Medical Health Encyclopedia

Jaundice - yellow skin

Another condition called Gilbert's syndrome is a benign, hereditary condition in which mild jaundice develops. It is caused by low levels of some bilirubin-processing enzymes in the liver. This condition, once recognized, requires no further treatment or evaluation. There are other more rare hereditary causes of elevated bilirubin levels.

A yellow-to-orange color may be imparted to the skin by consuming too much beta carotene, the orange pigment seen in carrots. In this condition, the whites of the eyes remain white, while people with true jaundice often have a yellowish tinge to the eyes.

Common Causes:

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Causes in children include:

• newborn jaundice (physiologic jaundice)
• breastfeeding jaundice
• breast milk jaundice
• viral hepatitis (hepatitis A, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, hepatitis D, and hepatitis E)
• hemolytic anemia
• disorders present since birth that cause problems processing bilirubin (Gilbert's syndrome, Dubin-Johnson syndrome, Rotor's syndrome, or Crigler-Najjar syndromes)
• biliary atresia
• autoimmune hepatitis
• malaria

Breastfeeding jaundice may occur in the first week of life in more than 1 in 10 breastfed infants. The cause is thought to be inadequate milk intake, leading to dehydration or low caloric intake. It is a type of physiologic or exaggerated physiologic jaundice.

Breast milk jaundice is far less common and occurs in about 1 in 200 babies. Here the jaundice isn’t usually visible until the baby is a week old. It often reaches its peak during the second or third week. Breast milk jaundice can be caused by substances in mom's milk that decrease the infant’s liver’s ability to deal with bilirubin. Breast milk jaundice rarely causes any problems, whether it is treated or not. It is usually not a reason to stop nursing.