Jaundice is a common and usually harmless condition that occurs when your baby has a high level of bilirubin - an orange-yellow colored substance produced during the normal breakdown of red blood cells - in his or her blood. It can be easily distinguished as your baby’s skin and the white of the eyes will appear yellow in color.

Symptoms

Apart from yellowish baby’s skin and the yellowing of eyes, other symptoms of newborn jaundice may include:

Yellowing of the palms of the hands or soles of the feet.

Dark yellow urine.

Pale-colored feces.

Causes

Bilirubin in the blood is normally removed by the liver. However, because newborns have immature livers, it may require a few days before their bodies can fully eliminate bilirubin efficiently. Most infants have mild jaundice that is harmless. However, in some infants, the bilirubin level can be very high and this may cause brain damage.

It is important that your baby is properly checked by a nurse or doctor when he/she is 3 to 5 days old because this is usually the time when a baby's bilirubin level is the highest. Hence, newborns should be checked carefully for jaundice and treatment should be administered to prevent a high level of bilirubin.

Treatment

If your baby's bilirubin level is high, the baby needs to be admitted to the hospital for phototherapy. Phototherapy is performed by placing your unclothed baby under special lights. Phototherapy will lower the bilirubin level. The jaundice is treated at a lower level than at which brain damage and treatment can help prevent the harmful effects of jaundice.

However, in some cases, the level of jaundice may get so high that phototherapy may not be effective. Then a special procedure called exchange transfusion might become necessary.

Keeping your baby in direct sunlight is not recommended. It does not reduce the jaundice level effectively. Moreover, newborns should never be placed under direct sunlight as they might be overheated.

Disclaimer: The content on this site is for informational purposes only, and should not be taken as professional medical advice.  Always seek the guidance of your doctor or other health professionals for any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition.