Input requested: Jaundice
There's a lot going on around here and I hope to post some more substantial posts in the next few days, but I just wanted to hop on here really quickly and ask for some sage advice on jaundice.
Kaitlynn has been struggling with jaundice some since the day after she was born. We were hoping that it was just a bit worse case of the often typical newborn jaundice and could be easily fixed with lots of nursing and sunbaths. We're still hopeful that will be the case, but since she's six days old today and her levels increased to 15.4 today as opposed to going down from two days ago, we're not sure if that will do the trick. We're supposed to get her tested again tomorrow morning. In the mean time, I'm trying to nurse her at least every two hours and we're trying to make sure she gets lots of sunlight.
I'm grateful that jaundice is a very treatable condition and that on all other fronts Kaitlynn appears to be very healthy and is nursing extremely well (she's almost back up to her birth weight!), but I was just wondering if any of you have suggestions or ideas on anything else we can be doing to help improve her levels?
Kaitlynn has been struggling with jaundice some since the day after she was born. We were hoping that it was just a bit worse case of the often typical newborn jaundice and could be easily fixed with lots of nursing and sunbaths. We're still hopeful that will be the case, but since she's six days old today and her levels increased to 15.4 today as opposed to going down from two days ago, we're not sure if that will do the trick. We're supposed to get her tested again tomorrow morning. In the mean time, I'm trying to nurse her at least every two hours and we're trying to make sure she gets lots of sunlight.
I'm grateful that jaundice is a very treatable condition and that on all other fronts Kaitlynn appears to be very healthy and is nursing extremely well (she's almost back up to her birth weight!), but I was just wondering if any of you have suggestions or ideas on anything else we can be doing to help improve her levels?
posted by Crystal Paine at 5:14 PM
26 Comments:
Hey there Crystal! All of mine have had a little Jaundice but my fourth sweetie had what was called "Late On set" Jaundice. His levels did go down after a while and were never dangerously high but they were a little higher than normal for several weeks. The Doc.'s just encouraged me to do exactly what you are doing and the lactation consultant confirmed those recommendations, too. It did go away, it just took longer. I also was not encouraged to supplement which I was so thankful for because I really prefer to exclusively breastfeed. I am expecting my 5th blessing in about 6 weeks and I did a little reading on Jaundice. Pitosin can make it harder for their liver to get rid of the billirubin. I have to have C-sections with each of mine so I am always given Pitosin to deliver my afterbirth so I found that interesting. I don't know for sure if there is any connection since our baby is already born before they give it to me. Maybe it could effect my milk? Shonda Parker's book recommends taking Milk Thistle. Do you have the book "Naturally Heathy Pregnancy"? Feel free to email me if you would like. So happy that you have your little princess home! Enjoy!!!
Blessings,
Jen in Al
kcjenkey@charter.net
As a veteran mother/baby RN, I can give you some insight. 14.5 at this many days of age is not alarming at all. Newborns have an immature liver and can not process the red blood cells in their system and this results in jaundice. Because the excess biblirubin is excreted in their stool, frequent nursing is the key. Is your milk in? Are you hearing sucking/swallowing with breastfeeding? Are you taking in adequate fluids? Make sure that each time you nurse, you have a large glass of fluids, water is best. Moms with an O positive blood type have babies that are more prone to jaundice. When Mom's who are O positive deliver, we always type the baby and do another test, Coomb's, and if that is positive then babies generally have serial bibirubin levels run at 6, 12, etc. hours of age. Your ped would have let you know that baby was a positive coomb's if that had been discovered. Also, babies can appear more jaundiced than the bili level actually reflects. It take a while for the numbers to be acurately reflected in the skin color. So, keep the fluids and the nursing up. The more volume that baby takes in, the faster the bili will go down. The older the baby, the less concerning the number becomes. 14.5 even to a 3-4 day old wouldn't necessarily warrant phototherapy. Also, facial and scleral jaundice are less concerning than jaundice of the trunk and lower extremities. Hope this helps. I am proud to be an experienced, Christian and yes, working, RN...someone has to provide the care in our world and I feel blessed to be a part of the medical profession. Blessings :)
Sorry, I transposed the bili level from 15.4 to 14.5...anyway, the advice remains the same :)
Crystal,
I am a nurse and when babies are admitted back to the hospital, treatment includes, frequent feeds, lots of fluids and double phototherapy. What you are doing is great. Sometimes they prescribe what is called a bili blanket that can be used at home.
There is a 'glow worm' blanket that you can use at home, without being stuck in the hospital under lights.
Isn't "watchful waiting" one of the hardest parts of parenting?
Mama Says
All of my kids had jaundice. My youngest, who is three months, had it the worst, but we never had to do the billi-bed thing. Just lots of feeds, lots of sunlight. By two weeks it was mostly gone. So you're doing all the right stuff. If, by chance, it does require more intervention, see if the hospital can allow you to rent one for use at home.
With my baby, we got prescribed the bili-blanket. She was in it for ~2 days? It was not a big deal, since she was at home. I could nurse her with the light on, just sitting next to the machine. After that everything was fine! Blessings, Katie
My daughter had terrible jaundice through the second week of her life. Her doctor advised that we allow her to be near sunlight as much as possible and also told me to increase my vitamin C, as vitamin C helps bilirubin clear the system and would be given to my daughter through her milk. I ate quite a bit of fruit and freshly squeezed juice and within about twelve hours of this change, her levels FINALLY began to go down just before she would have needed to be hospitalized for her jaundice. Prayers will be being said for your new little blessing! I hope the bilirubin clears her system very soon.
I have actually read that breastfed babies are more likely to get jaundice than bottlefed babies(being a very much pro-breastfeeding mother I was suprised to read that). However, the book went on to say that usually it just takes a little longer for the infant to get rid of it but usually does not get into the dangerous levels. It also said that it may take a breastfed infant up to 4 weeks or so to completely get rid of it. On the opposite end, my midwife told me that breastfeeding more often would help(sounds like you are already doing that). Would love to see more pictures when you have time. I know I know, since when does a new mother have time for ANYTHING!
~Jennifer K.
My two induced babies have had to deal with jaundice; as the other ladies mentioned the meds for induction seem to cause/worsen this. Sounds like you are doing everything right nursing frequently and putting her in the sun. My prayers are with you and little Kaitlynn.
Cathy
Hi, Crystal. Both mine had jaundice levels too high to go away with frequent nursing and sunshine. Believe me, we tried! Some jaundice has to do with your blood compatibility and is not preventable or treatable with home remedies.
My first had an at-home bili bed which was very hard to clean. My second had a modified version which was more comfortable, but still a problem because the babies can't wear diapers! This means you have to clean them up all the time and keep them in the bed even when they don't like it. If at all possible, see if your pediatrician can order a bili-blanket instead of a bili bed. Then, you can insert the pad into a blanket and hold the baby in your arms.
The jaundice treatment was more traumatic for me as a mom than it was for the babies. You hang in there! She will be completely normal within a week.
If you click on my name, the link will take you to a post I did during Elise's treatment.
My sister in law's first baby had jaundice. She was able to get a bili blanket from the hospital to use at home. They put the baby under it several times a day.
Hi Crystal, Both my kids had jaundice and had to be in the NICU for jaundice (2 days). With my son, we tried the bili blanket at home first, but it didn't make a dent (his levels were around 19) so he went back to the hospital. You are blessed that your baby was born in June...my kids were both born in the winter, so fewer sunlight opportunities (and it's too cold to leave them unclothed!)
You can ask your pediatrician to prescribe a bili blanket for home use, if it's necessary.
With Yehoshua, we ended up getting some full spectrum light bulbs (GE makes some called "Reveal" and they give off white light -- instead of yellow-- if you've not heard of them before) for our lamps/light fixtures, since it was overcast most days and he didn't get much sunlight... but I think sunlight would be better...
And we did like you're doing... frequent feeds (not like Yehoshua ever stopped nursing, anyway! lol). Yehoshua looked rather yellow (so ugly after seeing the fresh pink newborn skin!) but it did clear up eventually. :)
With Eliyahu, I was blessed because he never got a bit of jaundice! I couldn't believe it. I had thought "all" babies got a little yellow. Sure was nice to not have to worry about that with him, since, of course, there were other things to worry about... I think it's always something... diaper rash, umbilical cord not drying up, jaundice... :D
Hi Crystal, once again, we LOVED seeing the pics of baby Kaitlynne and big sister too... and look forward to more!
In terms of jaundice, our second baby girl had it too. The strange part was that she had newborn jaundice, which turned into breastmilk jaundice. It's rare, but no big deal. She is totally healthy now and didn't need blood tests after one month old. In fact, little Alisa had a bit of yellow in her skin (not so much that others could tell, but my husband, me, and our doctor could) till she was 6 months.
Hi Crystal!
I ran across your blog a couple days before you had little Kaitlynn and I have very much enjoyed it!
As far as jaundice goes, dandelion tinture, tablets or tea should take care of this problem quickly (and it is safe for nursing mothers & babies). You take it and she gets it in your milk. Dandelion cleanses the liver and every mother I know has recommended it to me. Also, giving her a teaspoon or so of purified water in between nursings may help also.
Blessings!
Heather
Crystal,
Sounds like you are getting some good advice - those RN's know what their talking about!!! Our little Emma had jaundice and her level was like 23 at 3 days old, because of the fast jump at only 3 days we had to be admitted back into the hospital for intense phototherapy. Little Kaitlyn's doesn't sound that bad. WE'll be praying for her.
Hope you are feeling well-with my third baby it took me a long time to get "back to normal", whatever normal was. ;-)
Blessings,
Phallin
You're doing all the right things, Crystal. Both my boys had jaundice. My first was not so bad - he just needed sunlight and lots of milk :) My second had to go under the lights for two days. It wasn't much fun (I couldn't cuddle him!), but it helped him a lot.
Enjoy your darling and give her lots of cuddles :) God bless and I hope the jaundice goes away soon.
Love,
Joy
I wouldn't be too worried at this point. My son had some jaundice, and the doctor assured me that this is more common in breastfed babies for some reason. So I'm sure that it will eventually clear up with the sunbaths and continued nursing. Like another poster said, Pitocin can affect the jaundice, too, as in the case of my son. I was induced and had to have a high level of Pitocin to keep the labor going, so that had an affect on him. After about two weeks it had gone away.
Our new baby had jaundice too, for the first two weeks. We had to go to the pediatrician almost every day to get his levels checked. I did the sun thing, and nursed every 2 hours, but what really seemed to help was waking him up every 2 to 2.5 hours all night to nurse him too. It took a toll on me because the jaundice made him sleepier than a normal newborn so it would take an hour to feed him, so I wasn't getting any sleep, but nursing around the clock helped a lot (that was our pediatrician's suggestion).
I hope Kaitlynn's jaundice goes down soon!
You can try taking Milk Thistle capsules or Red Raspberry Leaf tea to help support both of your livers. Milk Thistle will also help increase breast milk, and the Red Raspberry Leaf tea will make your milk better quality, as well as help with postpartum cramping, in addition to the liver support. I did this with both of my jaudiced babies, and they were better very quickly. Both were born during the winter time (Dec. and Feb.), so getting adequate sunshine was a problem. Hope this helps!
We had the blood type incompatibility jaundice. Also, I was anemic from the birth, which led to my milk coming in late (around day 6?). So our baby was not getting enough fluids to flush out the bilirubin, and ended up in the hospital for a few days, after trying the bili-blanket at home. (We went in on a Friday evening, and no lactation consultant was available until Monday afternoon....not helpful.) I had to pump like crazy and supplement with formula, which I really didn't want to do, and the baby ended up with nipple "confusion" that we then had to sort out later. Plus I could only hold her for half an hour at a time, during feedings, which was wrenching after carrying her for 42+ weeks.
Our little girl came right up to the threshold for needing an exchange transfusion (running "clean" blood through the baby to dilute and remove the bilirubin), but the doctor piled on another bank of lights, and managed to avoid it.
Having to run around back and forth to the hospital and in the hospital while anemic was exhausting and very frustrating.
I certainly wasn't eating well or geting enough rest. No doubt it delayed my recovery from the birth quite a bit.
I think if I had to do it again, I would insist on getting a lactation consultant in ASAP, even if I had to hire my own. The hospital waa slow to pick up on our multiple breastfeeding difficulties, because that was "my" problem, and I was not an admitted patient at that time. Getting a better breastfeeding start would have helped the jaundice a lot.
Crystal-Here is a website with some information:
http://www.gentlebirth.org/archives/jaundice.html
This website is the archives of a midwife, and I go to it all the time for questions!
Crystal, Congratulations on your new little girl.
Two of our ten children were jaundiced. Our now 24 year old was sent back to the hospital at 36 hours old to be under bili lights - no nursing allowed. I would not do this again. She never learned how to nurse well in spite of my best efforts.
Our 7th child, now 11, jaundiced quickly. She was lethargic, sleepy yet a with rigid-tense non-cuddly countenance. This was what clued me in to the bilirubin rising rapidly. This time I knew to ask for bilirubin test and then an in-home unit. I did everything possible to wake her and nurse her and it was tough! As her count came down, she relaxed and lost her tenseness. Once out from under the bili light, her count started back up again. I recognized this by her tenseness returning. I then went to a pediatrician known for her ability to work with difficult issues. She said, "Mommy, you go home, nurse this baby every 2 hours round the clock. Do whatever it takes to wake her up as she MUST nurse every 2 hours - that's 12 nursings a day. After each nursing, you give her an ounce of purified water. The water is better at clearing the liver and bilirubin than the milk. But always nurse her first - then give the water. Get help caring for your other children while you take care of this baby. You will be tired." Her bilirubin stabilized, and once it was down below 14.5 her tenseness disappeared. But, it took 2-3 months for the jaundice to completely resolve.
The other suggestions of milk thistle, dandelion and red raspberry are excellent suggestions as well. Baby #10, now 3, was a perfect candidate for jaundice. He was a small, failure to thrive baby born with a tight knot in his cord. He had been losing weight in utero, not gaining weight. He was a very poor nurser and very lethargic. It took me 4 weeks to teach him to nurse, 6 weeks to get him back to birth weight, many prayers and some tears of exhaustion and frustration. But, he learned to nurse, gained weight and became my most avid nurser of all. He was a prime candidate for jaundice, but didn't. I had been taking milk thistle and dandelion for my own liver and gallbladder issues. I can't be certain, but I believe that my taking the milk thistle/dandelion herbs were the instrument God used to keep him from jaundicing on top of his failure to thrive issues.
As a side note, milk thistle/dandelion also help to reduce morning sickness by helping the liver to process all the extra hormones that can make some of us so very sick. Sure wish I had known about that before so many very sick pregnancies!
Blessings to you and your family. I know that God will guide you through.
Remember that depending on your windows, you most likely need to take the little one outside to feel the effects of the sunlight, as many modern windows block the part of the sunlight that will do the trick.
Be careful, however, not to go out in the middle of the day when the sun is hottest and most likely to burn the skin.
Good luck, and congratulations!
Hi! Just for future reference, I have read that Milk thistle taken during pregnancy helps prevent jaundice in the newborn. One lady stressed that the milk thistle needs to be taken all the way through the pregnancy. And I would think postpartum too. I hope to try that next pregnancy Lord Willing we have more!
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