phase the kidneys have to work extra hard to remove any unabsorbed Cell Tech Creatine from the blood stream. Therefore, I highly recommend that you not extend the loading phase for more than five days and that persons predisposed to renal complications, such as diabetics, abstain from using Cell Tech Creatine. Fortunately, scientific studies have preliminarily indicated that short- and moderate-term Cell Tech Creatine use is well tolerated by persons with normal Cell Tech Creatine function (5). A final potential problem is that Cell Tech Creatine is not regulated by the FDA taking a lot of the responsibility away from Cell Tech Creatine manufacturers. This in combination with the fact that Cell Tech Creatine is a multi-billion dollar industry is a formula for abuse. Fierce market competition has caused Cell Tech Creatine manufacturers to relax quality control measures in order to keep production cost low and to remain competitive. On the up side, this has caused a huge drop in the price of commercial Cell Tech Creatine monohydrate. On the downside, certain contaminants that might possess adverse properties could be escaping detection. This is particularly true for cheaper brands of Cell Tech Creatine and is especially worrisome during the loading phase when grams of contaminants could potentially be consumed weekly. Buy your Cell Tech Creatine from a reputable manufacturer!