Introduction:
Sport supplementation, in various forms, has been one of the most controversial
issues in the media. In particular, creatine monohydrate has been questioned as to its
effectiveness, cost, and health risks for teenagers. Three new coaches have made an
official request to the school board to fund the supply of creatine to their players, citing
its effectiveness among players in the previous programs. You will be a member of a
committee to advise the school board on the matter. An official report is to be presented
at the school board meeting in one month.
Task:
The local school board has formed a select 5 member advisory committee to
address the concerns about the use of creatine by young athletes among the faculty and
parents within the county. The recommendation of this committee will greatly influence
the health of young athletes within the county for years to come. As members of this
committee, you will need to research current literature as it relates to your focus area,
which has been determined by the school board. The members will present their findings
to the entire committee, and the committee will vote based the findings by its individual
members. The focus areas are:
Performance Benefits: This person will need to look at reputable, peer-reviewed journals
that contain research experiments on that document the benefits of creatine use. The
subjects in these studies would ideally be teenagers, but due to research ethics can
reference experiments involving adults.
Adverse Health Effects: This person will address the claims that creatine is harmful,
citing any media source. Many of the claims in the media are being made in news and
health and fitness magazines and are based on theories. Any of these claims need to be
addressed and compared to research articles to determine their validity.
Cost: This person must determine the limitations of the supply of creatine to athletes and
where it’s funding will originate. This task will require and estimate of cost of creatine
per athlete and make a recommendation as to who will pay for it: school system, grants,
taxes, or parents.
Sports limitations: This person will determine which sports will use creatine
supplementation. The effectiveness of creatine as it relates to the individual athletes in
each sport. This task requires the committee member to determine the benefits of creatine
use at it relates to the following components of fitness: muscle strength, muscular
endurance, and cardiovascular endurance.
Use of creatine: This person will make a recommendation as to how creatine will be
administered to the athletes. This task requires the committee member to cite
experimental data which has addressed this question. The timing, dosage, and duration of
use must be recommended. If there are any differences in effectiveness as to the
particular area of enhancement, the recommendations for the different sports must be
listed separately.
Everyone on the committee must communicate while doing the research. A formal report
must be written presenting the relevant information on creatine to the school board.
Process:
To help you through this process, here are a few questions that you should keep in mind
when researching and writing your report.
1. What are the positive side effects of creatine use in high school athletes?
2. What are the adverse effects of creatine use in high school athletes?
3. What sports will the athletes benefit the most from creatine use?
4. How much will it cost to fund creatine use for an athlete?
5. Who will provide the funding for creatine?
6. Who will be qualified to distribute the creatine?
7. Will students have the option to take it or will it be mandatory?
8. How much creatine is appropriate for each student?
9. How long must the creatine be taken in order to be effective?
10. Should the creatine be taken in cycles?
Here are some web sites that could be of use when researching the information for the
report.
http://www.mesomorphosis.com/exclusive/kreiden/creatine.htm
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/29/1728_67896
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/17/1676_50201
http://www.bodybuildingforyou.com/creative/loading-creatine-use.htm
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi
http://www.drumlib.com/lk/medae.htm
http://store.nucare.com/ardansidefwi.html
Resources:
In addition to the websites already provided, you may search websites related to your
topic of study as well as books, television programs, or experts can be used as sources of
information. It may be helpful to interview nurses, doctors, teachers, coaches, athletes,
and parents to gain more information, opinions, and solve problems.
Evaluation:
Before you turn in the final report to the board make sure each committee member has
gathered the information needed for their topic of study and the information is presented
in the most professional manner as possible. Each individual report will be graded on a
20 point scale, giving the combined project a total of 100 points.
The final draft must include:
Performance Benefits: details on the positive effects of creatine use.
Adverse Health Effects: details on the adverse effects of creatine use.
Cost: Estimate the cost of creatine per athlete and make a recommendation as to who will
pay for it: school system, grants, taxes, or parents.
Sports limitations: This person will determine which sports will use creatine
supplementation, and determine the benefits of creatine pertaining to the following
components of fitness: muscle strength, muscular endurance, and cardiovascular
endurance.
Use of creatine: Recommendations for the timing, dosage, and duration of creatine use.
If there are any differences in effectiveness as to the particular area of enhancement, the
recommendations for the different sports must be listed separately.
Also, a comprehensive web site reference list and resource list of any resources used
must be included.
Conclusion:
The report has been written and you are ready to present your research to the board. Ask
yourselves the following questions to be prepared for the meeting.
1. Do you feel like you have enough information to present your proposal accurately
to the board?
2. What did you learn about creatine use?
3. What suggestions, if any, do you have for further study of the use of creatine?