The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of 4 weeks of creatine supplementation on cognitive function using the ImPACT test in vegetarians, subjects that consumed 1–10 servings of beef, chicken, pork, or fish per week, and subjects that consumed greater than 10 servings of beef, chicken, pork or fish per week. In a randomized, double‐blind placebo‐controlled study, twenty‐five subjects were divided into two groups. One group received creatine while the other group received a placebo. Subjects completed a 5‐day loading phase (20 grams per day) followed by a 24‐day maintenance phase (5 grams per day). Cognitive function was assessed prior to supplementation and immediately after a 4‐week supplementation phase. The ImPACT test was used and provides 6 measures of cognitive function. There were no significant changes in any of the cognitive measures between groups. However, vegetarians in the creatine group scored significantly higher than subjects who consumed greater than 10 servings of beef, chicken, pork or fish per week on the visual memory test. Preliminary analysis suggests that acute supplementation of creatine may enhance cognition in vegetarians but have no effect on those who consume meat regularly in their diet.

This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.