Baby's Skin Color Turns Yellow, Can Be Symptoms of Carotenemia

Little skin color really suddenly turn yellow? Don't be mistaken, your child will get jaundice! Maybe he has carotenemia. Carotenemia is a condition characterized by a yellowing of the skin due to excessive levels of beta-carotene in the blood. This can occur when the baby consumes too much food that is high in beta-carotene.

Babies consume too much beta-carotene

Carotenemia generally occurs because babies consume too much beta-carotene-rich foods, such as carrots, potatoes, pumpkins, corn, and egg yolks. This condition is usually only experienced when the Little One has begun to consume complementary foods for breast milk (MPASI), namely fruits and vegetables. In addition, babies who are breastfeeding can also experience carotenemia, you know! This happens if the mother consumes a lot of foods high in carotene. Carotenemia is more easily seen in white babies. While in infants whose skin is dark, discoloration can be more visible on the palms and soles of the feet. Because excess carotene is released through the sweat glands, the body parts that turn yellowish generally start from the area that often sweats. For example the top of the nose, palms or feet, and the top of the lips, then spread throughout the body. An easy way for Mother to distinguish carotenemia from jaundice is to pay attention to the whites of the eyes or sclera Little. In jaundice, the sclera will also turn yellowish. This does not occur in carotenemia, where the sclera will remain white as usual. While in adults, carotenemia is more commonly experienced by vegetarians and people who take supplements high in carotene. In addition, carotenemia is also known to be associated with several diseases, such as diabetes mellitus, hypothyroidism, kidney disease, liver disease, and anorexia nervosa.

Carotenemia Common in Infants

Carotenemia is actually a fairly common condition in infants. Mother also does not need to worry too much, because this condition is actually harmless and does not require special treatment or medication. You can consult with your pediatrician to find out what foods are high in carotene and need to be avoided by babies. Not only vegetables and fruits that are orange, green vegetables such as beans and spinach are also high in carotene you know, Bun! To overcome this, Mother needs to avoid giving foods that are high in carotene to the Little One, for approximately one week. The goal is to reduce levels of carotene in the baby's body, so that the skin color can return to normal gradually. Carotenemia is not a condition to worry about. But if your baby's skin looks more yellow than usual, or if the yellow skin is accompanied by fever or weakness, Mother needs to take her to the doctor to be examined and given treatment that may be needed.