Supplements interfering with bloodwork

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rks581
rks581 Posts: 99 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Recently my doctor ordered some blood tests including urinalysis (chemical + toxicology screen). He said the results were "unclear": and I should have the test redone. Now, I don't take any recreational drugs and all the supplements say they're free of banned substances. Some of my prescription meds should cause false positives but I thought the lab and the doctor would know how to handle those results.

I do take a lot of supplements including whey protein, creatine, BCAAs and pre-workout. I did tell my doctor about this. Has anyone ever had unusual bloodwork or urinalysis results that were related to supplements? It might be just that I went to a small independent lab and some error occurred -- next time I'm going to a larger chain of labs that will allow me to see the results online.

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  • mgalovic01
    mgalovic01 Posts: 388 Member
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    Creatine breaks down into creatinine. Creatinine is a toxic waste product that is excreted through urine by your kidneys. Creatinine levels are used to indicate kidney fuction. When you take in a lot more creatine than you would get from a normal diet, you will have more creatinine in your system. This doesn't mean that your kidney function is impaired, as would be the case if you had elevated creatinine readings on a normal diet. That's what I read anyways. It was in an article supporting creatine usage.
    I read another article which stated that, since creatinine is a toxic waste product, it puts undue stress on your kidneys at high levels, and thus should not be used much.
    Another thing to consider is if supplements could be contaminated with things such as heavy metals. Elevated liver enzymes would be a warning sign not to be ignored.

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