How to tell if your newborn has jaundice

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Sometimes newborn babies may develop a yellow coloring of the skin, eyes, tongue and palms. This is called jaundice. Newborn jaundice occurs when a baby has high levels of bilirubin in the blood. Bilirubin is a yellow substance that the body creates when it replaces old red blood cells. The liver helps break down the substance so it can be removed from the body in the stool. Usually, the high levels of bilirubin make your baby’s skin and whites of the eyes look yellow.

It is important to remember that, generally, a baby’s bilirubin level is most often a bit higher after birth. During pregnancy, the placenta removes bilirubin from the baby’s body. After birth, the baby’s liver starts doing this job. Sometimes, it can take a while for the baby’s liver to fully take on this task effectively, hence the generally higher bilirubin levels.