As a new parent, what do you do when you notice a yellowing of your newborn’s skin or in the whites of his eyes? He may have jaundice. The first thing to remember is not to let fear get the better of you. Contact your doctor and remember: Jaundice is a common condition for newborns.
“The large majority of jaundiced newborns have normal physiologic jaundice,” says Dr. Michael Carter, a CHOC pediatrician. “Usually this does not require treatment. However, when the level of bilirubin gets too high, the jaundice must be treated.”
A noticeable difference usually occurs within a couple of days of his life. The discoloration appears, beginning from the newborns head and progresses to his legs. Jaundice is caused by a buildup of bilirubin in the blood and is produced by the normal breakdown of red blood cells.
“Bilirubin comes from the breakdown of hemoglobin, which is the molecule in red blood cells that carries oxygen to the body's tissues,” says Carter. “As new red blood cells are formed, old red cells are broken down, and their components are recycled by the liver. Bilirubin is a yellow pigment and can cause a newborn baby to have a yellow tint to the skin and whites of the eyes. About 35 percent of normal babies have some degree of jaundice.”
Your newborn produces more bilirubin than adults do, and sometimes his
liver cannot break it down quickly enough to pass through the body, or
the liver cannot remove bilirubin from the blood. Your newborn’s liver
is still developing, and his body has to figure out how to work with
the rest of the system. Within a week, his liver will mature enough to
process the bilirubin. The jaundice will gradually go away. But, there
are some abnormal instances in which the bilirubin does get too high.
This will require medical attention. Bruising during the birth process
often results in too many red blood cells, which cannot be broken down
by the liver.
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