What is the color of pee that tells us everything is ok? Its color is normally light yellowbut the difference in shades of yellow can vary depending on our health conditions.
Pee color: what does it mean when it’s yellow?
The yellow color comes from two substances called urocromo e urobilin. It is a product derived from hemoglobin that is eliminated through urine.
The more intense the yellow, the greater the concentration of the urine. Concentration means the proportion of waste products to water. When this proportion increases, the urine becomes darker, because it contains less liquid.
It can also happen when you sweat a lot, because the liquids come out of the pores of the skin. Remember that sweat is simply more diluted urine.
The color indicates the level of hydration. The darker it is, the more it means we need to drink. Up to this point, however, everything is easily solvable by paying more attention to our hydration, so as not to go into trouble dehydration.
However, when our pee has other colors, it tells us that we have some problem.
Orange pee
May turn orange due to use of some drugsFor example antibiotics as the rifampicin o painkillers as the phenazopyridine.
Pure laxatives and chemotherapy they can color urine orange.
Their diet can also contribute to giving them this color, especially if they eat too many foods that contain carotene such as carrotsbut also some red fruits, beetroot or rhubarb.
However, in rare cases the pee turns orange even for more serious issues. It can also be a sign of liver or bile problems. Be careful if your feces also have this color.
When the color of the pee is red
There can be various causes. The first, which should immediately push us to go to a doctor, is the one that exists blood in our urinethat is called hematuria. It could also be a case of BPH.
It can then be a case of hemoglobinuria, which indicates the presence of hemoglobin in the urine. It occurs due to severe burns, malaria, incompatible blood transfusions, but also some acute infections and intoxications.
It can also be about myoglobinuriawhich can happen:
after very intense muscular activity, during some intoxications (from alcohol, carbon monoxide, barbiturates, chloroquine, amphotericin B), due to excess consumption of liquorice, industrial water pollution, following a bumblebee sting.
Pee can be red for ours too diet, but in this case there are no problems. If we eat lots of beets or lots of blueberries the color will turn red.
Brown pee
Pee can be brown when we take certain medications:
antipsicotipi such as chlorpromazine and thioridazine;
antibiotics such as metronidazole and nitrofurantoin;
antiepileptics such as phenytoin;
laxatives based on senna.
It can also happen that if we exaggerate with legumes oraloe.
When the color of the pee is purple
If it is purple it is linked to porphyriaa rare disease which has one of the symptoms in urine of this color, together with vomiting, tachycardia, photosensitivity, incontinence, restlessness and tremors.
Green pee
It can turn green when we use drugs and other compounds they contain phenolas the promethazine used against allergies and the cause, and the propofola drug used for anesthesia.
It can also be green if we take antidepressants likeamitriptyline o to cimitidine which reduces stomach acidity orindomethacin which is a painkiller.
When the color of pee is cloudy
Cloudy urine can be a sign of a whole host of problems. For women it may be due to vaginal discharge. It could be a sign of urinary infections, kidney problems, such as stones.
It can also indicate the presence of too much calcium or too much protein in the urine. Dehydration can also be the cause of cloudy pee.
The smell of pee
The smell may change. In most cases there is no problem. For example, eating asparagus makes you stink.
The smell can signal though urinary infections or candida. The sweet smell can be a sign of diabetes.
When to go to the doctor
Most pee color changes are temporary and lasts as long as we take certain products. These changes are harmless. However, if the color does not change, always contact your doctor.
If your pee is dark due to dehydration, it is generally sufficient to simply drink more. But if there is no explanation, as already underlined, it is best to contact our doctor immediately. Finally yesand the pee is red, always go to the doctor.