The Effect of Tapering Period with and without Creatine Supplementation on Hormonal Responses of male football Players

Background: The aim of this study was to examine the effects of a tapering period with creatine supplementation on hormonal responses of men football players. Materials and Methods: The study sample included 18 male soccer players of the first division league (mean age: 18.77 ± 1.26 years, height: 174.5± 5.77 cm, and weight: 64.07± 6.99 kg) that were in the specific conditioning period who were randomly divided into two equal groups: Taper alone (n=9) and Taper with creatine supplementation (n=9). The levels of blood hormonal parameters including testosterone, cortisol and testosterone to cortisol ratio (T/C) were measured before and after the tapering period (10 days). Paired t-test and independent T-test was used to examine the differences within and between groups, respectively. Results: The results showed that the cortisol levels in the post-test compared to the pre- test decreased significantly in both groups (p≤0.05) ; While, there was no significant difference in testosterone and T/C (p ≥ 0.05). Also, no significant difference was observed in the levels of testosterone, cortisol and T/C between the two groups. Conclusion: The taper period can reduce the cortisol levels of male soccer players, but creatine consumption has no significant effect on the levels of cortisol, testosterone and T/C ratio in the taper period.