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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Orange Skin Tone In Infants?

My 24 yr old daughter eats healthy, fruits, veggies chicken,fish and no red meatand very little fatty foods. She has a skin tone that appears to be orange,palms of her hands and bottom of her feet. Have think her over all skin tone seems to be slightly orange. What does she need to do? Who to see? Any help would be appreciated! Thanks, Denise
Thu, 10 Dec 2015
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General & Family Physician 's  Response
Hello and thank you very much for your question.

There is a general orange or yellow skin color, called hypercarotenemia, that can be caused by eating a lot of carrots, squash, and other foods with a lot of beta carotene in them. It causes the skin to be yellow or orange, particularly noticeable in the hands and feet. It doesn't really cause any other problems. It is very common in infants who are eating the first jars of baby food - lots of carrots, squash, not much else. And they have thin enough skin that we can see it easily.

A liver problem called jaundice causes a similar yellow or orange color, but jaundice also causes some yellow color in the "whites" (sclera) of the eyes, and hypercarotenemia does not affect the whites of the eyes.

Since you tell me that your daughter eats a very healthy diet with a lot of fruits and vegetables, I think it is likely that she has hypercarotenemia, which should not cause any health problems. Blood tests can check the health of her liver, but if you look her right in the eyes - you may be able to reassure yourself right away.

I hope that this has answered your question. If you have any further questions, please check back. And I hope that your daughter is entirely healthy.
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What Causes Orange Skin Tone In Infants?

Hello and thank you very much for your question. There is a general orange or yellow skin color, called hypercarotenemia, that can be caused by eating a lot of carrots, squash, and other foods with a lot of beta carotene in them. It causes the skin to be yellow or orange, particularly noticeable in the hands and feet. It doesn t really cause any other problems. It is very common in infants who are eating the first jars of baby food - lots of carrots, squash, not much else. And they have thin enough skin that we can see it easily. A liver problem called jaundice causes a similar yellow or orange color, but jaundice also causes some yellow color in the whites (sclera) of the eyes, and hypercarotenemia does not affect the whites of the eyes. Since you tell me that your daughter eats a very healthy diet with a lot of fruits and vegetables, I think it is likely that she has hypercarotenemia, which should not cause any health problems. Blood tests can check the health of her liver, but if you look her right in the eyes - you may be able to reassure yourself right away. I hope that this has answered your question. If you have any further questions, please check back. And I hope that your daughter is entirely healthy.