The menopause transition in and of itself does not accelerate the loss of lean muscle mass.
"We see age-related muscle loss that is exacerbated by physical inactivity. But you look at lean mass across the men the across the menopause transition and that in and of itself isn't accelerating the loss of of muscle." (said at 1:08:44)
Major prospective cohort studies tracking body composition across midlife demonstrate that the menopause transition itself is independently associated with an onset and acceleration of lean mass loss, distinct from chronological aging. In the multi-ethnic Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (SWAN; PMID: 30843880), piece-wise linear modeling showed that lean mass increased or remained stable prior to the menopause transition, began a significant decline at the transition's onset that persisted until two years post-final menstrual period (FMP), and then plateaued, confirming that accelerated loss of lean mass is a menopause-related phenomenon. Other longitudinal cohorts (e.g., the ERMA study, PMID: 32456169; Hong Kong Perimenopausal Women Osteoporosis Study, PMID: 20195288) similarly show independent declines in appendicular lean mass and muscle cross-sectional area directly associated with menopausal transition stages after adjusting for age and physical activity.
- contradicts: Changes in body composition and weight during the menopause transition. (JCI insight 2019) · cited 472x in the literature
"Fat and lean mass increased prior to the MT. At the start of the MT, rate of fat gain doubled, and lean mass declined; gains and losses continued until 2 years after the FMP. After that, the trajectories of fat and lean mass decelerated to zero slope... Accelerated gains in fat mass and losses of lean mass are MT-related phenomena." (abstract, results and conclusions, passage verified)
pubmedfull study (doi) - contradicts: Role of Menopausal Transition and Physical Activity in Loss of Lean and Muscle Mass: A Fol… (Journal of clinical medicine 2020) · cited 106x in the literature
"Significant decreases were seen in lean body mass (LBM), lean body mass index (LBMI), appendicular lean mass (ALM), appendicular lean mass index (ALMI), leg lean mass and thigh muscle cross-sectional area (CSA). Menopausal status was a significant predictor for all tested muscle mass variables, while physical activity was an additional significant contributor for LBM, ALM, ALMI, leg lean mass and relative muscle CSA." (abstract, results, passage verified)
pubmedfull study (doi)
Human research on the cognitive benefits of creatine supplementation has primarily been conducted in deficit or clinical populations such as Alzheimer's disease, SSRI-treated clinical depression, traumatic brain injury, or severe sleep deprivation.
"And the claims about brain health, I think, are premature because the data that we have to date are people in some kind of a deficit. So they were Alzheimer's patients. They were clinically depressed and also taking SSRIs. They were undergoing extreme sleep deprivation. They had a traumatic brain injury." (said at 1:42:20)
The speaker's claim that cognitive research on creatine has only or primarily evaluated individuals in deficit states (such as Alzheimer's disease, SSRI-treated clinical depression, severe sleep deprivation, or traumatic brain injury) is contradicted by the literature. Multiple systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials demonstrate that numerous studies have evaluated oral creatine supplementation in healthy, non-deficit populations, including healthy young adults and older adults under normal baseline conditions, finding modest improvements in domains such as memory and processing speed.
- contradicts: Effects of creatine supplementation on cognitive function of healthy individuals: A system… (Experimental gerontology 2018) · cited 159x in the literature
"Six studies (281 individuals) met our inclusion criteria. Generally, there was evidence that short term memory and intelligence/reasoning may be improved by creatine administration. ... Oral creatine administration may improve short-term memory and intelligence/reasoning of healthy individuals but its effect on other cognitive domains remains unclear." (abstract, results and conclusions)
pubmedfull study (doi) - contradicts: Effects of creatine supplementation on memory in healthy individuals: a systematic review … (Nutrition reviews 2023) · cited 68x in the literature
"Ten RCTs examining the effect of creatine supplementation compared with placebo on measures of memory in healthy individuals met the inclusion criteria for systematic review, 8 of which were included in the meta-analysis. Overall, creatine supplementation improved measures of memory compared with placebo (standard mean difference [SMD] = 0.29, 95%CI, 0.04-0.53; I2 = 66%; P = 0.02)." (abstract, results, passage verified)
pubmedfull study (doi) - contradicts: The effects of creatine supplementation on cognitive function in adults: a systematic revi… (Frontiers in nutrition 2024) · cited 39x in the literature
"Sixteen RCTs involving 492 participants aged 20.8-76.4 years, including healthy individuals and patients with specific diseases, were selected. ... Creatine supplementation showed significant positive effects on memory (SMD = 0.31, 95% CI: 0.18-0.44, Hedges's g = 0.3003, 95% CI: 0.1778-0.4228) and attention time" (abstract, results)
pubmedfull study (doi)
Creatine supplementation in the absence of an exercise stimulus does not increase muscle mass.
"And if you're not exercising, I really wouldn't bother taking creatine. It's not going to just increase muscle mass when you don't have the stimulus for muscle growth." (said at 1:41:57)
Randomized controlled trial evidence demonstrates that creatine supplementation without exercise training can increase lean tissue mass and strength in sedentary individuals. Furthermore, creatine confers benefits beyond muscle hypertrophy—such as cognitive and metabolic improvements—contradicting the assertion that it is pointless to take without an exercise stimulus.