First of all, jaundice is not a disease that is caused by a particular reason. It may occur due to a variety of reasons. Jaundice is usually the staining of the skin with yellowish color. The eyes also turn yellowish or brownish according to the chemical content in the body.

The sclera which is the white parts of the eyes turns yellowish because of the high levels of a chemical named bilirubin. When the bilirubin in the blood is at maximum then, the whites of the eyes are brownish. The color variation of the eyes depends on the level of bilirubin present in the blood.

What are the causes of jaundice?

The bilirubin has its origins from the red blood cells. The red blood cells release hemoglobin when they are destroyed. The bilirubin is the chemical that is present after the removal of hemoglobin from the red blood cells.

The liver does many vital functions like the secretion of bile chemicals into the intestine for digestion and it cleans up or removes the toxic materials from the blood. The bilirubin also gets eliminated in the liver. Jaundice is a condition where there is a requirement of removing high levels of bilirubin from the blood.

Other causes of the occurrence of jaundice are the defect in the liver that prevents it from doing its normal function or a major blockage in the bile ducts which decreases the flow of bilirubin and bile to the intestine from the liver.

What are the problems that are associated with jaundice?

Jaundice causes some inconvenience in the patients although it does not cause anything to the newborn child. Jaundice is different for newborn children. Patient affected with jaundice usually show yellowish skin and sclera. Their stools may become very light in color. Their urine color also turns brownish due to the excretion of bilirubin from the blood.

The symptoms mentioned above are most usually associated with jaundice. Sometimes itching may also be caused and can be unendurable and this is commonly called as pruritis. Jaundice can be specifically called as a liver disease. Jaundice can also decrease or even stop completely the bile from entering into the intestine which is very much needed for the digestion.

What are the diseases that can cause jaundice?

Increase in the production of bilirubin

The excess of production of bilirubin can be due to various reasons. Bilirubin produced in these conditions is only mild and causes only mild jaundice. Those conditions in which they occur may include the sudden destruction of the excess of red blood cells. Additionally, over production of hemoglobin in the bone marrow due to the defect produced in the formation of the red blood cells and increased absorption in hemoglobin when there is a bleeding in the tissue.