Creatine has spent decades filed under one heading: the gym. It lived in the same mental drawer as protein tubs and pre-workout, a supplement for people chasing a heavier deadlift or a fuller shoulder. On June 15, Elysium Health tried to move it to a different drawer entirely, launching Creatine+ from New York as a supplement built not for personal records but for the long, slow project of aging well.
The reframing is deliberate, and it lands at a moment when the wellness conversation has quietly shifted beneath our feet. For years, longevity culture chased the futuristic and the exotic, cold plunges, gene tests, fasting protocols with cult followings. What researchers keep returning to instead is something far less glamorous: muscle. The ability to carry groceries up three flights, to catch yourself when you stumble, to bounce back after a bad flu, all of it rests on the strength you manage to hold onto over time. The math is unforgiving. By age 80, muscle mass falls by roughly 30 percent, strength by around 40 percent, and power by as much as 50 percent.
Creatine+ is Elysium’s attempt to meet that decline with more than a single lever. Rather than lean on creatine alone, the formulation stacks three ingredients: micronized creatine monohydrate for lean mass, strength and cognition; HMB, which works alongside creatine to support recovery and help you keep the muscle you build; and pomegranate polyphenols standardized to urolithin A precursors, aimed at mitochondrial health. Those mitochondria matter more than their obscurity suggests. They generate the energy your muscles and organs run on, and they grow less efficient with age, which is part of why staying capable can feel harder each decade.
The product was developed with the advisement of Dr. Michael Fredericson, co-director of the Stanford Center on Longevity and a member of Elysium’s Scientific Advisory Board, and its ingredient logic draws on clinical work going back to a 2001 study in Nutrition showing that pairing creatine with HMB produced greater gains in lean mass and strength than creatine on its own. Fredericson frames creatine as one of his favorite tools for maintaining lean body mass as we age, especially alongside consistent resistance training. He is also pointed about who stands to benefit. “I highly recommend creatine for men and women, but women especially face distinct changes in muscle physiology, and Creatine+ offers targeted nutritional support for maintaining performance and vitality,” he said, naming an audience the sports-supplement world spent years overlooking.
Elysium is not moving into empty territory. Other players, including Zhoun Nutrition, have recently launched creatine-and-HMB combinations, a sign that the category is crowding fast as the longevity-adjacent wellness market matures. Backed by investors including General Catalyst and Mayo Clinic Ventures, Elysium is betting its scientific reputation will separate Creatine+ from the noise. “Over the last several years, creatine has evolved from a supplement primarily associated with athletes and gym-goers into one of the most widely popular interventions for healthy aging,” said CEO Eric Marcotulli, tying the launch to a broader recognition that muscle health predicts independence and quality of life.
Whether Creatine+ becomes a fixture of longevity routines is still an open question. But the trajectory it represents is not. The supplement that made its name helping people lift heavier in the gym is being recast for something more everyday and, arguably, more meaningful: helping people stay strong enough to carry the weight of ordinary life for years longer.
Note From the Editors: This article is for editorial and informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Products discussed are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Results vary by individual; consult a licensed dermatologist or healthcare provider before starting any new product or routine, especially if pregnant, nursing, or managing a medical condition. Formulations, pricing, and availability are set by the manufacturer and subject to change. Coverage reflects our own editorial judgment, not a paid partnership unless disclosed.
