Jaundice often corrects itself by the time a baby is around 2 weeks old
Jaundice is caused by too much bilirubin, a breakdown product of red blood cells. After being processed in the liver, bilirubin is passed out of body in poo. Newborn babies have a high number of red blood cells that are broken down and replaced frequently. Their livers are less effective in removing it from the blood. Jaundice therefore occurs in most of newborn babies. Jaundice often corrects itself by the time a baby is around 2 weeks old when the body produces less bilirubin and the liver is more effective at removing it from the body.
When jaundice is persistent (pathological jaundice), it may indicate underlying health conditions that need to be treated. Some causes of pathological jaundice include: breast feeding, hyprothroidism, blood group incompatibility, rhesus factor disease, infection, Crigler-Najjar syndrome, Hirschsprung disease, G6PD deficiency, congenital choledochocyst, and biliary atresia. A bilirubin test is often required if it's thought a baby has jaundice. But diagnosis of the underlying causes of pathological jaundice can be difficult.