What Causes Yellow Eyes: 5 Best Remedies

What Causes Yellow Eyes? When your body produces too much bilirubin, a yellow substance produced when red blood cells degrade, your eyes may turn yellow. That usually does not cause issues.
Bile is created by your liver from bilirubin, which is removed from your blood by the liver. As bile reaches your digestive tract, it travels via tiny tubes known as bile ducts before leaving your body as waste.
This article will focus on what causes yellow eyes and the possible treatment options for the same.
1. What Causes Yellow Eyes
Your eyes may become yellow for a variety of causes, including:
1.1. Gallstones
The gallbladder, a little organ under your liver, is where these hard, pebble-like chunks of material develop. The most frequent reason for obstructing bile ducts is gallstones.
If gallstones obstruct bile ducts, bilirubin accumulates in the blood. Your eyes’ whites start to become yellow due to this.
1.2. Alcoholic Liver Disease
Alcohol can damage your liver if you drink too much. It can cause inflammation in certain people, which kills liver cells. Healthy liver tissue may be replaced with scars over time, making it more difficult for your liver to function properly.
What causes yellow eyes? Too much drinking can cause yellowing of the eyes and lead to scarring of the liver.
1.3. Viral Hepatitis
The inflammation of your liver is brought on by viral hepatitis. Hepatitis can be brought on by a number of different viruses (hepatitis A, B, C, etc.), but the symptoms are often the same.
Hepatitis A can be acquired by ingesting tainted food or water, resulting in liver infection, which can happen when traveling. Using needles or syringes with someone who has hepatitis B or C can also spread the disease.
Viral hepatitis symptoms might be minor or severe. In some circumstances, severe viral hepatitis might cause liver failure. You may also have disorientation, acute skin and eye yellowing, and issues with blood clotting when the liver disease progresses quickly.
1.4. Anemia
When the blood lacks healthy red blood cells, anemia develops. If anything that causes the breakdown of red blood cells is the cause of your anemia, your eyes may become yellow. Hemolysis is the term for this.
It can happen in a variety of anemias, including sickle cell anemia, autoimmune hemolytic disease, and infection-related anemia (such as malaria).
1.5. Subconjunctival Hemorrhage
A ruptured blood vessel in your eye is known as a subconjunctival hemorrhage. When the blood cells degrade, it begins as a red or purple patch on the white of the eye and ultimately turns yellow. The spot typically disappears after 5 to 7 days.
They may result from coughing, vomiting, ocular damage, or sneezing (getting a foreign body stuck in it). Diabetes, high blood pressure, and using blood thinners are risk factors.
1.6. Blood Disorders
Your eyes may also seem yellow if red blood cells do not break down correctly or bilirubin is not effectively expelled. This is why disorders that influence the lifespan or production of your red blood cells might result in eye yellowing.
Your immune system may target the incorrect blood type transfused during any health complications resulting in the production of bilirubin and jaundice.
1.7. Pancreas Problems
Enzymes and hormones are produced by your pancreas to support digestion and other bodily functions. The duct from your pancreas travels to the small intestine together with the bile duct.
Bilirubin can pile up and cause yellow eyes if it becomes inflamed, infected, or clogged. Abdominal pain can be a common symptom. Jaundice brought on by pancreatic problems is less frequent than gallbladder and liver diseases.
1.8. Medicines
Medications can bring on jaundice. The liver is a target for medication-induced harm because it concentrates and metabolizes the majority of medicines. Often, liver dysfunction or damage is caused by the negative effects or side effects of medications.
2. When Should you See a Doctor for Yellow Eyes
If you have any of the following symptoms in addition to yellowing of your eyes, get medical assistance right once since they may indicate a dangerous condition:
- Low appetite
- Leg or abdominal swelling
- Dark urine
- Pale feces
- Unusual joint or muscle discomfort
- Bleeding from the nose
- Feeling weak or weary
- Losing weight for no obvious cause
- Fever
- Feeling unwell
- Vomiting
- Itchy skin
3. Diagnosis
Liver function tests (LFTs), which our doctor will do, will determine how efficiently your liver is metabolizing bilirubin. Liver function tests can reveal whether or not your liver is functioning properly. If not, your physician will provide medicine and offer you guidance on how to manage or rectify the issue.

Your doctor may also order a CT scan, MRI, or ultrasound to evaluate the health of your liver. Your doctor can request a full blood count (CBC) to see whether your liver has trouble processing red blood cells since jaundice has a connection to them and their breakdown.
An ERCP and cholescintigraphy are two procedures your doctor could do to evaluate your gallbladder if your jaundice is not related to your liver. These examinations will reveal any obstructions in your bile ducts.
4. Risk Factors
What Causes Yellow Eyes? While many diseases that cause jaundice may not have long-term consequences, some, such as hepatitis, cirrhosis, and cancer, can be fatal if untreated. If you have a liver illness or injury or any major medical condition, you are more likely to have organ damage.
You may be more susceptible to developing jaundice in your skin and eyes if you have any of the following disorders.
- Gilbert’s syndrome inhibits the processing of bile excretion by enzymes. Bilirubin accumulates when bile ducts are obstructed in some way.
- The disease known as cholestasis inhibits the movement of bile from the liver via the bile duct.
- Pericholangitis, another cholestatic disorder that decreases bile flow through bile ducts, can be brought on by ulcerative colitis.
- Amyloid builds up in your liver as a result of amyloidosis, which harms it, lessens its capacity, and results in jaundice.
- The pancreas cannot digest bile when it is inflamed. Pancreatitis is a painful ailment that needs medical attention. It can be either chronic or acute.
5. Treatments for Yellow Eyes
The primary cause of jaundice and additional causes of eye yellowness dictate the course of therapy. These are a few medical treatment options for jaundice-
5.1. Pre-Hepatic Jaundice
Bilirubin builds up in your body when your body breaks down too many red blood cells because your liver is unable to process it quickly enough. It can be brought on by two illnesses: malaria and sickle cell anemia.
Most likely, your doctor may suggest medication to treat the underlying issue or treat the symptoms. They could suggest a blood transfusion, intravenous (IV) rehydration, or medications like hydroxyurea if sickle cell anemia is the cause (Droxia, Hydrea).
5.2. Intrahepatic Jaundice
Intrahepatic jaundice occurs if your liver has already suffered damage. The most frequent causes are infections, such as liver scarring or viral hepatitis.
Antiviral medications can help in the treatment of viral liver infections. Identifying and eliminating problematic substances like alcohol, drugs, chemicals, or toxins as soon as feasible.
If your liver has suffered considerable damage, a liver transplant is a must. If the liver is not replaced and insufficient healthy liver tissue is left, you might develop serious complications such as liver failure.
5.3. Post-Hepatic Jaundice
When a bile duct becomes blocked, bilirubin and other waste materials cannot exit the liver, which results in post-hepatic jaundice.

Surgery is the most typical therapy for post-hepatic jaundice. With this treatment, the gallbladder, a section of the bile duct, and a piece of the pancreas are all removed.
5.4. Gallbladder Condition
Your doctor will probably advise gallbladder removal if your bile ducts are blocked, your gallbladder is irritated, or your gallbladder is loaded with gallstones.
6. Remedies for Yellow Eyes
6.1. Address the Underlying Medical Issue
Addressing the underlying health complication is essential. Consult your healthcare provider.
Hepatitis, TB, as well as issues with the liver, pancreas, or gallbladder, can all result in high blood levels of bilirubin.
6.2. Lemon Juice

Lemon juice and water are combined. Mix it thoroughly and add sugar if necessary. This lemon juice can be consumed daily until the yellowing of the eyes stops. The liver and kidneys may remove poisons with the aid of water.
6.3. Healthy Food
You can recover from jaundice by consuming fruits and vegetables that are rich in nutrients that are beneficial to the liver. Lime, grapefruit, tomato, olive, and ginger are a few of them. Your ophthalmologist may also advise avoiding red meat in favor of lean proteins like tofu, lentils, and fish.
6.4. Drink More Water

More water consumption aids in the liver’s detoxification of toxins and bilirubin. Maintaining good hydration is essential for having clear, healthy eyes.
It eliminates impurities from your eyes, lessens puffiness, and transforms yellow eyes into white. Physicians advise 8 glasses of water a day.
6.5. Wear Sunglasses

What Causes Yellow Eyes? Common causes of eye damage include UVA and UVB radiation. You must thus take great care to shield your eyes from these hazards. Just like you would use sunscreen to shield your skin from UV radiation, you should put on sunglasses to shield your eyes.
It won’t always stop the yellowing of the eyes, but it will hasten the healing process and protect you against the disease.
7. Final Note
Eye and skin yellowing are always signs of an illness that requires medical treatment. Anybody with yellow eyes should see a doctor right away.
Discuss receiving testing and treatment with your doctor if you have jaundice or yellow eyes.
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