Why do babies' whites of eyes turn yellow?

The reason why it is called the white of the eye is because its color is white. However, the whites of the eyes of many newborn babies are not white, but may be yellow. If a newborn baby shows this kind of symptoms, the family will definitely be very worried, fearing that it will cause more serious consequences to the child. So, what is the reason for the yellowing of the whites of babies' eyes? Let's take a closer look below.

First, too many red blood cells are destroyed too quickly. About 80% of the bilirubin in the body is formed by the destruction of aging red blood cells. If too many red blood cells are destroyed too quickly, bilirubin surges and causes jaundice. Hemolytic jaundice caused by incompatibility of blood types between mother and child belongs to this category. Newborns will develop jaundice within 24 hours after birth and progress rapidly, with the skin turning golden yellow. When the bilirubin in the blood exceeds 20 mg%, bilirubin may enter the brain cells, interfere with the normal activities and functions of the brain cells, cause kernicterus, and threaten the life of the newborn. Although there are better treatments for severe jaundice, in order to achieve ideal therapeutic effects, timely rescue is necessary before kernicterus occurs. When parents are observing the degree of jaundice, they should be careful to choose a place with plenty of natural light and check repeatedly to see if the condition is getting worse. Newborns with rapidly progressing jaundice should seek medical attention promptly.

Second, there is an obstruction in the uptake, conjugation and excretion of bilirubin by liver cells. Due to inflammation of liver cells or lack of an enzyme in liver cells, or low activity of this enzyme, bilirubin cannot be excreted well, such as in neonatal hepatitis or sepsis. Newborns within one week of birth develop physiological jaundice due to low liver enzyme activity. Some babies may also develop this type of jaundice after drinking breast milk because breast milk contains a fat substance called progesterone. After the baby is breastfed, this fat component is quickly broken down by lipase, releasing free fatty acids, which can increase the absorption of bilirubin in the small intestine and cause jaundice, but the baby is healthy. The above conditions are called hepatocellular jaundice.

Third, due to bile duct obstruction, bilirubin cannot be excreted into the small intestine, causing bile to accumulate in the liver cells or bile duct and cause jaundice. We call it obstructive jaundice, such as neonatal biliary atresia, thick bile, etc.

Clinical manifestations

Neonatal jaundice is generally divided into two categories: physiological jaundice and pathological jaundice.

Physiological jaundice is a normal physiological phenomenon. Due to the metabolic characteristics of neonatal bilirubin, about 60% of full-term infants and more than 80% of premature infants may develop jaundice 3-5 days after birth, but the general condition is good. The jaundice of full-term infants will disappear within 14 days, and the jaundice of premature infants may be delayed to 3-4 weeks for complete disappearance.

Pathological jaundice is abnormal and is generally related to the following factors: ① bacterial infection and neonatal sepsis as well as viral infection such as hepatitis A virus, hepatitis B virus, cytomegalovirus, etc.; ② neonatal hemolytic disease; ③ congenital biliary atresia and common bile duct cyst; ④ breast milk jaundice, jaundice usually appears 4-7 days after birth, reaches a peak at 2-3 weeks, and bilirubin will decrease 1-3 days after stopping breastfeeding. If there is no obvious decrease in 3 days, breast milk jaundice can be ruled out; ⑤ other factors such as genetic diseases, drug-induced jaundice, etc.

The above is an introduction to why the whites of babies’ eyes turn yellow. I hope it will be helpful to parents. There are many factors that cause the whites of children's eyes to turn yellow. When this happens, it is best to go to a regular hospital for a systematic examination, because there are many possible causes. Only when the cause is determined can the treatment be most effective.