Jaundice Information:

What is jaundice and who are at risk of getting this ailment? Jaundice is actually more of a symptom than an ailment, and this yellowing of the person’s skin indicates some serious ailment. Here are a few facts about jaundice:

• This yellow pigmentation that you get from this problem comes from bilirubin, which is what you often see when a bruise heals.
• This bilirubin is produced by old red blood cells; and when a person has too many of these old red blood cells, the liver finds it hard to handle and this results in the yellowing of a person’s skin.
• When the liver effectively excretes the bilirubin from the body, the result is bile. Otherwise, if the liver cannot cope with the excessive amount of bilirubin in your system, you might develop jaundice.
• A lot of newborn babies are born with yellowish skin or jaundice, but this does not mean that this ailment is exclusive to infants. Even adults are prone to jaundice if they have ailments that give them this yellowing of the skin.
• Also called cholestasis, this condition is considered somewhat normal in infants but not in adults. This condition usually comes a few days after a baby is born, and this is due to the immaturity of a baby’s liver at this stage in his life.