[245] - Creatine Not Just for the Gym — What Every Shift Worker Over 40 Should Know

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Are you grinding through night shifts, battling brain fog at 3AM, and wondering if there’s anything that can actually help? You might be overlooking one of the most powerful – and affordable – tools out there: creatine monohydrate.

In this breakthrough episode of A Healthy Shift, renowned shift work expert Roger Sutherland flips the script on creatine. Long associated with gym culture and bodybuilders, creatine is now emerging as a science-backed cognitive enhancer – especially for those working against their circadian rhythm.

Roger breaks down the latest 2024 research revealing creatine’s remarkable impact on memory, processing speed, and reaction time during sleep deprivation. For shift workers who need to stay sharp in the early hours, this could be a total game changer.

Inside this episode:

• Why creatine isn’t just for muscle – it’s for your mind
• The real benefits for shift workers over 40 (yes, it supports menopause, bone health, and even testosterone!)
• Debunking common myths: No, creatine won’t wreck your kidneys or cause hair loss
• How to start: A simple daily dose (just 5g!) that fits into any routine

Whether you're a nurse, paramedic, firefighter, or night shift warrior in any industry – this episode is your blueprint to not just surviving shift work, but thriving.

Tune in now and take the first step toward clearer thinking, better decision-making, and more energy – even at 3AM.

Subscribe to A Healthy Shift for more expert insights and science-backed strategies to master your health while working around the clock.

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Disclaimer: Roger Sutherland is not a doctor or a medical professional. Always consult a physician before implementing any strategies mentioned in this podcast. Use of this information is strictly at your own risk. Roger Sutherland will not assume any liability for direct or indirect losses or damages that may result from the use of the information contained in this podcast including but not limited to economic loss, injury, illness, or death.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:07):
Shift work can be brutal, but it doesn't have to
be.
Welcome to a healthy shift.
My name is Roger Sutherland,certified nutritionist, veteran
law enforcement officer and 24-7shift worker for almost four
decades.
Through this podcast, I aim toeducate shift workers, using
evidence-based methods, to notonly survive the rigours of

(00:29):
shift work, but thrive.
My goal is to empower shiftworkers to improve their health
and wellbeing so they have moreenergy to do the things they
love.
Enjoy today's show and welcomeback to another episode of a
Healthy Shift Podcast.
Me.
I'm your host, roger Sutherland, former shift worker,

(00:52):
well-being coach, and I'm goingto call myself a big achiever
and a big believer in helpingshift workers to not just
survive, but absolutely thrivein their shift working
environment.
Survive, but absolutely thrivein their shift working
environment.
Today I really want to talkabout I want to challenge you
about what you might think aboutcreatine, which is what I'm
going to do.
I talk about it a lot on mysocial media and it's time that

(01:15):
it was actually addressed in alonger form so that I can
literally explain it more.
And today I'm going to talk allabout creatine monohydrate.
At the start, from the outset,I want to talk about the fact
that we are talking aboutcreatine monohydrate here, which
is the cheapest form ofcreatine.

(01:36):
Creatine's not expensive.
Don't get sucked in by all ofthe different types of creatine
that there is out on the marketthere.
Just creatine monohydrate.
Brands doesn't matter, just getcreatine monohydrate, it's all
the same thing.
Now you might have heard thatit's just for bodybuilders or
young blokes smashing proteinshakes, walking around in a

(01:56):
stringer singlet in the gym, butcreatine is so much more than
that, especially if you are over40 and working shifts and
you're trying to stay sharp andstrong.
So let's get into it.
First of all, I want to talkabout what is creatine.
Now.
Creatine is a compound that ismade up of three amino acids

(02:18):
arginine, glycine and methionine.
Your body makes creatinenaturally, and you also get some
from meat and from fish, so ifyou're vegetarian, you're
probably not getting any at all.
Once it's in your system,creatine is stored in your
muscles and brain asphosphocreatine.

(02:40):
Now what this does is it helpsyour cell to make quick energy,
especially during stress, likesprinting, lifting or even
thinking hard when you'rerunning on no sleep.
It is one of the mostresearched supplements on the
planet.
It is safe, it is cheap and itis very, very effective.

(03:03):
You don't cycle on and off it.
Once you start taking it, youtake it every day forever.
So why should shift workers over40 care about creatine?
Well, as we age, and especiallyduring shift work, things get
so much harder Hormone levelschange, muscle mass drops, brain
fog creeps in.

(03:24):
Hormone levels change, musclemass drops, brain fog creeps in.
And for females, menopause,males, low testosterone, poor
sleep and it all starts to addup.
Here's how creatine can reallyhelp For women, especially after
menopause.
It supports bone health byboosting bone mineral density
and, combined with resistancetraining and we should all be

(03:45):
doing that, all of us should beresistance training creatine
helps to build and maintain leantissue, which is muscle, and we
all need that because we fallover.
We want to be able to get upand off the chair and off the
toilet without having to havechrome rails.
Keep that in mind.
It improves balancecoordination and it also reduces

(04:09):
the risk of falls.
Now for men, creatine maysupport testosterone by
increasing DHT, which is a morepotent form linked to strength
and recovery.
Now, for everybody else, andfor everyone, males and females
creatine literally supportscognitive function, memory,

(04:32):
focus and energy, which matterswhen you're trying to stay sharp
.
At what time?
3am.
Hello, shift workers.
Now there is also new researcharound that creatine helps
during extended periods ofwakefulness.
So let's talk about that,because I think this is
something that's really, reallyimportant that people miss.

(04:57):
In 2024, a clinical trial waspublished in Scientific Reports,
and researchers looked at whathappens when healthy adults stay
awake for 21 hours.
Heaven forbid.
They gave them a single highdose of creatine.
Now, the dose that they gavethem was 0.35 grams per kilogram

(05:19):
of body weight and they testedtheir mental performance
throughout the night.
Now, 0.35, I'm going to tellyou, if you weigh 90 kilos,
you're taking 30 grams,approximately 30 grams of
creatine.
30 grams, which is about 10scoops, it's a lot, and you
wouldn't want to be taking itall at the same time because it

(05:41):
may upset your gut.
But I'll talk about later onhow we can actually take that.
Now, what was the result of thetest?
The creatine actually improvedmemory, processing speed and
reaction time, even in the earlymorning hours.
Now this is really importantfor us shift workers.

(06:02):
It also helped to stabilisebrain energy, it prevent drops
in pH and it also protectedagainst mental fatigue.
The participants that took partalso performed significantly
better in logic, language andnumeric tasks the kind of
thinking that you rely on tostay safe and accurate as you

(06:22):
are working during your longnights.
Now this is a big deal, becausecreatine may help to protect
your brain during extendedperiods of wakefulness, making
it one of the few supplementsthat's not only safe and
effective for shift workersfacing sleep loss, but also for
those bodybuilders.
Now this isn't just aboutlong-term benefits anymore,

(06:44):
because this study also showsshort-term effects as well.
So what that means is, ifyou're not taking creatine and
then you were to take a superdose, it also works that way as
well, but you would have to betaking more, and if you're not
used to taking it, it may verywell cause gastric disturbance.

(07:06):
So keep that in mind.
Now let's just look at some ofthe common myths and let's clear
up the air around these,because this is really important
.
Myth number one is thatcreatine causes hair loss.
Now I need to address this,because I've seen this written
so many places.
This idea came from one tinylittle study and it has

(07:29):
absolutely no substantial orsolid evidence that supports it,
and it's actually never beenproven.
It was correlation, notcausation.
The other thing is.
Myth two is creatine is bad foryour kidneys?
Not in healthy people, multiplestudies, even with that
extremely high dose, shows noharm to kidney function at all.

(07:54):
And the other myth is you'vegot to be a gym rat to take it.
Nope, creatine benefits yourmuscles, bones and your brain.
So whether you train hard oryou just want to move better and
think clearer, creatine is foryou.
The other thing that I need tobe very clear for you is this,

(08:17):
and that is how to take creatine.
Creatine is not something thatyou look at and you go oh yeah,
I'm taking creatine because it'sin my pre-workout.
It's something that you need totake every single day, and you
need to take five grams betweenthree and five grams every
single day, and that equates toabout a teaspoon.
So all you got to do is justmix it into water, mix it into

(08:40):
juice, or you could even justmix it into your coffee and
drink it.
Take it every day, at any time.
Just be consistent aroundcreatine.
That's all you got to do.
Take it any time, but make sureyou take it every day and be
consistent daily, not just whenit's in your pre-workout.
So if you are targetingcognitive performance like

(09:03):
you're going into a run ofnights.
Some people will go up to 10grams a day, split into two
doses.
But always check with yourdoctor if you've got any other
health conditions.
Just because I said it doesn'tmean just go and do it.
Have a chat with your doctorabout it as well, or someone who
totally understands creatine.
But the research shows it'sperfectly safe.

(09:24):
So why does this actuallymatter for shift workers?
You're up all hours, you'resleep deprived, you're trying to
stay awake, you're makingdecisions, you're lifting
patients, writing reports,responding to emergencies.
Creatine can actually help tosupport you through all of that.
So let's just go through andrecap.
It improves muscle and bonestrength, it protects brain

(09:48):
function even during sleepdeprivation, and it boosts
mental sharpness when fatiguehits the hardest.
And it's safe, it's affordableand it is literally backed by
decades of research.
So if you're over 40 and you'reworking shifts and you're
feeling the drag, creatine isdefinitely worth a look.

(10:10):
It's not magic, but it is oneof the few supplements that is
extremely well researched and istruly useful for what we do as
a job.
Whether you're dealing withmenopause, aging, fatigue or
you're just trying to feelbetter on night shift, this may
very well help.

(10:30):
And if you want the references Imentioned.
I'll just pop it into the shownotes.
So there's creatine.
I highly recommend that everysingle person, particularly
shift workers, takes creatineevery single day and there's no
need to cycle it.
I'll catch you on the nextepisode.
Thank you for listening.

(10:58):
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