Dry scooping Creatine could be a perilous fad
There are numerous trends in the fitness realm, whether they’re related to diet, fashion, or training methods. Consider the contrast between bodybuilders of the Golden Era and today’s gym enthusiasts, vastly different. Recently, a growing trend in the fitness community involves “dry scooping” creatine or other supplements like pre-workout. You might wonder, “what exactly does that mean?” Essentially, dry scooping is consuming the supplement directly from the scoop without mixing it with any liquid, a practice that may not only be ineffective but also potentially hazardous.
Let’s delve into what dry scooping entails and why it might be a serious issue. (Curious about the top-rated creatine? Here’s a quick guide!)
What is Dry Scooping?
As previously mentioned, dry scooping involves consuming a powdered supplement without any liquid. Instead of mixing it in a shaker cup, you swallow it directly and might chase it with some liquid to avoid choking. While dry scooping has long been popular with pre-workout supplements, it’s recently become a trend with creatine supplements too. Typically, creatine is mixed with water or another liquid and is often unflavored, making it easy to combine with a protein shake or BCAAs and pre-workouts.
However, many fitness influencers claim that dry scooping creatine enhances its effectiveness. We are here to examine those assertions.
Reasons for Dry Scooping
Social media has generated a vast array of valuable fitness content. Influencers can gain prominence and promote brands without ever competing on a bodybuilding stage. Take for instance, Sam Sulek. Despite the wealth of beneficial fitness content, social media has also popularized some absurd and dangerous practices, including the dry scoop challenge.
Given the risks, why are so many people engaging in dry scooping powdered supplements? As mentioned earlier, some influencers claim that consuming creatine or other supplements straight from the scooper without liquid helps the creatine rapidly enter the bloodstream through the oral mucus membranes, supposedly offering a quicker effect and better results for your gains.
Dry scooping also attracts significant views, likes, and overall engagement, increasing its popularity.
Though dry scooping might appear as an innocuous way to take supplements, it actually poses considerable health risks, raising concerns about the growing number of people adopting this practice.
Side Effects and Hazards of Dry Scooping
Research indicates that both short-term and long-term creatine use is safe for healthy individuals, contrary to concerns about hair loss, organ failure, and water retention. Creatine powder poses minimal risk when taken with water as directed, but dry scooping creatine might present different challenges.
Digestive Issues
Dry scooping creatine can induce gastrointestinal problems, which no one wants to encounter. GI issues can lead to stomach cramps, diarrhea, and other discomforts. Consuming large quantities of creatine at once, such as 10 grams instead of 5 grams, can exacerbate digestive issues. Thus, it is preferable to take creatine with liquid and not on an empty stomach.
Tooth Decay
You may assume it’s harmless, but dry scooping creatine can actually cause tooth decay. Creatine and many other supplements often contain additives like citric acid and malic acid, and studies have shown that citric acid can erode enamel. Dry scooping creatine with citric acid or a similar substance means exposing your teeth to a concentrated dose, weakening the enamel over time and leading to tooth decay.
Supplement Waste
Dry scooping is reminiscent of the cinnamon challenge, where participants tried to swallow a spoonful of cinnamon. Videos showed them gagging, coughing, and dispersing cinnamon everywhere.
Similarly, if you cough or choke while dry scooping creatine, you may end up wasting a substantial amount of powder. Hence, the supposed effectiveness of “dry scooping” becomes moot. Wasting supplements is equivalent to wasting money, as they are not cheap. To maximize your supplements’ value, take them properly with a liquid to avoid losing servings.
Choking Risk
Finally, consider the choking hazard. Dry scooping creatine is a significant choking risk because you are ingesting a powdered substance that can obstruct your airway.
Are There Any Advantages to Dry Scooping Creatine?
Influencers argue that dry scooping creatine increases its effectiveness, but there is no scientific evidence to back this claim. No studies suggest that dry scooping creatine is superior to consuming it with water.
The sole benefit might be the time saved by not mixing it in a shaker. However, with unflavored creatine, you can easily add it to your protein shake or other supplements, effectively combining two intakes. Therefore, dry scooping creatine offers no real benefits.
Our Preferred Creatine Supplement
When selecting a creatine supplement, our top choice is Nutricost Creatine Monohydrate. It is one of the more affordable options available while remaining effective. Nutricost Creatine Monohydrate is listed as one of the best pure creatine products, free from artificial flavors, fillers, preservatives, or colorings, ensuring that the body isn’t taxed metabolizing unnecessary chemicals but solely creatine.
Offered at a reasonable price, this is one of the best creatine products available for bulking.
Check out our detailed review for Nutricost Creatine Monohydrate!
Conclusion
In summary, despite its rising popularity, dry scooping creatine is not advisable. Instead, the proper way to consume a creatine supplement is by mixing it in your shaker cup!
Do you partake in dry scooping your creatine?