From Friday night football across Middle Tennessee to youth hockey and lacrosse, Nashville athletes and families know concussions are part of the conversation in contact sports. A new study out of Nebraska is giving them something to watch.

A new study from researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center looked at whether creatine hydrochloride (creatine HCl), a form of the popular muscle-building supplement, could help protect the brain after a traumatic brain injury (TBI). The early results, published October 22 as a preprint on bioRxiv, are drawing attention from athletes, coaches and parents of kids in contact sports.

Here’s what the research found, what it didn’t, and why it’s worth watching.

What the researchers studied

Concussions and other brain injuries do damage in two waves. The first comes from the impact itself. The second unfolds over the following days and weeks, as inflammation and energy problems in brain cells lead to more lost synapses and dying neurons. Creatine plays a central role in how cells store and use energy, which is why scientists have been exploring it for brain health, not just muscle.

The UNMC team gave mice creatine HCl from Vireo Systems, the company behind CON-CRĒT® Creatine HCl, using four different plans: water only, creatine only after the injury, creatine before and after the injury, and creatine before the injury followed by a higher dose for 14 days after. The researchers then measured brain tissue, blood markers and individual brain cells two weeks after a controlled brain injury.

What they found

• Less brain-cell loss in males. Male mice given creatine HCl, especially before and after the injury at the higher dose, had significantly fewer degenerating neurons in the hippocampus, the part of the brain tied to learning and memory.
• Less inflammation in females. Female mice on the higher-dose plan showed significantly less activation of the immune cells that drive brain inflammation after an injury.
• Stronger “brake” circuits. Both sexes showed changes in the inhibitory synapses that help keep brain activity balanced after an injury, though males and females got there in different ways.
• Healthier-looking behavior. The researchers noted that mice on creatine generally seemed more active after their injury. That wasn’t formally measured, and a follow-up study is planned to test it.

Just as important is what didn’t change. Creatine HCl did not shrink the overall size of the injury, and it didn’t change blood markers of brain damage at the two-week mark. The benefits showed up at the cellular level, not in the big-picture tissue damage.

The authors also translated the mouse doses into rough human equivalents: about 1.5 grams a day before an injury and 6 grams a day for two weeks after, using one common scaling method. That’s far less than the 20 grams a day or more of creatine monohydrate used in some earlier brain-injury research. The researchers say confirmation studies are still needed.

Why athletes and parents are paying attention

There’s currently no FDA-approved medication that can prevent or reverse brain damage from a TBI, so a safe, inexpensive supplement that might help is a big deal for anyone in a contact sport. According to Vireo Systems, a team of professional bull riders, one of the most concussion-prone sports there is, started using CON-CRĒT® Creatine HCl as part of their nutrition and strength program before the 2025 season and reported no concussions that season. The team has since formalized a creatine plan for its riders while more data is collected. That’s an early, observational report, not a controlled trial, but it’s one reason researchers want to keep studying this.

Vireo also points out that it’s the only company in the world making creatine in the United States, at a facility outside Omaha, Nebraska, that it’s currently expanding. Most of the world’s creatine comes from China, with a small share from Germany.

The bottom line

This is promising early research, and it’s worth keeping in context:

• It was done in mice, with small groups of four to six animals per group.
• It’s a preprint, meaning it hasn’t completed peer review yet. It has been submitted to the Journal of Neurotrauma.
• The study was funded by Vireo Systems, which also supplied the creatine.

Creatine is one of the most-studied supplements in sports nutrition, and research into its brain benefits keeps growing. If you or your athlete are thinking about adding creatine HCl to a routine, especially with a history of concussions, talk with your doctor or a sports medicine professional first. And if you suspect a concussion, get it checked out right away. No supplement replaces proper diagnosis, rest and a safe return-to-play plan.

Read the full study: Sex-Dependent Effects of Creatine Hydrochloride on Neuroinflammation, Neuronal Survival, and Inhibitory Synaptic Remodeling Following Traumatic Brain Injury in Mice (bioRxiv). Learn more about CON-CRĒT® Creatine HCl at con-cret.com.

This article is for general information only and isn’t medical advice.

Author: NFM Staff

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