How to store creatine? Expiration date after opening

Forms of Creatine

Bodybuilders and powerlifters use a lot of energy during training. To replenish reserves, they take sports nutrition with creatine. There are several forms of creatine. They all differ slightly in properties; each athlete determines which one is better for himself. The most popular forms:

1. Kre-Alkalyn is a formula patented by the Geff Golini company (2002). Increases strength, muscle endurance, improves training performance.
2. Creatine anhydrous (anhydrous). The concentration of the substance per serving is approximately 6% higher than other forms, but this does not affect the effectiveness.
3. Tartrate. The form is used for the manufacture of sports nutrition in the form of tablets, capsules, and chewing strips.
4. Citrate. Due to the addition of a citric acid molecule, creatine of this form is more easily soluble in water. Citrate is used to prepare effervescent tablets.
5. Hydrochloride. The form has higher bioavailability.
6. Monohydrate. The “classical” form, according to experts, is by far the best, or at least clinically studied.

The last two forms are the most common. Therefore, it would be useful to know what the shelf life of creatine monohydrate and hydrochloride is. This will avoid trouble.

How does creatine work?

Creatine supplements work by increasing muscle stores of phosphocreatine, the storage form of creatine ().

When your main source of energy, adenosine triphosphate (ATP), is depleted, your body uses phosphocreatine stores to make more ATP. It helps athletes train longer, boosts anabolic hormones, and aids cell signaling, among other beneficial effects ().

There are many types of creatine available, such as:

• creatine monohydrate
• creatine ethyl ester
• creatine hydrochloride (HCL)
• creatine gluconate
• buffer creatine
• liquid creatine

However, the most common and well-studied form is creatine monohydrate.

Summary:

Creatine helps improve physical performance, promotes muscle growth, and has a number of other beneficial properties. It works by increasing your body's phosphocreatine stores, which help make ATP your body's primary source of energy.

What is the difference between creatine monohydrate and hydrochloride?

Many manufacturers are constantly trying to improve the properties of creatine by introducing various improvements. There have been many attempts, but monohydrate remains the constant leader. Not long ago, a new form of creatine was released for sale - hydrochloride. In fact, the technology has long been known and borrowed from medicine. The essence of the technology is that when hydrochloride molecules are added to the main substance, its solubility in water and, as a result, bioavailability improves.

The shelf life of creatine monohydrate and hydrochloride is the same, as are their properties. The only difference is that the hydrochloride starts working a little faster. But this property was enough to take second place among sports nutrition products based on nitrogen-containing carboxylic acid.

Gainer: shelf life of opened dry and diluted

But remember, the side effect of being flooded with fluid is not only extra pounds, but also shock-absorbing fluid on your joints and ligaments, which protects you from injury. Creatine monohydrate gives the best results in combination with cheap maltose gainers.

In our country, lawns in the garden or in front of the house were not particularly popular before. Most summer residents preferred to use the land rationally and set up beds, flower beds, and greenhouses on their plots. Buy normal, not expired goods and rock, grow and everything will be ok. Only a stingy person spends money twice. I hope I answered your question: “Is it possible to drink stitched creatine?”

Does creatine even have an expiration date?

In order to be able to sell beauty and health products, you must obtain a certificate of conformity. According to the established rules, its validity period is not established. The certificate is valid for sales during the shelf life of the product that is subject to this certification. Consequently, the manufacturer will not be able to sell goods without a specified shelf life.

Creatine, in fact, is an acid that changes its properties after a certain period. Sports nutrition is mainly produced in powder or solid form and can be stored for a long time. The packaging indicates the storage time, which is counted from the date of manufacture.

After opening the creatine, the expiration date is still counted from the production date. The duration of storage depends on the additional components in the sports nutrition composition.

Marking

Important! To begin with, it is worth noting that clause 4.7 of clause 4 of GOST 56202-2014 states that dietary supplements, including creatine, must be packaged and labeled in accordance with the rules prescribed in the Technical Regulations CU 022/2011 and 005/2011.

Thus, the following terms should be indicated on the packaging of creatine (clause 4.1, article 4 of TR CU 022/2011):

1. Date of manufacture - here is the date, month and year in which the dietary supplement was produced. In this case, a designation consisting of the following words is used: “Date of manufacture.” After this phrase, a specific period may be immediately indicated or a reference may be made to the place of packaging where such information can be viewed.
2. Best before date – here the manufacturer offers the following options to choose from:
   you can write “expiration date” and indicate the month and year of creatine use;
3. use of the wording “best before” indicating the full date (day, month, year).

Information about the expiration date and manufacture of creatine must be indicated on the following types of packaging:

• transport;
• consumer, including the label affixed to it (if any).

In addition, the manufacturer must also indicate the basic rules for storing creatine. This is written in clause 6, clause 4.1, article 4 of TR CU 022/2011.

How can I find out the dates if the dietary supplement was purchased abroad?

Reference. In most cases, the creatine purchased by many athletes is of foreign origin, that is, imported from abroad. In this regard, it is not always clear where exactly the expiration date of a given dietary supplement is written and what it looks like.

So, you can find this information on the back or side of the can. Typically, it is denoted as follows:

• “EXP **/**” – this wording indicates the month and year before which creatine can be consumed.
• “MFD **/**” – the month and year of manufacture are written here.

In addition, if there is no information on the can indicating the expiration date of creatine (in many countries the state does not oblige manufacturers to write this information on the packaging), then you should find the batch code (encrypted in the barcode) and determine the production date by him.

Shelf life of creatine monohydrate

This type of sports nutrition is the most popular and is produced by most specialized companies. Available in capsules or powder, which is diluted in water before use.

The production of sports nutrition in Russia is poorly developed, so the market is confidently occupied by European and American companies. The most popular creatine supplements and their expiration dates:

1. One of the leaders in sports nutrition "Muskultech". The additive in powder form is packaged in jars of various sizes. MyscleTech can be stored for no more than 3 years.
2. The shelf life of creatine powder from Universal Nutrition is also 3 years.
3. Another popular supplement is Pure Creatine. Its shelf life is 3 years.
4. Creatine in Kre-Alkalyn EFX capsules has a shelf life of 5-6 years, depending on the name of the product.
5. Weider sports nutrition powder can be stored for 2 years.

The same formulas are used in the production of supplements, so the shelf life of creatine-based sports nutrition is on average 3 years.

How long can monohydrate and its compounds be stored?

The production of sports nutrition in Russia is poorly developed, so the market is confidently occupied by European and American companies.

Thus, when you buy a gainer, study carefully not only how to choose a gainer, but also the expiration dates and storage rules.

If you are interested in the question: does a beginner need to take creatine? - it is also better to contact a specialist with this question. For one body, taking monohydrate may be indicated literally from the first workouts, while for another, it will begin to experience an increased need for the substance, starting 1-2 weeks after the start of training. Changes like these may indicate the presence of bacteria, but it is very unlikely that they will develop unless the additive has been left open for many days at room temperature.

How long does diluted creatine last?

Before use, creatine powder is diluted in water or juice. Usually the mixture is prepared immediately before use, since carboxylic acid, entering a liquid medium, enters into a chemical reaction and begins to change properties.

The reaction proceeds slowly, so the so-called shelf life of diluted creatine is no more than 3 hours at t +2…+8 °C.

The optimal liquid for diluting the additive is water. It does not destroy the structure and properties of creatine, does not cause allergies in humans and is always available. Creatine can always be diluted immediately before use.

Questions about Creatine Monohydrate (Ultimate Nutrition) 300 g

Rules for storing creatine powder

Creatine-based sports nutrition does not require any special conditions. If there are small children in the house, the packaging should be placed out of their reach. There is no need to observe the temperature regime; creatine is stored at normal room temperature.

The only thing that matters is humidity. The opened jar should be stored in a dry place; a shelf located on the wall is considered a good place. The container should be tightly closed and shaken periodically before use to prevent crystallization of the powder.

If the powder begins to coke, it should be kneaded with your fingers. Once opened, the shelf life of creatine monohydrate does not decrease. It depends on the date of manufacture. In general, storage conditions are specified in detail on each package. Compliance with them guarantees long-term preservation of the product.

Storage conditions

How and for how long creatine powder and capsules can be stored is indicated by the manufacturer. If the product is in capsules, it does not require special storage conditions. It is enough to keep it at a temperature of up to +25°C.

The dietary supplement in powder is more demanding in terms of storage conditions. Air humidity is very important for her. It should be remembered that the shelf life of creatine after opening for a powdered product in a damp place is significantly reduced. Therefore, it must be sent to a dark, dry place. And after each use, close the lid tightly.

Can creatine be stored in the refrigerator? Considering that there is a high level of humidity , you should not keep a jar of dry powder there. Also, you should not leave it in the bathroom, kitchen, or other places where it will quickly become damp.

Even accidental liquid should not be allowed to enter the container with the drug. Then even thorough drying of the dietary supplement will not return it to its original quality.

Is expired creatine dangerous?

There are cases when sports nutrition does not have time to be consumed before the expiration date. Supplements are expensive and it’s a shame to throw them away.

On all packaging, the manufacturer indicates the expiration date of creatine, after which the product is unsafe to use. In most cases, companies are insured. It is believed that the supplement is not only safe to use, but is also effective for six months after the expiration date. True, there is one thing: the powder in the jar must remain unchanged in consistency and color.

If creatine is spoiled (the annotation describes in detail what is meant by this concept) or the expiration date expired more than 6 months ago, it is not recommended to take such a supplement. Consuming such a product may cause stomach upset or even food poisoning.

Does the supplement have a shelf life?

Before writing this article, we analyzed many bodybuilding and strength sports forums and saw that most athletes are not afraid to take expired creatine and it does not even cause any side effects. In some cases, the effectiveness of expired creatine was noticeably reduced, but there were no adverse health effects.

In most cases, high-quality sports nutrition is produced in America or European countries. If you come across expired creatine from an unknown manufacturer, it is still better to refuse to use it, since doubts about its safety remain even if it is new.

Undoubtedly, like any other chemical compound intended for consumption, creatine also has a certain shelf life during which it remains suitable for use for its main purpose.

Reference.
In accordance with clause 4

Article 5 of the Federal Law of the Russian Federation “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”

Shelf life refers to the period of time after which a product becomes unsuitable for further use.

Thus, within the expiration date, the manufacturer guarantees customers the safety of all performance indicators and consumer properties of the purchased product. In this case, an important condition that the consumer must comply with is the correct storage of the purchased product.

In paragraph 4 of Art. 5 of the above-mentioned Law of the Russian Federation states that for certain types of goods the manufacturer is obliged to set expiration dates. These include:

• Food;
• medicines;
• perfumes and cosmetics, etc.

Thus, a complete list of such products is reflected in the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated June 16, 1997 No. 720. This also includes dietary supplements (biologically active additives), which include creatine.

Thus, the manufacturer is obliged to set an expiration date for creatine. The sale of this food additive without compliance with this requirement is prohibited by law (clause 5 of article 5).

In general, it can be noted that in the current legislative system of the Russian Federation there is no separate GOST regulating the process of creatine production. This issue is regulated within the framework of the general GOST 56202-2014 “Specialized food products...”, which applies to all biological active additives.

In accordance with the provisions set out in Article 473 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the shelf life of the product begins to be calculated from the date of its manufacture, that is, from the moment when the production process was completely completed and packaging was carried out.

As a rule, the instructions make a note that this dietary supplement should not be consumed after the expiration date. At the same time, according to reviews from some athletes, it is quite suitable for use for another 6-8 months after the period of use specified in the instructions has expired. However, it's not worth the risk.

The following signs may indicate that the additive has deteriorated:

• formation of lumps (relevant for powder);
• the appearance of traces of mold;
• color change.

Thus, creatine can be stored for 2-3 years, while maintaining its basic consumer properties. The main thing is to prevent moisture from getting into the jar, and also protect it from direct sunlight.

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