What are the reasons why newborns are prone to jaundice? Parents should pay attention to the signs of newborn jaundice

Nowadays, many children suffer from jaundice, but many parents don’t know it. Let’s take a look at why newborns are prone to jaundice.

Reasons why newborns are susceptible to jaundice

Increased production of bilirubin

Newborns produce about 8.8 mg/kg of bilirubin per day, while adults only produce 3.8 mg/kg. The reasons are: the fetus is in an environment with low oxygen partial pressure, so the number of red blood cells produced is relatively large. After birth, the oxygen partial pressure in the environment increases, and the red blood cells are relatively excessive and destroyed. The half-life of fetal hemoglobin is short, and the life span of newborn red blood cells is 20 to 40 days shorter than that of adults, which shortens the cycle of bilirubin formation. Bilirubin is produced more from other sources, such as heme proteins (catalase, cytochrome p450, etc.) from organs such as the liver and bilirubin precursors from ineffective hematopoiesis in the bone marrow (a small amount is destroyed during the maturation of red blood cells).

Insufficient ability to transport bilirubin

Newborns often have varying degrees of acidosis, which affects the combination of bilirubin and albumin in the blood. The amount of albumin in premature infants is lower than that in full-term infants, which makes the ability to transport bilirubin insufficient.

Watch out for signs of jaundice in newborns

60% of full-term babies will have jaundice within the first day after birth, and 80% of premature babies will have jaundice. Because the baby's liver function is not yet fully developed, mild jaundice is a normal phenomenon, but parents should not ignore it. The severity of the baby's jaundice and if it lasts too long, it may affect the baby's health. You must be vigilant and observe carefully.

Jaundice causes the baby's blood, mucous membranes and skin to turn yellow. Because the skin on the face is under less pressure, the face turns yellow first, followed by the trunk, and finally the hands and feet.

When the red blood cells in the human body age, they will produce some waste products through metabolism. Among them, a waste called "bilirubin" will eventually be excreted from the body by the liver. If the excretion is abnormal due to liver and gallbladder diseases, or the red blood cells are excessively damaged, it will accumulate in the body and cause jaundice.

Abbreviated as bilirubin concentration. The jaundice index is 12mg/dl, which means there are 12mg of bilirubin in 100cc of blood.