SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Starting in 2027, Californians will need an ID to buy creatine.

AB 2030 bans minors from buying creatine and other diet supplements like green coffee extract. That means stores could start requiring ID for those kinds of supplements. The law goes into effect in January of 2027.

California was the second state to pass a ban like this. New York was the first.

I spoke with San Diego Discount Nutrition owner Freddia Evaristo about what the change could mean.

“Almost never, almost never,” Frankie said when asked how often teens come in to buy creatine.

“If somebody comes in and they look obviously young, maybe 12 or 13 years old we’re not going to sell it to them, but I don’t know if that’s ever even happened,” Evaristo said.

Evaristo is also a certified nutritionist and said he has been selling supplements for 20 years.

“The recommended age is 18 and over, simply because the growth plates in the bones are not developed yet,” Frankie said.

He said he doesn’t see the point in this law because teens aren’t really buying these supplements — at least not from him.

But there is another side to it. Teen eating disorders and body image issues are a real concern, and multiple eating disorder advocacy groups spoke out in favor of this bill.

Allyson Ford, who owns Eating Disorder and OCD Therapy in San Diego, said parents and teens have been reaching out.

“We’ve recently had a lot of inquiries from teens and their parents, who have mentioned that the teens have gotten hold of their supplements,” Ford said.

Ford said that she had seen an uptick in younger male clients facing body image pressure online. Often, a negative relationship with supplements was part of the issue her clients face.

“Oftentimes, when someone is having a really obsessive relationship with supplements, including creatine, they’re usually, that’s kind of like a snowball [effect]” Ford said.

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