Creatine is the most popular performance-enhancing supplement that athletes use. Mark McGwire uses it. Michael Johnson uses it. And some Harvard athletes use it, too, despite discouragement from their coaches and trainers.

Creatine monohydrate is an amino acid manufactured in the liver and stored in the muscles. Found in milk, steak and some fish, creatine is a protein supplement that speeds up the energy synthesis process, allowing athletes to recover from workouts faster. This enables them to lift heavier weights more frequently and for longer periods of time.

Harvard athletes who use creatine for sports such as football, wrestling and baseball hope it will make them stronger and more competitive in their respective sports. They also said they could not use the supplement during the season and that it was not the most important element of their preparation for collegiate competition.

As long as the NCAA allows them to use it, however, those who believe that the extra strength creatine provides makes them better athletes will continue to take it.

Creatine, which became popular among professional and Olympic athletes in the early 1990s, is still a new supplement. While it has not shown any short-term side effects other than muscle pulls, there has not been enough time to determine if creatine causes any problems in the long run. Although the NCAA has not put creatine on its list of banned drugs, the Harvard athletic department does not promote the use of creatine or other nutritional ergogenic aids (performance-enhancing substances).

In a May 8 letter to all Harvard coaches, Athletic Director William J. Cleary '56 and the Harvard Sports Medicine Staff stated that "manufacture of these nutritional ergogenic aids are not nationally regulated and in many cases their effects not scientifically established... The Sports Medicine Staff would like to unequivocally state that the use and or distribution of nutritional ergogenic aids is not supported and in fact discouraged...Maximizing performance should be accomplished within the natural limits of the individual."

Harvard Strength and Conditioning Coordinator Dominic Sardo says he is hesitant about athletes' use of creatine.

"The bottom line is that hard work and time and effort with prevail," he says."There is no control in how these products aremanufactured. There are no government standards.We don't know what we're getting in theseproducts.'

Head Football Coach Tim Murphy says he alsodiscourages his players from usingperformance-enhancing supplements.

"Supplements are a big thing in collegeathletics now, but I believe in three and halfsquares a day," Murphy says. "There is not a wholelot of research out there on a lot of theseproducts, and I don't particularly approve ofthem. At the very least, I don't condone usingthem.

Although Murphy does not want his playerssupplementing their workouts with creatine, hedoes expect them to follow his rigorous strengthand conditioning program.

"Football is such a developmental sport thatconditioning is everything," he says, "Without it,you simply cannot compete. Our conditioningprogram is comprehensive: It tries to improvestrength, speed, agility, power and flexibility.That program may involve gaining or losingweight."

Athletes who have used creatine for extendedperiods of time say the supplement helps theirperformance in their strength and conditioningprograms as long as they monitor their use of it.They say it is especially productive in thesummers and offseasons, when their main goal is toget stronger and build up their stamina andendurance.

Senior Anthony Ackil, a 6'1", 250-pounddefensive tackle on the football team who doublesas a heavyweight wrestler during the winters, sayshe has used creatine for the past three summersbut that he does not use it during the seasons.Although he acknowledges that his coachdiscourages the use of creatine, he says he gainedabout five pounds using the supplement lastsummer.

"Creatine really does help and it is legal, butit also causes some problems, and a lot of guyswere complaining about hamstring pulls at thebeginning of the season." he says, adding that heis not worried about long-term effects. "Strengthand conditioning is a really important part offootball. That was one of the things coach Murphyreally focused on when he got here [in 1994] and Ithink that is a big reason why we have beenwinning so many games the past couple of years."

Ari Welkom, a 5'10", 170-pound junior whoplayed wide receiver for the football team for twoyears, says he used creatine for a year and a halfwithout experiencing any side effects. He says hegot 20 percent stronger when he used thesupplement.