Creatine as Long Covid preventative and treatment
Creatine is most commonly used as a sporting supplement to assist with muscle growth and anaerobic endurance, but research has shown other therapeutic benefits likely to have direct and indirect benefits as a treatment for Long Covid and possibly as a preventative.
Creatine has been reported to generally improve cognitive performance in individuals suffering from severe stress, sleep deprivation or other cognitive impairment, highlighting it as a likely candidate for mitigating the cognitive impairments associated with Long Covid. It is also used as a therapeutic in rehabilitation after immobilization or injury and in treating various muscular dystrophies, which makes it an obvious candidate for COVID patients after lengthy hospitalization.
However, it is likely that the ideal window for addressing Long Covid is during acute illness. Creatine is known to be protective against brain injury arising from concussion and one speculated mechanism for this benefit is increased ATP concentration mitigating ischemic and hypoxic effects that arise after a traumatic brain injury. The same mechanism may be similarly protective against the effects of the low oxygen saturation characteristic of COVID-19.
·
treatment agreed, preventive unlikely.
jiayu wu · 7 Feb, 2023