Creatine Use Among Women Across Reported Duration-of-Use Groups: A Platform-Based Cross-Sectional Survey of Supplementation Behaviors, Motivations, Knowledge, and Experiences.

backgroundCreatine is now discussed beyond sports performance and within women's health, cognition, fatigue, and healthy-aging contexts. However, little is known about the characteristics of women who use creatine or whether these characteristics differ across durations of use. This study characterized women reporting current or past-12-month creatine use in a large cross-sectional sample and benchmarked findings against men.

methodsIn a cross-sectional, supplement-platform convenience survey (approximately 2.0% response rate; a secondary analysis of a previously reported cohort), 2094 current or recent creatine users (1055 women, 1039 men; mean age 53 years [54.0 in women and 52.5 in men]) reported duration of use, supplementation goals, information sources, creatine knowledge alignment using a five-item battery, self-rated confidence, satisfaction, and intent to continue supplementation for another six months. Representation of women across six ordered duration bands was evaluated using an age-adjusted logistic model with duration as a categorical factor, with a Cochran-Armitage trend test reported alongside it. Among women, goals and information sources were compared across duration-of-use bands using unadjusted tests of homogeneity, and knowledge alignment was evaluated using an ordered trend test. Gender differences were estimated in age- and duration-adjusted models, pooled across duration groups, with Benjamini-Hochberg correction within domain; gender × duration interactions were tested for the goal and information-source outcomes. Self-rated confidence was modeled as a function of knowledge, gender, and their interaction.

resultsWomen comprised 50.0-63.9% of respondents across each reported duration category below three years but only 19.7% of those reporting 3+ years of use. In the primary age-adjusted analysis, gender composition differed strongly across duration categories (global

conclusionsAmong current and recent SuppCo users who responded to this survey, women showed a pattern of creatine use that differed from the historically performance-focused populations underlying much of the evidence base. Women were disproportionately represented in shorter reported duration-of-use categories, more often endorsed healthy aging and less often athletic performance, and reported different information sources than men. Lower knowledge alignment among shorter-duration women reflected greater uncertainty rather than greater endorsement of misconceptions, while women reported lower confidence than men at the highest observed knowledge levels. These findings suggest future research and education should go beyond efficacy trials in women to address who is using creatine, the outcomes they expect, where they obtain information, and how knowledge and confidence shape decision-making. Prospective studies are needed to determine what underlies the difference in women's representation across reported duration-of-use groups.