{"id":10206,"date":"2020-04-16T13:00:39","date_gmt":"2020-04-16T17:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.singlecare.com\/blog\/?p=10206"},"modified":"2026-03-17T09:38:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-17T13:38:22","slug":"creatinine-levels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.singlecare.com\/blog\/creatinine-levels\/","title":{"rendered":"Creatinine: Blood test, normal range, and how to lower levels"},"content":{"rendered":"

You’re 10 minutes into your afternoon jog, powering through your daily exercise routine, or biking around the neighborhood. You’re breathing fast, and your muscles are on fire. Sweat drips off your chin. Heat flushes your cheeks. And when you’re done, nothing feels better than a warm shower, a cold glass of water, and a seat on the couch.<\/span><\/p>\n

Like most people, you’re acutely aware of how physical activity makes your body <\/span>feel\u2014<\/span><\/i>the breathing, sweat, and heat. You might even thrive on it. But there’s a whole lot more going on under the surface. When your muscles break down during exercise, they slowly build back up, increasing muscle mass, but this process also releases waste products into your blood, primarily creatinine.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While it might be the last thing you think about while exercising, your blood creatinine levels can be a key indicator of your renal health and kidney function.<\/span><\/p>\n

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What is creatinine?<\/span><\/h2>\n

Everyone has certain serum creatinine levels in their bloodstream. Creatinine is a natural byproduct of muscle use, caused by the breakdown of a chemical called creatine. Creatinine itself doesn’t have a specific physiological function\u2014it’s just a waste product. It simply stays in the blood until reaching the kidneys, where it’s filtered and eliminated through urination.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So, how does your body generate creatinine? It starts with creatine, which is mainly synthesized in the <\/span>kidneys, pancreas, and liver<\/span><\/a>. Creatine is transported via blood flow to the skeletal muscles where it is stored in free and phosphorylated forms. However, creatine is mainly stored in its phosphorylated form, known as phosphocreatine or creatine phosphate. During exertion, your muscles convert the stored creatine molecules into energy, which assists in muscle contraction. After being used for energy, creatine is broken down into creatinine, which re-enters the bloodstream en route to the kidneys.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Creatinine is released from the muscles and enters the bloodstream to be filtered at a relatively constant rate. Even though creatinine doesn’t actively benefit (or harm) your body, the amount of creatinine in your blood can be measured to evaluate your kidney health. For this reason, healthcare providers will often use a creatinine test\u2014along with other lab tests, like a blood urea nitrogen (BUN) test\u2014to monitor for <\/span>chronic kidney disease<\/span><\/a> (CKD) or renal failure.<\/span><\/p>\n

What is a good creatinine level?<\/span><\/h2>\n

Creatinine levels are measured in milligrams per deciliter (mg\/dL). In most cases,<\/span> the normal range for serum creatinine<\/span><\/a> (found in the blood) for someone with healthy kidneys is 0.7 to 1.3 mg\/dL for adult males and 0.6 to 1.1 mg\/dL for adult females.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, there are a lot of variables when it comes to normal levels of creatinine. “Normal” is a somewhat subjective term. Muscle breakdown creates creatinine, so your muscle mass and activity level can influence the amount in your blood. To accurately measure blood creatinine levels, a doctor will first assess these various factors to establish a baseline, according to Taylor Graber, MD, an anesthesiologist and founder of<\/span> ASAP IVs<\/span><\/a>. “Creatinine level assessment starts with getting a demographic baseline to assess what ‘normal levels’ should be,” Dr. Graber says. “This depends on age, race, gender, and body size. Once these values are normalized, changes from this range can signify abnormalities of the kidney.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Healthcare providers like to keep an eye on creatinine levels for various reasons. If you had or currently have kidney disease, kidney damage,<\/span> diabetes<\/span><\/a>, or another illness that affects your kidneys, or are taking a medication that could affect your kidneys, your healthcare provider might order regular creatinine measurement to monitor your renal function. The most common test methods are via blood and urine.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Creatinine blood test<\/b><\/h3>\n

Creatinine that comes from your blood is called serum creatinine, and it can be measured by administering a <\/span>routine blood test<\/span><\/a>. “When kidney function becomes impaired, less creatinine is able to be cleared, which results in a higher level of creatinine in the blood,” Dr. Graber explains. “While this test does not directly tell you how well the kidney is functioning, it can be followed over time for changes.”\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Healthcare providers can use a creatinine blood test to measure your serum creatinine levels, which can be used to estimate your glomerular filtration rate (GFR). Measuring GFR levels is vital in diagnosing kidney failure or chronic kidney disease. Your GFR can be measured directly, but the test can be complex and lengthy. Instead, healthcare providers can estimate GFR using serum creatinine levels. To calculate your <\/span>estimated GFR<\/span><\/a> (eGFR), healthcare providers will also take into account other factors, such as:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n