Dietary Supplements and Middle Aged Women (Creatine)

The Effects of Dietary Supplements on Health and Wellbeing in Middle Aged Women

This study will examine the effects of combining different types of dietary supplements on various aspects of health and wellbeing in middle aged women. The main outcomes of the trial will be aspects of health and wellbeing that middle aged women report as increasingly problematic, such as joint pain, fatigue, sleep, and changes in body composition, strength, and inflammation. Participants will consume the supplement(s) or placebo for 8 weeks, and outcome measures will be assessed before and after supplementation.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Quality of Life; Joint Pain; Sleep; Cognition; Muscle Strength; Body Composition Changes; Bone Metabolism Biomarkers; Inflammation Biomarkers; Fatigue Symptom; Menopause Symptoms; Blood Pressure and Augmentation Index; Gastrointestinal Comfort
• Intervention / Treatment: Dietary supplement: Creatine Monohydrate; Dietary supplement: Placebo control

Detailed Description

Participants will be randomised to receive either creatine or maltodextrin to be taken daily for 8 weeks. Participants will first attend a familiarisation visit where consent will be given and cognitive function tests will be practised (letter comparison, backwards digit span test, and stroop color word tests). Participants will complete a 3-day food record diary before attending Visit 2. In Visit 2, participants will complete a range of questionnaires assessing physical activity, quality of life, sleep, menstrual cycle/menopause status and symptoms. Stature and body composition will be recorded. Blood pressure, augmentation index, and handgrip strength will be measured. Venous blood samples will be collected for later measures of inflammation, joint health, and fatty acid blood profile. Joint pain (under 3 conditions) and fatigue will be assessed using a 100mm Visual Analogue Scale. Gastrointestinal comfort will be rated using a Likert scale. Participants will be provided with another food record diary to complete 3 days prior to visit 3, and they will be given their supplements to consume for 8 weeks and a supplement log to track intake of supplements/medication. Visit 3 will occur 8 weeks after Visit 2 and it will follow the same format as Visit 2. Statistical analysis will be performed with linear mixed model and independent t-tests. Sample sizes are based on a prior estimations for these methods of analysis.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 38
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Dr Tom Clifford; Phone Number: +44 (0) 1509228181; Email: t.clifford@lboro.ac.uk

Study Locations

• United Kingdom
  • Loughborough, United Kingdom, LE11 3TU
    • Recruiting
    • Loughborough University
    • Contact: Dr Tom Clifford; Phone Number: +44 (0) 1509228181; Email: t.clifford@lboro.ac.uk

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Female
• Aged 35-65 years old
• Healthy, free from known disease
• Non-smoker
• BMI 18-30 kg/m2
• Classified as recreationally active (meet the WHO guidelines for physical activity: complete at least 150-300 minutes of moderate intensity activity or 75-150 minutes of vigorous intensity activity a week, plus muscle strengthening activities 2 or more days a week) OR sedentary (do not meet the minimum activity guidelines but do occasional and/or incidental physical activity, e.g., walking to work, household activities).

Exclusion Criteria:

• Currently have a musculoskeletal injury or diagnosed condition (CVD, osteoarthritis, diabetes, cancer, metabolic syndrome, uncontrolled hypertension, gastrointestinal disease, blood clotting disorder)
• Regularly taking prescription medication initiated in the last 3 months or unstable
• Have initiated hormone replacement therapy within the last 3 months or unstable
• Have an allergy to ingredients in the supplements or standardised breakfast
• Pregnant or breastfeeding, or any other contradictions to consuming the study supplements
• Lost more than 10% of body mass in the past 6 months or plan on trying to lose body mass during trial period
• Currently consuming the supplements being investigated and unwilling to stop
• Any known cognitive or visual impairments limiting ability to perform cognitive tests
• Unwilling to maintain current diet and physical activity levels and report any change in health status

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Triple

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Placebo Comparator: Placebo control	Dietary supplement: Placebo control; Maltodextrin for 8 weeks (~10 g/day)
Experimental: Creatine	Dietary supplement: Creatine Monohydrate; Creatine monohydrate for 8 weeks (~6 g/day)

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Cognitive function	Participants will complete 3 cognitive function tests on a laptop in a quiet room: the Letter Comparison test (measuring reaction time (ms) and accuracy (%)), the Backwards Digit Span test (measuring the longest correct span score), and the Stroop Colour Word test (measuring congruent/incongruent/neutral reaction time (ms) and accuracy (%), and the Interference Effect (calculated as incongruent reaction time - congruent reaction time).	8 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Body composition measured using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA)	The following body composition measures will be taken: body mass (kg), fat mass (kg), calculated fat percentage (%), fat free mass (kg), body mass index (kg/m2, calculated as body mass divided by height squared), total body water (L), calculated total body water percentage	8 weeks
Hand grip strength dynamometry (kg)	Hand grip strength will be assessed following the Southampton Protocol (Roberts et al., 2011), where 3 measures will be taken for each hand.	8 weeks
Blood pressure (mmHg)	After 10 minutes of seated rest, 3 blood pressure readings will be taken and recorded using an automated cuff.	8 weeks
Augmentation index	Augmentation index will be assessed using radial artery tonometry. Aortic Augmentation (AP, mmHg) and Aortic Augmentation Index (AP/PP, %) will be recorded.	8 weeks
Fatigue under 2 conditions measured by a 100 mm visual analogue scale (VAS)	Participants will place a vertical line on the scale (ranging from no fatigue at all (0 mm) to extremely fatigued (100 mm)) which will be measured and recorded. Participants will complete a visual analogue scale for 2 conditions: right now, and during daily activities in the last week (such as walking, getting up from chairs, exercising).	8 weeks
Sleep quality measured by Athens Insomnia Scale and a simple Sleep Quality Scale	The Athens Insomnia Scale is an 8-point questionnaire where participants rank different aspects of their sleep (sleep induction, awakenings during the night, final awakening, total sleep duration, overall sleep quality, sense of wellbeing during the day, functioning during the day, and sleepiness during the day) provided that it occurred at least 3 times in the last week from 0 (no issue) to 3 (serious issue). A lower total score indicates better sleep.	8 weeks
Quality of life assessed by the 36-Item Short Form Survey Instrument (SF-36)	A total score will be calculated, with a higher score indicating a better quality of life	8 weeks
Gastrointestinal comfort measure via a Likert Scale under 3 conditions	Participants select one option on the Likert scale ranging from 1 (no GI discomfort) to 4 (lots/frequent/extreme GI discomfort). There is a Likert Scale for each of the following conditions: GI discomfort right now, GI discomfort frequency in the last 8 weeks, and GI discomfort severity in the last 8 weeks.	8 weeks
Menstrual cycle/menopause symptom questionnaire	The questionnaire assesses 12 common menstrual cycle/menopause symptoms. Participants rate the severity (0 = none, to 3 = severe) and frequency (0 = never, to 3 = often) of these symptoms. A higher score indicates worse menstrual cycle/menopause symptoms	8 weeks
Joint pain assessed via a 100mm visual analogue scale (VAS)	Participants will place a vertical line on the scale (ranging from no pain (0 mm) to unbearable pain (100 mm)) which will be measured and recorded. Participants will complete a visual analogue scale for 3 conditions: after standing rest, after 5 body weight squats, and in response to pain levels during daily activities in the last week (such as walking, getting up from chairs, exercising).	8 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Loughborough University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): May 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): November 1, 2028
• Study Completion (Estimated): November 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 8, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 21, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): July 28, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 28, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 21, 2026
• Last Verified: July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Cognitive function; Creatine; Dietary supplements; Middle aged women
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pain; Neurologic Manifestations; Musculoskeletal Diseases; Joint Diseases; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Signs and Symptoms; Fatigue; Arthralgia; Amino Acids, Peptides, and Proteins; Organic Chemicals; Amino Acids; Guanidines; Amidines; Creatine
• Other Study ID Numbers: 23225b

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No