The pilot study adds to a growing number of studies evaluating creatine’s impact on cognitive performance, specifically using guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) to aid creatine transportation to the brain.
This combination appeared to not only improve in-game performance but also several standardized cognitive tests assessing reaction time, accuracy and executive control, according to Sergej Ostojic, PhD, head of the Applied Bioenergetics Lab at the University of Novi Sad, Serbia and an author on the study.
“It is therefore plausible that this combination of supplements could be similarly effective in other games that heavily depend on these cognitive functions, although further research is needed to confirm this,” he told NutraIngredients.
Creatine: More than a sports supplement?
Commonly used as an ergogenic aid, creatine is well-known for its reported ability to improve exercise performance and aid in muscle recovery. Recently, however, researchers have begun to focus on creatine’s potential role in boosting cognitive performance.
Creatine is an essential compound for the brain and may aid various brain regions in terms of energy supply and neuroprotection. While previous research has shown that supplementation can improve brain creatine levels, this does not always translate into improvements in cognitive performance tasks.
Dr. Ostojic and his colleagues at the University of Novi Sad, Serbia suggest this may be due to the limited transport capacity of creatine to the brain.
One potential solution to this problem is the administration of GAA, a direct precursor of creatine, which may be more effective in increasing cerebral creatine levels than creatine itself.
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Study details
To conduct their pilot study, Dr. Ostojic and his team employed an open-label quasi-experimental design. There was no control group; instead all 10 young male esports athletes consumed a GAA-creatine mixture (2 g of creatine and 2 g of GAA) twice daily.
Participants were assessed at baseline and at the end of the study (four weeks) for any changes to esports performance and cognition.
The game-specific performance was evaluated using a best-of-three-games format, with each participant playing Dota 2, a multiplayer online battle arena game. Data on the number of in-game kills and ‘last hits’, as well as the amount of currency and experience points earned, were added up to generate total performance scores.
Cognitive tests—including the Stroop Color and Word Test and the Attention Network Test—were also conducted immediately after the esports session to evaluate any improvements to cognitive performance. Blood samples were also analyzed for GAA, creatine and creatinine.
Results promising but should be interpreted with caution
Overall, co-administering creatine with GAA for four weeks led to significant improvements in esports performance, with average scores following the final game improving by 30.1%.
Cognitive test scores also improved, with participants demonstrating improved reaction time, accuracy and executive control after four weeks of supplementation.
In addition, the blood test analysis revealed that circulating creatine levels increased compared to baseline and reduced the occurrence of game-induced rise in creatinine levels.
Taken together, the results suggest that creatine-GAA supplementation may serve as an effective performance-enhancing intervention strategy for esports. However, the findings should be interpreted with caution, according to Dr. Ostojic.
“[Our study] has several limitations, including the absence of a placebo-controlled group,” he said. “Furthermore, the observed improvements in performance following creatine-GAA supplementation may, at least in part, be attributed to a learning effect—although this is less likely given that our participants were highly experienced e-gamers.”
Nevertheless, Dr. Ostojic says the results are “highly promising” and if replicated, could have important implications for the esports industry.
“In future studies, we plan to recruit both male and female participants in adequately powered designs and extend the supplementation period, ideally to six months,” he added.
“Although we observed some minor alterations in creatine-related biomarkers in the current study, further investigations will focus on changes in cerebral creatine levels. In particular, we aim to explore the potential contribution of GAA, which may enhance brain creatine uptake—a process that is typically limited with creatine alone.”
Source: Current Nutrition & Food Science. doi: 10.2174/0115734013384498250508080231. “Creatine-Guanidinoacetic Acid Supplementation Improves Esports Performance in Young Men”. Authors: B. Andelic, et al.