It all began in October 1995 when Muscle Marketing USA, Inc. launched a new form
of creatine monohydrate, ATP Advantage Creatine Serum. The serum offers
creatine monohydrate in a stabilized liquid form. The no loading, no maintenance
formula was an immediate hit among athletes who were happy about the
powdered creatine, but not excited about its daily usage: discomfort and its side
effects.
Since its introduction, many supplement companies tried to imitate the serum by
introducing other kind of liquid creatines. None have succeed in bringing a stabilized
creatine monohydrate with a shelf life of 2 years. Most of the copycats products
have disappeared from the market place due to the awareness and intelligence of
consumers.
Critics Say . . .
Few other companies who invested their money in pushing the creatine powder got
furious and they stated vociferously that creatine cannot be stabilized in a liquid
form In our age of astounding technological advances, never is a dangerous word.
It's like the U.S. car companies claiming that American car buyers would never buy
small Japanese cars. And how things have changed since that statement.
Our Answers: Creatine Serum- Beyond Powder, Beyond Liquid.
Looking through the muscle magazines, you've probably noticed the fierce debate
about all the different creatine products now available. Since it was introduced into
the market in 1993, creatine has quickly developed into the supplement of choice
for serious athletes. And, as more and more studies find proof of its effectiveness,
increasingly different forms of creatine have appeared for sale.
Whenever there's a technological advance -- and a new product category is created
as a result -- it's quickly flooded with innovators, wannabes and, unfortunately,
outright frauds. If you're old enough to remember the personal computer revolution
of the early 1980's, you may remember the names of bunch of computer
companies that are now nowhere to be found.
These companies burst on the scene, propelled by the excitement surrounding
revolutionary developments in the microchip industry. As the computer market
stabilized and consumer knowledge grew, there was a shakeout. The different
players either got big fast because they had something special, were bought up, or
they folded. The end result was a computer market full of serious, long-term
players with reliable products. That's how the free market system works.
And that's exactly what will eventually happen with the creatine market. Decisions,
Decisions, Decisions.
But what's a hard-working bodybuilder to do in the meantime? How do you sort
through all the hype to choose an effective, cutting-edge creatine supplement?
After all, this is a serious decision. The only thing everyone agrees on is that good
creatine works. It can help you train harder and reach your goals sooner. But
exactly which products are the good products? If you pick the wrong supplement,
you'll waste a bunch of money on something that is, shall we say, not quite as
effective as it claims.
As always, doing your homework is really the only way to proceed. It's your cash
you're spending. What's more, you're putting what you buy into your body. Don't
you owe it to your abs to do a little research? As well as your thighs, pecs and
biceps? Not to mention your unborn children...
Here's some information that may help all of them.
The Evolution of Creatine
In the beginning, there was powder. You loaded yourself up with spoonfuls of the
stuff for days before your workout. You also drank a lot of water to avoid
dehydration. It's important to note that it's not the actual creatine that causes this
dehydration. It's the large volume of powder you're ingesting that absorbs the liquid
in your system. These large amounts are needed because a large part is lost
during the digestion process.
Dehydration from this powder, and the bloating and cramping that results, is a
particular problem for women. Which is why many women avoided creatine
altogether. The results just didn't outweigh the side effects.
With all these problems, why produce creatine in a powder form in the first place?
Here's where that much used word 'stability' comes in. Creatine is a very unstable
molecule. Its structure can easily be changed. In fact, just mixing it with water or
another liquid will cause it to degrade into the waste product creatinine in about 20
minutes. So, the first chemists involved in developing it for use by athletes became
convinced that it had to be produced in a powder form to last.
That's what the companies they worked for invested their money in. And what they
have built their reputations on supplying.
Now some of those same large companies state quite vociferously that 'creatine
cannot be stabilized in a liquid form'. In our age of astounding technological
advances, never is a dangerous word. It's a bit like the U.S. car companies claiming
that American car buyers would 'never' buy small Japanese cars. And how things
have changed since that statement!
However, stabilizing creatine in a liquid form is a very difficult problem in chemistry.
Chemical stability is a specialized field, one with an entirely different set of
problems from those of simply producing a usable form of creatine.
A Breakthrough Product
In 1995 this problem was taken up by Dr. Mostafa Omar, Professor of
Pharmacognosy, University of Rhode Island, and consultant to Duke University.
Dr. Omar was part of the team at Duke that first stabilized Vitamin C in liquid form.
This was also previously thought to be "impossible" for many of the same reasons.
Over 50 patents were applied for and granted as a result of successfully stabilizing
liquid Vitamin C. The resulting products have been widely accepted in the market.
Even by those who had previously said this accomplishment was "impossible".
Dr. Omar then applied his experience in the chemistry of stabilization to the unique
problems posed by creatine. The result is Creatine Serum from Muscle Marketing
USA. Creatine Serum is so stable it has a guaranteed two year shelf life.
A number of other imitators have appeared on the market offering 'liquid' creatine
in various forms. But creating a chemically stable liquid creatine is extremely
difficult. None of these other companies bring the scientific credentials to the
problem that MMUSA's chief chemist Dr. Mostafa does.
Show Me The Science
There's a traditional next step to a scientific advance resulting in a new product.
You take that product, get it patented and publish the results of your research for
review by other scientists. The patent is supposed to protect you from unscrupulous
individuals and companies copying your product and marketing it as their own.
Certain members of the supplement industry, however, have a code of ethics all
their own. It's a bit like the problems faced by the software industry with ripoff
products produced by illegal factories in China. Some companies are happy to steal
other peoples work, ignore patents and use proprietary research for their own
benefit for as long as they can. Then, when the flack gets too great, they'll just
close shop and move on, happy with the money they've made.
MMUSA's solution to this problem is to keep their processes and advances secret. If
the data is not publicly available, it can't be ripped off.
This does leave them open to claims that Creatine Serum is not 'real' -- that they
have not successfully stabilized creatine in a liquid form. However, the proof is in
the pudding, as they say, and 60,000 repeat customers seem to be pretty
convincing proof that Creatine Serum is what it claims to be.
What's more, the qualifications of their chief researcher, Dr. Omar, are
unassailable.
The Advantage Of Serum
Creatine Serum is a significant advance in the supplement market. Creatine in a
stable liquid form is simply a far superior product than powders. It's much easier to
take, and it doesn't require preloading or maintenance. You just take 5 ml's shortly
before your workout. Because it's a liquid, the digestion process is bypassed. The
Serum goes directly into your blood stream, and from there to your muscles.
Again, because it's a liquid, there's no waste. A significant amount of powdered
creatine (up to 50%) is lost during the digestion process. That's why you have to
take so many spoonfuls of it.
Creatine Serum and Women
Creatine Serum has been a particularly successful invention for women athletes.
The side effects of powder kept powdered creatine from being a useful choice for
them. But, because Creatine Serum goes directly into the bloodstream, women do
not experience water retention, bloating and cramping when they take it. All they
get is the energy boost of a pure, reliable and stabilized creatine product.
It's Up To You All the words and science in the world won't put an ounce of muscle
on your body. They can however, help you decide whether a product looks
reputable, and whether you think it will help you reach your fitness goals. The rest
is up to you.
Our Commitment to You
Introducing additional breakthrough formulas and customers satisfaction are our
main focus. We believe strongly that customers, especially athletes have the right
to acquire the most highly advanced product in the market. All the words and
responses to experts wannabes won't put an ounce of muscle in your body.
Creatine serum is a significant advance in the supplement market. Creatine in a
stable liquid form is simply a far superior product than powders. It's much easier to
take, and it doesn't require loading or maintenance. you just take 5ml's shortly
before your workout. The serum goes directly into your blood stream, and from
there to your muscle. It is up to you.
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