Keeping Healthy This Holiday Virus Season...

Creatine - The Sciency Part.

Have you ever wondered why you get sick when you come back from a fly-away vacation but didn’t get sick on your vacation?

It’s actually not that much different than what we will see during respiratory virus season, in that…we’re exposed to a plethora of bacteria, germs and viruses on a daily basis - much the same as you are in the trapped air compartment on your way to an airplane destination or held hostage with sickly folk inside the terminal.

You see…it’s like this.

While you are living your everyday life, you maintain some quality of foods probably some exercise and a regular sleep pattern. This is the foundation of your immune system and no doctor on the planet will disagree. Regular and consistent: Diet + Exercise + Sleep = Healthy Immune System.

When you leave for a vacation, all of these are in perfect check. Maybe not the most ideal, but to your existence they are homeostatic - your immune system comfort zone. At this point, your immune system is capable of handling the little viruses that you are exposed to on your flight. (Don’t try to think about how many variants of the [any]virus are on a plane with you, or you will never fly again).

While you are on vacation, you have disrupted everything that keeps your immunity in check under the basic premise of maximizing your holiday. You eat foods that are foreign to you but taste soooo good, you slack off on a regular exercise routine, you are not sleeping in your own bed and you are not maintaining the same healthy sleep patterns you have at home. You’ve been stressing your body since you woke up and packed your suitcase, you’ve dealt with stress parking at the airport, finding your gate, checking your bag…there really is a massive amount of stress that we put our bodies through to “Take a break”.

Your immune system has suffered through 7 days of hell - for it, not so much for you - and you are more susceptible to anything that you are now exposed to. Alcohol, a cigar while golfing, 2 packs of crush cigs because you miss the menthol…sugary crap, fried foods…but you had a great time and that’s the point of it, right?

Respiratory Virus Season…also seems to coincide with stressors that can knock your immune system down, if not just for the Rum Spiced Eggnog, Sugary Christmas Goodies, Seasonal Parties…even the shortening of daylight to knock your circadian rhythms out of whack and screwing up your sleep cycle.

In addition to this, you are limited in the amount of fresh air you breathe - outdoors - and trapped inside where bacteria, germs and viruses are incubating in a climate and humidity controlled environment - circulated by heating systems/humidifiers. In effect, the inside of any public access building you walk into, is like diving into a petri dish of nastiness!

Ack!

I’m sure you’ve heard of your Basal Metabolic Rate - BMR. This is the amount of calories that your body uses for essential functions in keeping you alive while at rest. Be it your heart beating, lungs pumping or just maintaining body temperature.

Calories in the body are one type of energy that is either stored by way of fat on your body or replenished through consumption of daily meals…

However…there is another type of energy that your body uses throughout the day and at rest, Adenosine Triphosphate - ATP.

ATP provides the necessary energy needed for Muscle Contraction, Cellular Metabolism, Active Transport, Signal Transduction and Cell Division…but specific to the immune system, Cell Activation and Proliferation, Phagocytosis, Cytokine Production, Inflammation and Cellular Communication.

It’s like this…

Our body employs our immune system to tackle a lot of things in a similar manner…whether you have a physical injury, get poisoned, come into contact with a virus or suffer from a chronic inflammatory condition. Because of this, it constantly uses ATP to keep our bodies functioning, wounds healing, fighting off bacteria, germs and viruses…

As used up, ATP downgrades to Adenosine Diphosphate…think of this like a dead battery that needs to be recharged…the battery is still there for your immune system, just needs more energy.

Fortunately…like Fat stores energy for use in our bodies, our Muscles store energy needed to recharge our immunity batteries, as Creatine Phosphate, where Creatine phosphate can quickly donate its phosphate group to ADP to regenerate ATP. This reaction also occurs through the action of creatine kinase:

ADP + Creatine Phosphate→ ATP + Creatine

You may have heard of Creatine or even used Creatine, especially if you work out regularly, are athletic or lift weights. Athletes of all natures began using Creatine as a supplement in the early 1990s. While Creatine itself was first discovered in the 1830s, its potential as a performance enhancer wasn't widely recognized until studies in the late 1980s and early 1990s highlighted its benefits for high-intensity exercise.

The 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona marked a significant moment when several athletes were reported to be using creatine, contributing to its rise in popularity. Since then, it has become one of the most researched and commonly used supplements in sports, particularly for activities requiring short bursts of energy, like sprinting and weightlifting.

In using Creatine, specific to sports…it was noted that Creatine was able to increase muscle strength and power, improved performance, muscle recovery and support for endurance.

Sounds pretty great so far, hey?

But who really wants to take a performance enhancing chemical to keep healthy?

Welp…you actually already are…you just may not be getting enough, especially when you take a holiday or through respiratory virus season.

You see…Creatine is a naturally occurring compound found in small amounts in certain foods (like meat and fish) and is also synthesized in the body from the amino acids arginine, glycine and methionine.

So whether the Meat you Eat contains creatine or the food you consume contains the arginine, glycine and methionine that are required to be assembled into replenishing your body Creatine Stores - predominantly inside of your muscles…you’re already getting it.

Thing is…if injured or ill…poisoned or plagued with a chronic inflammatory condition…topping up on this essential compound that powers a lot of essential processes and your immune system, can be a really good thing.

Fortunately…and the reason I bring this up today…The Real Canadian Superstore has it on sale!

Ka-ching!

And this is about as cheap as I’ve seen it since 2020. Regular price has dropped by $5, and with the 20% savings, you get it for just over $50.

There are several types of Creatine that you can purchase…

• Creatine Monohydrate;

• Micronized Creatine;

• Creatine Ethyl Ester;

• Buffered Creatine;

• Liquid Creatine;

• Creatine Hydrochloride (Creatine HCL);

• Creatine Magnesium Chelate;

Monohydrate being the most cost effective, most studied version…and from every study I’ve read, is every bit as effective as the more expensive and over-sensationalized other versions.

It’s Odorless…

Colorless…

And for the most part, Tasteless.

There are No Side Effects from taking it…no Adverse Reactions to it and can be supplemented whenever you think you may be needing that extra boost of immune energy or work out on a regular basis.

For me personally…I just add a teaspoon to my coffee daily. While it doesn’t impact the flavor, it does change the mouthfeel of the joe…but for me, worth it.

So…

If you want to keep happy and healthy, this Holiday Virus Season and want to skip the jabs…

Grab a Tub while it’s on sale or pick it up at your regular supplement supplier.

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