Creatine in the Diet of the Baby Pig

Twenty-four baby pigs receiving a synthetic milk diet containing 30% casein were utilized to determine if the inclusion of 0.2% creatine monohydrate or an equimolar amount of the creatine precursors, arginine and glycine, would improve growth rate, muscle size and creatine content. Neither of these regimens was effective in improving any of these criteria. Dietary creatine which was absorbed appeared to be largely excreted as urinary creatine or creatinine. The supplemental creatine precursors, arginine and glycine, apparently were not utilized in creatine biosynthesis.