Your child goes to school and one day he/ she complains of a tummy ache. And then weakness along with fever sets in making you wonder what went wrong. When the yellow discoloration ensues you realize what your child is going through.
What is Jaundice?
Jaundice is a yellowish discoloration of one?s skin and the white portion of the eye which is caused by an increase in the bilirubin levels.
Bilirubin is a yellow bye product that is released into the blood when Iron is taken up from Hemoglobin in the red blood cells. The bilirubin moves in the blood as unconjugated or free bilirubin. This is later taken up by the Liver as Liver functions to filter the waste from the blood. Once this free bilirubin is taken up by the Liver it is combined with other Liver chemicals and converted into conjugated bilirubin. This is secreted in the bile and later excreted.
In a Jaundiced state, the amount of free bilirubin increases as the Liver?s function is hampered due to various reasons. Thus the bilirubin accumulates and gives the yellow color to the skin and sclera (white portion of the eye).
Causes of Jaundice?
The underlying cause of the disease can be any of the below depending on the type of Jaundice. The three types of Jaundice are Hepatocellular or Hepatic (liver disease/injury), Hemolytic or Pre-hepatic (massive breakdown of red blood cells) and Obstructive or Post Hepatic (obstruction of the bile duct). Further, the cause can be:
- Inflammation of the Liver or the bile duct (Acute or chronic Hepatitis, Cirrhosis, drugs and Liver cancer)
- Hemolytic anemia wherein a large number of red blood cells are broken down and the conditions that are involved in the breakdown of red blood cells are Malaria, Sickle cell disease, Hereditary spherocytosis, Thalassemia, G6PD deficiency and other Autoimmune Diseases.
- Obstruction of the bile duct resulting in stagnation of the waste in gallbladder (Gallstones, Cancer, Strictures of bile ducts, Cholangitis and Parasitic affections)
- Gilbert?s Syndrome (A condition where the liver enzymes fail to process the excretion of bile)
- Cholestasis is stasis of bile in the liver
- There may be other causes of Jaundice such as Dubin-Johnson syndrome (inherited condition that does not allow conjugated bilirubin to release out of the liver cells), Crigler-Najjar Syndrome (The enzyme that is responsible for processing bilirubin is impaired)
- Pseudojaundice occurs due to excessive consumption of beta-carotene that carrots, pumpkins and melons are rich in.
How do you know you are suffering from Jaundice?
A few or all of the below-mentioned symptoms can occur during Jaundice.
- Yellow discoloration of the skin and sclera
- Fever
- Loss of appetite
- Weight loss
- Fever
- Abdominal pain (Sign of obstructive jaundice)
- Vomiting
- Itching
- Pale chalky stools and dark urine
Helping yourself recover from Jaundice
Treating Jaundice involves treatment of the cause that can be best suggested by a healthcare professional after doing certain blood tests. On our part, just to be safe we can take care of a few things to help us recover faster.
- Drinking plenty of water
- Avoiding red meat till complete recovery
- Including plenty of fruits and vegetables in the diet of the patient
- Avoiding fast food and processed food till complete recovery
- Stop drinking alcohol, caffeinated drinks. Instead, fresh fruit juices are a better option
- Reducing Dairy products till improvement
- Getting enough sleep
- Doing light exercises and yoga
- Lastly and most importantly, relieve stress if any
The Homoeopathic Product Doliosis D22 Icterol helps to reduce yellowness of skin, eyes, loss of appetite, weight loss and physical weakness associated with jaundice. There are no side effects upon the use of this medicine. It is easy to take this product and also it can be consumed with other medicines.