Creatine
Last updated: August 9, 2026
Benefits
Helps muscles produce quick bursts of energy for strength and high-intensity effort; also studied for cognitive support. The body makes some and stores more from food.
How much you need
No Dietary Reference Intake — no RDA and no AI — has been established for Creatine. It's included in Tavita's library for the reasons described above, even though NASEM hasn't set a numeric daily target for it.
Upper limit
No tolerable upper limit has been established for Creatine. That's consistent with there being no standard daily target for it in either direction yet.
Best food sources
| Serving | ||
|---|---|---|
| Red meat (beef) | — | — |
| Pork | — | — |
| Salmon and herring | — | — |
| Tuna | — | — |
| Creatine monohydrate supplements | — | — |
Absorption & caution
Caution: Creatine has no daily reference intake and no established upper limit, so there is no target or ceiling on this screen — the amount shown is simply what you took. It also raises blood creatinine, which is what kidney function is usually estimated from, so an eGFR result can look worse than it is. Mention creatine to your clinician before kidney bloodwork.
Body systems & goals
Goals it supports
- Muscle building (established evidence)
- Athletic performance (established evidence)
Frequently asked questions
Is there an upper limit for Creatine?
No tolerable upper limit has been established for Creatine, based on current evidence reviewed by NASEM.
What foods are highest in Creatine?
Good sources include Red meat (beef), Pork, Salmon and herring, Tuna, and Creatine monohydrate supplements.
What does Creatine help with?
Helps muscles produce quick bursts of energy for strength and high-intensity effort; also studied for cognitive support. The body makes some and stores more from food.
How Tavita handles this
Tavita logs Creatine from both the food you eat and the supplements you take, adding both into one running daily total. There's no established daily target or upper limit for Creatine yet, so Tavita shows your intake plainly rather than manufacturing a percentage against a number NASEM hasn't set.
Sources
Figures on this page come from the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements fact sheets and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) Dietary Reference Intake tables — the same dataset that powers the Tavita app. They were independently re-verified by blind re-derivation on August 9, 2026. See the methodology page for how this library is built and kept current.
Tavita is not a medical provider. This page is educational information, not medical advice — talk to your clinician before changing your supplement or medication routine.