NCAA and Creatine?

Conditioning
#1

The last couple days I have been trying to get a straight answer from someone on whether Creatine Monohydrate is a legal substance in the NCAA, and no one can tell me for sure. I asked my trainer at school and she said that it was not legal but then said she wasn’t for sure. A bunch of the guys on the team said that they thought it was banned as well. However no one was for sure, and then I just looked at the NCAA Banned Substance List on the website, and it’s not in there.
http://www1.ncaa.org/membership/ed_outreach/health-safety/drug_testing/banned_drug_classes.pdf

That should clarify it for me, but I was wondering why everyone else told me they thought it was illegal because they had to have heard it somewhere to have thought that. I would appreciate it if the answers were just answers to my questions. I know that there are people that don’t believe in creatine and others that swear by it. I took it this summer and it really helped. So if you could answer my question that would be great, but please leave your personal opinions on creatine out. Thanks.

#2

Well I figure you could just ask a trainer or strength coach, they would know.

University of Nebraska was the original university to actually supply their kids with creatine, but NCAA prevents any supplying of stuff now I believe.

That being said to test for creatine would probably require a muscle sample (cutting a portion from you) lol. A urine sample would show high levels of creatinine, however it could be high for several reasons.

Don’t blame me if I’m wrong, but I’m nearly sure it is legal. People have all sorts of myths about creatine. You naturally consume about 2g daily… provided your not a vegetarian.

#3

Problems have arisen from companies throwing illegal stuff in with innocent supplements. The customer tries it and gets great gains, and that makes them more likely to buy again. This has popped up several times with athletes that test positive. Sean Sherk, an MMA fighter who tested positive for steriods, had his supplements tested and a joint health supp actually came back positive.

The most safe alternative is to only buy from reputable manufacturers. I believe EAS is one of the only companies that tests every single batch produced. They have a deal with the NFL because of this. It’s more expensive but the purity is guaranteed.

http://register.eas.com/OA_HTML/ibeCCtpSctDspRte.jsp?section=11548&JServSessionIdroot=g6ule9wky1.pR9vq79yml1KahDJqA5KqAfvq70L/AjvqMTxpQOUahmKa30-&oraprddb_prod=359C42CD3538DF5BDC649D070822AB14&oraprddb_prod_pses=oraprddb_prod%3D359C42CD3538DF5BDC649D070822AB14~

#4

P.S. The only nutrional supplement listed as banned by the NCAA is ephedra. Creatine is fine.

#5

thanks guys…i thought it was legal, but then all these guys on the team were telling me it was illegal and my athletic trainer couldn’t give me a straight answer. i mean, if its not on the NCAA list then it is legal. good call on checking the other ingredients though! thanks agian.