Lubbock Doctor says Build Muscle the Safe Way

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - It is very common for high school athletes and adolescents to try to boost their muscle mass with creatine, a supplement.

The National Institutes of Health says although it may work and there are studies that indicate it is well tolerated, questions still remain about its safety. The concern is that it is not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. So even though *some ingredients may be listed on the bottle, some may not be revealed.

Dr. Scott Shurmur, a cardiologist at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, has football in his blood. At 6 feeet 5 inches, he was a lineman at the University of Tulsa. He says students and parents should know that when looking to build muscle, creatine may be popular but it is not the answer. He says supplements in general are not scrutinized by the FDA which means it’s hard to know what you’re getting.

He explains, “Claims can be made about what’s in them and other things can be in them. They can be worthless and not effective at all or they can be effective and there can be things like anabolic steroids in them even though it appears nowhere on the label to make them more effective and more popular.”

Anabolic steroids can increase the risk of heart trouble.

Dr. Shurmur says instead of creatine, his recommendation for building muscle is Whey Protein.

He describes that as the protein power behind milk, a safe option if you want to build muscle with no downside.

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