Does creatine cause erectile dysfunction? The evidence says no

Creatine is one of the most studied performance supplements on the planet, yet men still ask one anxiety-loaded question: “does creatine cause erectile dysfunction?” Here’s what the clinical literature actually supports, why the rumor started, and what to do if erections change while you’re using creatine.

The relationship

Erectile dysfunction, or ED, means persistent trouble getting or keeping an erection firm enough for sex. It’s common for men to look for a single culprit when erections change, especially if a new supplement showed up around the same time.

Creatine monohydrate is widely studied for performance and recovery. In the research record, the main safety questions have centered on kidney markers, not sexual function. Importantly, human evidence in healthy adults does not support the claim that creatine causes erectile dysfunction.^[1]

So why does the question “does creatine cause erectile dysfunction” keep circulating? One reason is guilt by association: erectile dysfunction can be seen in men with chronic kidney disease, or CKD, which is long-term loss of kidney filtering function.^[2] Online discussions sometimes jump from “ED can happen with kidney disease” to “creatine affects the kidneys” to “creatine must cause ED.” That chain of logic doesn’t hold up when you look at actual human data in healthy users.^[1]

How it works

Creatine’s job is energy, not arousal

Creatine is a naturally occurring compound your body stores mostly in muscle. Its core role is helping cells maintain adenosine triphosphate, or ATP, which is the cell’s “energy currency” for doing work.^[3] That’s why creatine is researched for strength and repeated high-effort exercise, not because it targets sexual organs or desire.

Where creatine is stored in the male body

Most creatine is stored in skeletal muscle, with smaller amounts in the brain and testes. The presence of creatine in testes is often misread online as “it must affect sex,” but storage alone is not evidence of harm or benefit to erections.^[3]

In clinical terms, a supplement needs a plausible mechanism and consistent human outcomes to earn blame for ED. For creatine, the commonly discussed physiology is about energy handling and kidney lab markers, not erectile tissue function.

The kidney “signal” that fuels the myth

One reason the ED rumor persists is confusion around creatinine. Creatinine is a breakdown product related to creatine metabolism that is commonly used in bloodwork as a marker to estimate kidney filtering function.^[3] Creatine supplementation can complicate interpretation of creatinine-based labs in some situations, which can make people fear it is “hurting the kidneys.” That fear then gets incorrectly linked to erectile dysfunction.

But when researchers look at kidney outcomes directly in healthy people using creatine, long-term studies and reviews generally do not show impaired kidney function from typical supplementation patterns.^[1],[4]

What human research does and does not show about ED

To answer “does creatine cause erectile dysfunction,” the most honest evidence-based statement is this: controlled research and position statements focused on creatine safety do not identify ED or loss of libido as a consistent adverse effect in healthy men.^[1],[5] Libido means your baseline interest in sex. Sexual side effects are not a typical finding of creatine trials.

That said, the literature has a limitation: many sports nutrition studies are designed to measure performance and lab safety markers, not detailed sexual outcomes. So the evidence is strongest for “no signal found” rather than “proven impossible.” Still, if creatine were a common ED trigger, clinicians and trials would be expected to see a clearer pattern by now.^[1]

Conditions linked to it

The creatine-ED myth tends to cluster around a few real medical connections, even if the conclusion is wrong.

• Chronic kidney disease and erectile dysfunction. ED is seen in men with CKD, which is part of why kidney concerns enter the conversation in the first place.^[2]
• Kidney safety questions with creatine. Case reports and older concerns raised the possibility of kidney stress in certain contexts, especially with very high intakes or in people who already have kidney disease. In contrast, research in healthy adults generally finds creatine does not damage kidney function when used responsibly.^[1],[4]
• Misread labs. Because creatinine is used as a kidney marker, any change in creatinine can be misinterpreted as kidney injury, even when actual kidney function is stable.^[3],[5]

Limitations note: Most creatine safety evidence applies to healthy people. If you have known kidney disease, you should treat creatine as a medical decision, not a gym decision, because your risk math is different.^[5]

Symptoms and signals

If you’re searching “does creatine cause erectile dysfunction,” you’re usually reacting to a change you can feel. Here are the signals to track so you can describe the problem clearly and get the right help.

• Erection changes: difficulty getting hard, difficulty staying hard, or erections that are less firm than usual.
• Timing pattern: did the issue start within days of a new product, a dose change, or a new training block?
• Libido shift: lower interest in sex, fewer spontaneous erections, or less responsiveness to sexual cues. Libido is your baseline interest in sex.
• Kidney red flags: known CKD, abnormal kidney labs in the past, or a clinician telling you your kidney function is reduced.
• Forum-driven “diagnosis”: the only evidence is anecdotes online, without lab work or a clinical exam.

If you have ED that persists, treat it like a health symptom, not a supplement side effect to debate on the internet. The most productive next step is a structured evaluation rather than guesswork.

What to do about it

If erections change while you’re taking creatine, you don’t need panic or shame. You need a plan that separates coincidence from causation, and checks for medical issues that actually matter.

1. Do a clean timeline and remove noise. Write down when ED started, when creatine started, and what else changed at the same time. New pre-workouts, alcohol patterns, sleep loss, major stress, a new relationship, and overtraining can all stack on top of each other. If you want a simple experiment, pause one variable at a time rather than changing five things in the same week.
2. Get the right medical checks if symptoms persist. If you have known kidney disease, a history of abnormal kidney labs, or you’re worried about kidney strain, talk with a clinician before continuing. Ask whether your kidney function testing is being interpreted appropriately in the context of creatine and creatinine-based markers.^[3],[5] If ED continues, consider a urology visit so the focus stays on evidence-based causes and treatments rather than supplement rumors.
3. If you keep using creatine, use it like it was studied. Choose a basic, well-studied form such as creatine monohydrate, avoid extreme dosing, and avoid stacking it with a dozen stimulants that can muddy the picture. If you have CKD or other medical complexity, treat creatine as a supervised choice, not an assumption.^[1]

Myth vs fact

• Myth: “Does creatine cause erectile dysfunction? Yes, it’s common.” Fact: Human safety evidence does not show ED as a consistent adverse effect of creatine in healthy men.^[1],[5]
• Myth: “Creatine automatically damages the kidneys, so it must hurt erections.” Fact: Studies in healthy adults generally do not show kidney damage from creatine, and the ED connection is often a misunderstanding of CKD and lab markers.^[1],[4]
• Myth: “If creatinine changes on labs, my kidneys are failing from creatine.” Fact: Creatinine is a lab marker tied to creatine metabolism and kidney filtration. It can be misleading without context, so interpretation matters.^[3],[5]
• Myth: “Online anecdotes prove creatine causes ED.” Fact: Anecdotes can’t separate coincidence from true causation, and they rarely account for stress, sleep, stimulants, or medical conditions that can affect erections.

Bottom line

Does creatine cause erectile dysfunction? In healthy men, the current human evidence does not support that claim, and the rumor is often driven by confusion about kidney disease, kidney lab markers, and what creatine actually does in the body.^[1] If ED shows up while you’re taking creatine, don’t assume the supplement is the cause. Track the timeline, consider kidney context if you have risk, and get a focused clinical evaluation so you can fix the real problem.

References

1. Kreider RB, Kalman DS, Antonio J, et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 2017;14:18. PMID: 28615996
2. Rosas SE, Joffe M, Franklin E, et al. Prevalence and determinants of erectile dysfunction in hemodialysis patients. Kidney international. 2001;59:2259-66. PMID: 11380829
3. Wyss M, Kaddurah-Daouk R. Creatine and creatinine metabolism. Physiological reviews. 2000;80:1107-213. PMID: 10893433
4. Poortmans JR, Francaux M. Long-term oral creatine supplementation does not impair renal function in healthy athletes. Medicine and science in sports and exercise. 1999;31:1108-10. PMID: 10449011
5. Pline KA, Smith CL. The effect of creatine intake on renal function. The Annals of pharmacotherapy. 2005;39:1093-6. PMID: 15886291
6. Gualano B, Roschel H, Lancha AH, et al. In sickness and in health: the widespread application of creatine supplementation. Amino acids. 2012;43:519-29. PMID: 22101980