Does Creatine Cause Hair Loss

The entire claim rests on a single study from 2009 that measured hormones in 20 rugby players and never measured hair at all. It has not been replicated. A 2021 meta-analysis of 12 studies found no significant effect of creatine on testosterone or DHT, and a 2025 randomised controlled trial that did measure hair density and follicle counts found no difference against placebo. On current evidence, creatine is not causing your hair loss.

Key points

• The 2009 study by van der Merwe and colleagues followed 20 college rugby players and found DHT rose around 56% during a high-dose loading phase and stayed around 40% above baseline, while testosterone did not change.

• That study never measured hair density, follicle counts or shedding, and its hormonal finding has not been replicated in the 17 years since.

• A 2021 systematic review and meta-analysis of 12 studies covering 276 participants found no significant change in total testosterone, free testosterone or DHT with creatine.

• A 2025 randomised controlled trial of resistance-trained men taking 5g daily for 12 weeks measured hair density, follicular unit count and hair thickness, and found no difference from placebo.

Shedding and blaming your supplements? Message a GMC-registered doctor on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com.

Where the claim came from

The 2009 rugby study

In 2009, van der Merwe, Brooks and Myburgh published a study in the Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine following 20 male college rugby players through a creatine protocol of 25g per day for 7 days, then 5g per day for 14 days.

They found that dihydrotestosterone rose by around 56% during the loading phase and remained around 40% above baseline during maintenance, while total testosterone did not change significantly. The DHT to testosterone ratio rose by around 36% during loading and 22% during maintenance.

DHT is the androgen that miniaturises genetically sensitive scalp follicles in male and female pattern hair loss, so the finding was reasonable grounds for a question.

What the study did not do

It did not measure hair. Not density, not follicle counts, not shedding, not miniaturisation. It was a hormone and performance study in athletes, and hair was never an outcome.

The leap from a 3-week hormonal change in 20 rugby players on a high loading dose to the claim that creatine causes baldness was made by fitness media and forums rather than by the researchers. Each retelling firmed up the language, which is how a single unreplicated measurement became an internet certainty.

What the evidence has shown since

The hormones

A 2021 systematic review and meta-analysis by Antonio and colleagues pooled 12 studies covering 276 participants and examined creatine's effect on testosterone and DHT. It found no statistically significant change in total testosterone, free testosterone or DHT.

In other words, the 2009 finding stands alone. The subsequent studies that measured these hormones did not reproduce it.

The hair

This is the gap that was finally closed. A 2025 randomised controlled trial followed resistance-trained men aged 18 to 40 taking 5g of creatine daily for 12 weeks and measured testosterone, free testosterone, DHT, and hair outcomes including density, follicular unit count and hair thickness.

There were no significant differences between the creatine and placebo groups in either the hormone measures or the hair measures. It is the first trial to look directly at creatine and hair health, and it found nothing.

Want to know what is actually causing your shedding? Ask our doctors on WhatsApp.

The honest caveats

No study has followed creatine users for years, so a long-term effect has not been formally excluded. The 2025 trial ran 12 weeks at a standard dose.

The 2009 finding used a 25g loading phase, which is higher than the 3 to 5g most people take, and if any effect exists it is more plausible at that dose than at maintenance. Many people now skip loading entirely.

And if you already have strong genetic sensitivity to DHT, it is reasonable to prefer not to introduce an unknown, even a small one. That is a legitimate personal choice rather than a scientific conclusion.

What none of this supports is the confident claim that creatine causes hair loss. On the evidence available, it does not appear to.

So why is your hair thinning

This is the more useful question, because people usually start creatine at a point in life when several other things are also happening.

Male and female pattern hair loss typically becomes noticeable in the twenties and thirties, which is exactly when many people start training seriously and taking supplements. The timing coincides. The causation does not.

Rapid weight loss or a significant change in training load can trigger telogen effluvium, a diffuse shed appearing 2 to 3 months later.

Low ferritin and iron stores, thyroid dysfunction, low vitamin D, low B12 and low zinc all suppress hair growth and are common, particularly in people eating restrictively to hit body composition goals.

Testosterone therapy, which some people using creatine are also on, does accelerate pattern hair loss in genetically susceptible men, and that is a far more likely explanation than a scoop of creatine monohydrate.

If your hair is thinning, the answer is almost certainly in that list rather than in your supplement cupboard, and it is worth finding out which.

What to do instead of stopping your creatine

Take monthly photographs of your hairline, parting and crown in the same light. Shedding is dramatic and density change is gradual, and photographs settle the question better than memory.

Note whether the hairs coming out are full-length and normal thickness, which suggests shedding, or shorter and finer, which suggests the follicles are miniaturising and is a different, more progressive problem.

Get the relevant bloods rather than guessing. Full iron studies including ferritin, full thyroid function with antibodies, vitamin D, B12, folate, zinc and HbA1c. A ferritin result just above the lower limit is frequently reported as normal while being too low to support good hair growth.

If pattern thinning is confirmed, treat it early, because follicles respond while they are shrinking and not once they have closed.

Get the bloods rather than guessing. Message us on WhatsApp.

What assessment and treatment cost

Flagship Harley Street and Mayfair clinics commonly charge £600 to £850 or more per PRP session, and London practices generally charge 50 to 70 percent more than clinics outside the capital. Our care is doctor-led and priced below those rates, with blood testing run from the same clinic and the figure for any plan confirmed after your free suitability review.

Where treatment is appropriate, PRP uses growth factors concentrated from your own blood, has no hormonal action, and is supported by a 2025 meta-analysis in Dermatology and Therapy pooling 43 randomised controlled trials and 1,877 participants which found it increases hair density.

The suitability review

Every enquiry begins with a free doctor-led suitability review rather than a booking. A GMC-registered doctor examines your scalp with dermoscopy to see whether hairs are shedding or miniaturising, reviews or arranges your bloods, and gives one of two answers.

Approved for treatment, where pattern thinning is confirmed and early treatment will help. Or not approved, which is common, because what you have is a temporary shed, a correctable deficiency, or normal turnover you have started noticing.

We decline a meaningful share of enquiries, and telling a 28-year-old that his hair is fine and his creatine is not the problem is a routine outcome here.

Why people choose The London PRP Clinic by The Wellness

The London PRP Clinic by The Wellness is a doctor-led, blood-test-first clinic treating from 10 Portman Square in Marylebone and the Light Centre in Belgravia. Every treatment is performed by GMC-registered doctors, and no clinician treats a patient here until they have completed 100 supervised treatments.

Across our work we report an 87 percent patient success rate, a 32 percent average density increase in hair restoration and more than 187 five-star reviews.

Book your free suitability review. Message us on WhatsApp, email team@thewellnesslondon.com, or call +44 20 3951 3429.

Frequently asked questions about creatine and hair loss

Does creatine cause hair loss?

On current evidence, no. The claim rests on a 2009 study of 20 rugby players that measured DHT but never measured hair, and it has not been replicated. A 2025 randomised trial that did measure hair found no difference from placebo.

Did the 2009 study find hair loss?

No. It found DHT rose around 56% during a high-dose loading phase and stayed around 40% above baseline, with testosterone unchanged. Hair density, follicle counts and shedding were never measured.

Does creatine raise DHT?

A 2021 meta-analysis of 12 studies covering 276 participants found no significant change in total testosterone, free testosterone or DHT. The 2009 finding has not been reproduced.

Should I stop creatine if my hair is thinning?

Stopping is unlikely to resolve thinning on its own, because the cause is usually elsewhere. Getting assessed and tested identifies what is actually driving it.

Does the loading phase matter?

The 2009 finding used 25g per day, far above the usual 3 to 5g maintenance dose. Many people skip loading entirely, and the 2025 trial used 5g daily with no effect on hair.

What is more likely to be causing my hair loss?

Genetic pattern hair loss emerging in your twenties or thirties, a shed after rapid weight or training change, low ferritin or thyroid dysfunction, or testosterone therapy if you are on it.

This article is for information and does not replace personal medical advice. Long-term studies of creatine and hair have not been conducted, and individual results vary. All treatments at The London PRP Clinic by The Wellness are performed by GMC-registered doctors. Written and reviewed by the clinical team at The Wellness. Last updated September 2026.