Jaundice Home Treatment

Jaundice is caused by an excess of bilirubin, the yellowish byproduct of heme catabolism found in the hemoglobin of red blood cells that causes the yellowish color of bruises. When the liver is unable to dispose of the old red blood cells that are constantly being replaced by the body's production of fresh red blood cells, there is a buildup of bilirubin that begins to turn the skin and whites of the eyes yellow. Treatments of jaundice typically involve adjustments to the diet, but there are a number of home remedies that are believed to be effective.

Home Remedies

• Since jaundice is primarily a symptom of other, more serious conditions such as hepatitis, liver disease or pancreatic cancer, there aren't any specific medications or accepted medical treatments for jaundice itself. There are, however, many home remedies whose efficacy is unknown. Home treatment of jaundice is basically a trial-and-error process, so you just have to start trying them until you find one that works.

Diet

• Adjustments to your diet may help with jaundice. Making your liver work less may help allow it to catch up with the expulsion of dead red blood cells, so eating organic foods that don't have the remains of pesticides or plastics, which the liver has to work to remove, is one option. Cutting back on fatty foods, oils and dairy products might also help. Consumption of fruits and vegetables might help, and drinking plenty of fluids may help flush the excess bilirubin out through urine.

Herbs and Other Foods

• The use of herbal remedies is the most common remedy for treating jaundice, but you should be very careful to fully understand everything you ingest in order to avoid potential allergic reactions or bad chemical mixtures with medications you may be taking.

  The juice of the bitter luffa vine, which can be extracted by pounding and then squeezing it through a cloth, is a popular treatment. Juices from the green leaves of the radish plant, which are also extracted by pounding and squeezing through a cloth, are believed to be another effective remedy, although a full pound of this juice is recommended daily, making it quite a chore.

  Beetroot juice, lime juice, lemon juice, prune juice, sugarcane juice, bitter gourd juice, carrot juice and tomato juice may help. Other remedies include 1 tsp. fresh lime with crushed mint mixed with 1/2 tsp. ginger juice; buttermilk mixed with black pepper; buttermilk with a pinch of roasted alum; 2 tsp. oregano left boiling in a cup of water for 10 minutes; 10 lemon leaves left boiling in a cup of water for 5 minutes; and, for a cure-all of all liver problems including jaundice, 4 g Indian gooseberry and water three times a day for 20 days.

  Mineral supplements such as iron and calcium may help as well.

Additional Remedies

• Exercise and keeping the body active may help in speeding up the body's natural processes and in turn help the liver more quickly dispose of the dead red blood cells. After a day of physical activity, it is also important to get a good night's sleep.

  Most important, the emergence of jaundice should immediately result in a trip to the doctor, because it is most often a symptom of a more serious health condition.