Verdict
Mixed
Creatine helps preserve muscle, bone and brain energy through perimenopause and menopause.
5 sources: 4 partly, 1 negative
By Arun AgrahriLast reviewed 1 timecoded source
Short answer
It can help with muscle, bone and brain energy, all of which decline together through perimenopause and menopause, and women start with lower stores. The standard dose is 3-5g/day of monohydrate, up to 10g/day for cognitive support.
Creatine is worth taking.
The verdict on Creatine overall. 11 sources: 8 positive, 2 partly, 1 neutral
positive partly neutral negative Each researcher and each study counts once per claim, however often they come up.
Creatine helps preserve muscle, bone and brain energy through perimenopause and menopause.
5 sources: 4 partly, 1 negative.
Researchers say
1 partly
Abby Smith-Ryan, on The Drive, at 2:10:43
Partly Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 2:10:43 →“it can be helpful with training, but it's not the first thing I go to for midlife women”
Studies show
3 partly, 1 negative
4 papers we read
Pooled analysis, Nutrients, 2021, PMID 34836013
Partly Study
Read the paper on PubMed →In conclusion, Cr + RT in a small cohort of older females enhanced muscle strength when the duration was at least 24 weeks; however, there was no effect on muscle mass.
Controlled trial, Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2023, PMID 37144634
Partly Study
Read the paper on PubMed →Two years of creatine supplementation and exercise in postmenopausal women had no effect on BMD; yet, it improved some bone geometric properties at the proximal femur.
Pooled analysis, J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2026, PMID 42141930
Partly Study
Read the paper on PubMed →In postmenopausal women, creatine, particularly ≥ 5 g·day⁻¹ with RT, yields small but meaningful gains in lean mass and strength without evidence of harm.
Controlled trial, PLoS One, 2013, PMID 24098469
Negative Study
Read the paper on PubMed →Creatine supplementation did not promote any significant change in cognitive function and emotional parameters in apparently healthy older individuals.
Abby Smith-Ryan, on The Drive, at 2:10:43 Video · partly · Opinion
“it can be helpful with training, but it's not the first thing I go to for midlife women”
Pooled analysis, Nutrients, 2021, PMID 34836013 Study · partly
In conclusion, Cr + RT in a small cohort of older females enhanced muscle strength when the duration was at least 24 weeks; however, there was no effect on muscle mass.
Controlled trial, Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2023, PMID 37144634 Study · partly
Two years of creatine supplementation and exercise in postmenopausal women had no effect on BMD; yet, it improved some bone geometric properties at the proximal femur.
Pooled analysis, J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2026, PMID 42141930 Study · partly
In postmenopausal women, creatine, particularly ≥ 5 g·day⁻¹ with RT, yields small but meaningful gains in lean mass and strength without evidence of harm.
Controlled trial, PLoS One, 2013, PMID 24098469 Study · negative
Creatine supplementation did not promote any significant change in cognitive function and emotional parameters in apparently healthy older individuals.
Creatine helps preserve muscle, bone and brain energy through perimenopause and menopause.
Researchers
Abby Smith-Ryan, on The Drive, at 2:10:43
Partly Video · Opinion
Open the tape at 2:10:43 →“it can be helpful with training, but it's not the first thing I go to for midlife women”
Studies
Pooled analysis, Nutrients, 2021, PMID 34836013
Partly Study
Read the paper on PubMed →In conclusion, Cr + RT in a small cohort of older females enhanced muscle strength when the duration was at least 24 weeks; however, there was no effect on muscle mass.
Controlled trial, Med Sci Sports Exerc, 2023, PMID 37144634
Partly Study
Read the paper on PubMed →Two years of creatine supplementation and exercise in postmenopausal women had no effect on BMD; yet, it improved some bone geometric properties at the proximal femur.
Pooled analysis, J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2026, PMID 42141930
Partly Study
Read the paper on PubMed →In postmenopausal women, creatine, particularly ≥ 5 g·day⁻¹ with RT, yields small but meaningful gains in lean mass and strength without evidence of harm.
Controlled trial, PLoS One, 2013, PMID 24098469
Negative Study
Read the paper on PubMed →Creatine supplementation did not promote any significant change in cognitive function and emotional parameters in apparently healthy older individuals.
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Creatine helps preserve muscle, bone and brain energy through perimenopause and menopause. Menopause stacks several declines at once: muscle, bone and thinking all take a hit. Creatine touches all three, which is why it is now framed as a midlife staple for women and not just a gym supplement.
Women carry lower baseline creatine stores, and those stores fall with age. Cynthia Thurlow, a guest on Mark Hyman's show, recommends creatine for women on that basis, for muscle, cognition and sleep through the change.
Creatine researcher Darren Candow, a guest on Rhonda Patrick's show, covers bone health. Creatine may cut bone resorption, the breakdown of old bone, when you pair it with weight-bearing exercise. That matters as estrogen's protection of bone falls away at menopause.
The brain fog complaint lands on the cognitive side, and the mechanism is energy. The brain burns about 20% of the body's energy and uses creatine to recycle ATP. The benefit shows up during stress, sleep deprivation and aging, with up to 10g/day through high-stress periods. Andrew Huberman frames creatine as brain fuel at 5g/day.
Creatine is not a hormone and not an HRT substitute. It supports muscle, bone and brain energy, but it does not replace estrogen or treat hot flashes. The dose is the standard 3-5g/day of monohydrate, and up to 10g/day for cognitive support, with no loading phase needed.
Elevated creatinine on bloodwork is a harmless byproduct of muscle metabolism, not kidney damage.
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