Does Creatine Cause Hair Loss?

There is no direct evidence that creatine causes hair loss. No study has ever measured hair as an outcome and found that creatine caused it to fall out. The entire belief traces to a single 2009 trial of 20 college rugby players that reported a rise in the DHT-to-testosterone ratio — a hormone marker — and did not look at hair at all. That finding has never been replicated in the fifteen-plus years since, despite creatine being one of the most studied supplements in existence. If you are genetically predisposed to male-pattern baldness you may lose hair whether or not you supplement; the evidence does not say creatine is the reason.

This is a good case study in how one small result becomes received wisdom. Below is exactly what that study did and did not show, why the leap from “DHT went up” to “you will go bald” skips a step that matters, and what creatine’s genuinely documented side effects are.

The One Study Behind the Whole Belief

In 2009, researchers ran a three-week crossover trial in 20 college-aged rugby players and measured hormone levels (van der Merwe and colleagues, Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine, PMID 19741313). After seven days of loading at 25 g/day, the ratio of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) to testosterone rose roughly 36%, and stayed about 22% above baseline through two weeks of 5 g/day maintenance.

Four details rarely travel with that headline:

• Hair was never measured. Not counted, not photographed, not assessed. The study was about hormones.
• DHT stayed within the normal reference range the whole time. The ratio shifted; the values did not become abnormal.
• Testosterone itself did not change significantly. The ratio moved largely because DHT rose.
• n = 20, for three weeks. Male-pattern baldness develops over years.

It Has Never Been Replicated

This is the part that should settle it. Creatine is among the most heavily researched supplements ever sold, with hundreds of trials and decades of safety follow-up. In all of that, the 2009 DHT result stands alone — no successful replication in more than fifteen years.

A review of common creatine questions and misconceptions examined the claim directly and concluded the evidence does not support a link between creatine supplementation and hair loss (Antonio and colleagues, 2021, Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, PMID 33557850). The ISSN’s position stand on creatine safety and efficacy reviewed the literature and did not identify hair loss as an established adverse effect (Kreider and colleagues, 2017, PMID 28615996).

The Step the Myth Skips

DHT really is central to male-pattern hair loss, which is why this myth is sticky — it sounds mechanistically sensible. But the mechanism runs through inherited follicle sensitivity to DHT, not through circulating DHT alone. Men with the genetic predisposition lose hair at perfectly ordinary DHT levels. Men without it keep their hair at high ones.

So even granting the 2009 result exactly as published, the chain has a missing link:

Two of those four steps have no supporting evidence at all, and one is contradicted by the source study itself.

What Creatine’s Real Side Effects Are

• Water retention — real, and misunderstood. Creatine pulls water into muscle cells, typically showing up as one to three pounds on the scale in the first week. It is intracellular, not the puffy subcutaneous bloat people imagine.
• GI discomfort — occasional, mostly avoidable. Usually tied to large single doses. Skipping the loading phase and taking 3–5 g daily largely prevents it — see loading vs maintenance.
• Kidney damage — not supported. Creatine raises serum creatinine, which is a marker used to estimate kidney function, without impairing the kidney. The same misreading pattern as the hair-loss claim. Compare with the protein-and-kidneys myth, which has an almost identical structure.

For the efficacy side and the safety literature in more depth, see does creatine actually work (and is it safe), and on form and timing, creatine HCl vs monohydrate and whether creatine timing matters.

If You Are Actually Losing Hair

Worth separating the question from the supplement. Male-pattern baldness is common, progressive, and genuinely treatable — and the treatments work considerably better the earlier they are started. If you are seeing real thinning, a dermatologist is the productive move. Dropping creatine on the strength of one unreplicated hormone study is unlikely to change the outcome, and it costs you a supplement with unusually strong evidence behind it.

Sources and Methodology

The DHT finding: van der Merwe J, Brooks NE, Myburgh KH, “Three weeks of creatine monohydrate supplementation affects dihydrotestosterone to testosterone ratio in college-aged rugby players,” Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine 2009 (PMID 19741313). Misconception review: Antonio J et al., JISSN 2021 (PMID 33557850). Safety position stand: Kreider RB et al., JISSN 2017 (PMID 28615996). Creatine in women: Smith-Ryan AE et al., Nutrients 2021 (PMID 33800439). General information for healthy adults, not medical advice; if you are losing hair or managing a health condition, speak to a clinician. Last updated July 28, 2026.