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Creatine,
a food supplement frequently used by professional and amateur athletes,
may prevent brain damage following traumatic brain injury, according to
a new research study.
Creatine is an amino acid produced
naturally in the liver, kidney and pancreas and is used as a way to store
energy.
Many athletes now use creatine
as a dietary supplement to increase muscle mass, strength, and the recovery
time of muscles between bursts of activity.
Each year
about 7 million people in North America experience
traumatic brain injuries (TBI),
the most common of which are concussions, caused by motor vehicle accidents,
falls, assaults and sports-related activities.
Of these injuries, about 300,000
are due to sports or recreational activities, particularly in the following
sports:
- Football
- Hockey
- Wrestling
- Skiing
- Baseball
- Boxing
These concussions can result
in subdural hematomas (bleeding under a membrane surrounding the brain),
loss of cognitive function or even death.
TBI
causes both primary and secondary damage.
The cause of the secondary
injury is not well understood, but appears to be associated with disruption
of the regulation of calcium levels in brain cells following injury. Regulation
of calcium levels is crucial to mitochondrial function and to proper adenosine
triphosphate (ATP) synthesis and use.
ATP
is a molecule that is present in all living cells and operates as the
energy source for the majority of the chemical reactions which take place
in cells.
- Researchers found that brain
damage in mice were reduced 21 percent and 36 percent when creatine
was administered three and five days before the TBI respectively.
- In rats fed a diet supplemented
with creatine for four weeks before TBI, brain
damage was reduced 50 percent.
Annals
of Neurology November, 2000 and Press Release from University
of Kentucky Medical Center
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