Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsSymptomsCausesDiagnosisTreatmentPrognosis
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Symptoms
Causes
Diagnosis
Treatment
Prognosis
This article explains carotenemia symptoms, causes, diagnosis, and treatment.
Reproduced with permission from © DermNetdermnetnz.org2023.
Carotenemia Symptoms
The hallmark symptom of carotenemia is yellow- or orange-hued skin calledcarotenoderma. It tends to appear in thick areas of the skin, such as the palms of the hands andsoles of the feet.
Carotenoderma across the whole body is rare. A telltale sign of carotenoderma is its enhanced appearance under artificial light.
Other symptoms, which may be due to specific rare causes of carotenemia, include:
Carotenemia vs. Jaundice
In carotenemia, there are high levels of beta-carotene in the blood. Carotene is the main nutrient converted into vitamin A in the body. However, because the body only converts a limited amount of carotene to vitamin A daily,high vitamin A levelsdo not occur with excessive carotene intake.
The most common cause of carotenemia is an excessive intake of carotene-rich foods over months.
Foods high in carotene include red, yellow, orange, and dark leafy green fruits and vegetables. These include carrots, sweet potatoes, papaya, cantaloupe, winter squash, broccoli, spinach, kale, red and yellow bell peppers, and tomatoes.
Infants and toddlers eating large amounts of orange and green pureed vegetables may develop carotenemia. This might, at first, be confused with jaundice.
Additional causes of carotenemia include other conditions, such as:
To diagnose carotenemia, a healthcare provider will perform a physical exam to look at the areas of skin with yellow or orange pigmentation (the coloring of a person’s skin).
They will also take a detailed dietary history, focusing on high-carotene foods and nutritional supplements. They may also ask you to estimate the amounts consumed and how long you’ve eaten the foods or taken the supplements.
If the cause of carotenemia is unclear, screening for other conditions that can occur with carotenemia should be performed.
The main treatment for carotenemia is reducing the amount of carotene-rich foods and supplements in the diet. However, it’s important to not completely avoid carotene-containing foods, as they provide many essential health-promoting nutrients.
If the cause of carotenemia is not a result of diet, then treatment will involve addressing the underlying condition.
For example, suppose it is determined that diabetes orhigh blood sugar (glucose) levelsare causing carotenemia. In that case, reducing blood sugar levels through diet, lifestyle changes, or medication may resolve the condition.
After reducing the amount of high-carotene foods in the diet, skin pigmentation is expected to slowly improve over time. Diet-induced carotenemia is nonprogressive and is unlikely to lead to any serious consequences.
Summary
A healthcare provider can diagnose carotenemia based on a diet history and physical exam. Carotenemia is usually not serious and does not progress to other body systems. The main treatment is reducing the amount of carotene-rich foods in the diet, which will slowly resolve the carotenemia over time.
5 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Edigin E, Asemota IR, Olisa E, Nwaichi C.Carotenemia: a case report.Cureus. 2019;11(7):e5218. doi:10.7759/cureus.5218Gupta S, Bourke MJ, Burgess NG.Pain and pigmentation: a puzzling presentation.Gastroenterology. 2021;160(4):1034-1036. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2020.10.027Priyadarshani AMB.Insights of hypercarotenaemia: a brief review.Clin Nutr ESPEN. 2018;23:19-24. doi:10.1016/j.clnesp.2017.12.002UpToDate.Overview of vitamin A.Julka S, Jamdagni N, Verma S, Goyal R.Yellow palms and soles: A rare skin manifestation in diabetes mellitus.Indian J Endocr Metab. 2013;17(7):299. doi:10.4103%2F2230-8210.119625
5 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Edigin E, Asemota IR, Olisa E, Nwaichi C.Carotenemia: a case report.Cureus. 2019;11(7):e5218. doi:10.7759/cureus.5218Gupta S, Bourke MJ, Burgess NG.Pain and pigmentation: a puzzling presentation.Gastroenterology. 2021;160(4):1034-1036. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2020.10.027Priyadarshani AMB.Insights of hypercarotenaemia: a brief review.Clin Nutr ESPEN. 2018;23:19-24. doi:10.1016/j.clnesp.2017.12.002UpToDate.Overview of vitamin A.Julka S, Jamdagni N, Verma S, Goyal R.Yellow palms and soles: A rare skin manifestation in diabetes mellitus.Indian J Endocr Metab. 2013;17(7):299. doi:10.4103%2F2230-8210.119625
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Edigin E, Asemota IR, Olisa E, Nwaichi C.Carotenemia: a case report.Cureus. 2019;11(7):e5218. doi:10.7759/cureus.5218Gupta S, Bourke MJ, Burgess NG.Pain and pigmentation: a puzzling presentation.Gastroenterology. 2021;160(4):1034-1036. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2020.10.027Priyadarshani AMB.Insights of hypercarotenaemia: a brief review.Clin Nutr ESPEN. 2018;23:19-24. doi:10.1016/j.clnesp.2017.12.002UpToDate.Overview of vitamin A.Julka S, Jamdagni N, Verma S, Goyal R.Yellow palms and soles: A rare skin manifestation in diabetes mellitus.Indian J Endocr Metab. 2013;17(7):299. doi:10.4103%2F2230-8210.119625
Edigin E, Asemota IR, Olisa E, Nwaichi C.Carotenemia: a case report.Cureus. 2019;11(7):e5218. doi:10.7759/cureus.5218
Gupta S, Bourke MJ, Burgess NG.Pain and pigmentation: a puzzling presentation.Gastroenterology. 2021;160(4):1034-1036. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2020.10.027
Priyadarshani AMB.Insights of hypercarotenaemia: a brief review.Clin Nutr ESPEN. 2018;23:19-24. doi:10.1016/j.clnesp.2017.12.002
UpToDate.Overview of vitamin A.
Julka S, Jamdagni N, Verma S, Goyal R.Yellow palms and soles: A rare skin manifestation in diabetes mellitus.Indian J Endocr Metab. 2013;17(7):299. doi:10.4103%2F2230-8210.119625
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