Understanding Elevated BUN/Creatinine Ratio & Cholesterol Levels - Senior Health

Question
I am a generally healty 67 year old female.  On a recent complete blood test printout, an item (BUN/CREATININE RATIO)was marked with an H with a metabolic entry of 24.4 where the ratio listed as 7.0 and the range was listed as 22.2.  I am curious as what this all means.  Also, my Cholesterol and LDL as also marked as high and always have been as well as other members of my immediate family.  What measures, other than meds, can be taken to lower this?  Thank you.  Jacqui Nieman

Answer
Hi Jacqueline,
The ratio is an indicator that the kidney function is off a little. This may be only due to poor fluid intake, read:water. If you start increasing your water intake and recheck the BUN and Creatinine, I'll bet that you will see the ratio normalize.
As for the Cholesterol and LDL, a trial of diet and exercise will be a good starting point. As your healthcare provider to give you a diet sheet and start exercising regularly (as long as there is no medical reason not to). Recheck your Lipid profile in 3 months and see where this takes you.