NOW’s award-winning testing program, which has identified many failing products since 2017, turned its attention recently to creatine gummies when the disconnect between claimed dosage and technical capabilities raised a red flag. This exercise raised a second red flag when, following the testing program’s usual practice of simultaneous testing by a respected outside lab, none of the outside labs NOW has vetted and approved are capable of testing gummies.
Creatine, a compound produced in our bodies to help give muscles short-term energy*, is a popular dietary supplement, as evidenced by SPINS reporting 52% year-on-year sales volume growth. A survey of several brands of creatine gummies was performed to understand the quality available in the marketplace: Astro Labs, Bear Balanced, Beast Bites, Bod, Create, Create, Con-cret, Effective Nutra, Greabby, Iron Labs Nutrition, Njord, Peach Perfect, and Zhou. Creatine dosages around 5 grams (5,000 mg) are frequently recommended, and the tested samples made label claims between 750 mg and 5,000 mg per serving. The number of gummies per serving also varied between 1 and 5 gummies, and the grams of creatine claimed per gummy were between 250 mg and 1,700 mg.
NOW tested the creatine content in the gummies, purchased either on Amazon or direct from the brands, by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Creatine quantitation was performed using a creatine reference standard of a known concentration. The results are shown in the table below.
Photograph of gummy samples tested: 1-Astro Labs, 2-Bear Balanced, 3-Beast Bites, 4-Bod, 5-Create, 6-Con-Cret, 7-Effective Nutra, 8-Greabby, 9-Iron Labs Nutrition, 10-Njord, 11-Peach Perfect, 12-Zhou. Most samples were opaque, but 1-Astro Labs, 3-Beast Bites, 6-Con-Cret, 8-Greabby, and 10-Njord, were translucent. It is worth noting that Bod and Peach Perfect were likely distributed by the same company and that Bod, Peach Perfect, and Effective Nutra had identical formulations and were likely made by a single manufacturer.
The brands Bear Balance, Bod, Effective Nutra, Iron Labs Nutrition, Peach Perfect, and Zhou all met their label claim. However, Astro Labs, Beast Bites, Create, Con-Cret, Greabby, and Njord failed to meet the label claim, resulting in a 46% failure rate. The NOW testing team observed that the bear-shaped products (samples 1, 8 & 10) have slightly different colors and potency, but they seem to be made by the same supplier. On the other hand, samples 4, 7 & 11 tested above the label claim and seem to be made by a single supplier.
Gummy brands testing below label claim were also tested for creatinine using HPLC. Several creatine gummies were found to contain significant amounts of this unwanted creatine metabolite, while also not meeting their claimed creatine strength. Creatinine is a waste product that naturally builds up in blood when muscles are exercised. Bodies produce creatinine at a constant rate, and kidneys usually eliminate almost all of it. Having very high or low creatinine levels can be a health concern; creatinine supplements are not recommended. Creatine in powder form is stable, but when mixed with water can turn into creatinine. Gummies are not an ideal form for creatine supplements because water is used to make gummies, so it can be difficult to get the correct dosage of creatine.
Astro Labs, Greabby, and Njord had a small amount of creatinine detected, while Beast Bites, Create, and Con-Cret had large amounts of creatinine present. Taking the creatine and creatinine data together shows that Astro Labs, Greabby, and Njord likely had a minimal amount of creatine, almost all of which converted to creatinine. Beast Bites and Con-Cret likely had a larger amount of creatine that mostly turned into creatinine. Create, which came close to meeting the label claim, had a nearly good amount of creatine that was partially turned into creatinine. However, even combined creatinine and creatine test results failed to add up to creatine claims for this group of products, so these formulations with low creatine test results versus label claims apparently failed to add sufficient creatine.
NOW apparently has one of the few industry labs that can test gummies accurately. “We were surprised that none of the third-party labs we typically use, which we consider the best, said they were able to test these gummies,” said NOW Senior Director of Quality Katie Banaszewski. “Given the rapid growth of that delivery system and the regulatory requirement to confirm label compliance, the industry needs to find a solution to this dearth of testing capacity.”
