If you’ve ever asked yourself “what does my pee color mean”, or what color is healthy urine and what color is abnormal urine, continue reading.
Pee color can tell a lot about your health. Actually, when observed carefully, pee is a valuable indicator of our state of health, and can prevent many chronic diseases. The moment pee turns pink, orange, green, or dark brown, we start worrying. But in most cases, depending on what we eat or what drugs we take, the pee color changes. However, an unusual color of pee can also indicate urinary disorders, an infection, or even problems with our internal organs. So if you are wondering “what does my pee color mean“, here are the most common 9 types of pee and their meaning.
In This Article You Will Find:
What Does My Pee Color Mean? 9 Types of Urine & Their Meaning
1. What Does Brown Pee Mean?
Very dark pee is a sign of dehydration, drug treatment, or the result of a diet rich in dyes or pigments. But dark brown pee can also be the result of a serious illness: kidney or bladder bleeding (blood clots can color pee brown), or liver disease, such as hepatitis, cirrhosis, or jaundice. This pee color is also common in alcoholics, who, as a result of a brutal, uncontrolled withdrawal, suffer from delirium tremens.
Brown urine is common in people who suffer from diabetic ketoacidosis or diabetic acidosis, a complication that can be fatal. Finally, it can also be the first sign of the destruction of muscle tissue caused by an accident and causing bleeding that can be fatal.
Foods that Change Pee Color to Brown
For example, rhubarb can cause very dark brown or red urine, but so can Flagyl (Metronizadol), a drug prescribed to treat giardia, dysentery, vaginitis, and trichomoniasis.
2. What Does Pink Pee Mean?
From a medical point of view, pink or reddish pee is common in people suffering from a psychiatric disorder and undergoing drug treatment, as well as in cancer patients who take drugs containing high levels of anthraquinone. Pink or red pee is more common in people who have an iron deficiency or suffer from malabsorption syndrome.
Unfortunately, often the pink or reddish pee color is due to the presence of blood in the urine, known as hematuria. This can occur following an injury to a kidney or another organ of the urinary system. Blood in the urine is also a sign of serious diseases in the kidneys, liver, or bladder: infections, stones, cysts, or tumors.
Foods that Change Pee Color to Pink or Red
Consuming a lot of red-colored foods can make your pee turn pink or reddish. Rhubarb, senna, and dwarf everlast can also color the pee pink because they contain anthraquinone, which is also used as a dye and laxative.
3. What Does Yellow Pee Mean?
Normally, pee is clear or slightly yellowish in color. When the urine is pale yellow, you don’t have to worry. These color variations are perfect and show that you are hydrated and perfectly healthy. However, when it turns intense yellow or orange, it indicates severe dehydration, especially if the urine has a strong odor and its volume is small, or oliguria. Moreover, many drugs, especially Rifampicin (antituberculosis antibiotic), Warfarin (anticoagulant), and certain anti-cancer products color pee orange.
Foods that Change Pee Color to Yellow
People who have a high intake of beta-carotene (from food or supplements) often have dark yellow-colored urine. These foods are carrots, spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cantaloupe, and winter squash.
4. What Does Green Pee Mean?
Green pee can most often be caused by certain foods or medicine, but can also be due to an accumulation of bilirubin, the main colorant of the bile secreted by the liver and responsible for jaundice. An excess of bilirubin indicates that the liver or pancreas is affected by a disease.
Foods that Change Pee Color to Green
Eating asparagus can turn the pee color green and give it a specific smell. This can also happen when taking certain multivitamins, or prescription drugs for depression, allergies, headaches, and inflammation. After surgery, under general anesthesia, many patients have green or, in some cases, pink pee.
5. What Does Purple Pee Mean?
Purple-colored pee is a common symptom of a rare hereditary disorder called porphyrias. Oddly enough, urine only turns reddish-purple when exposed to sunlight. Porphyria can lead to more or less serious symptoms: hypersensitivity to light, itching, abdominal pain, mental confusion, epileptic fits, and paralysis.
6. What Does Clear Pee Mean?
Clear pee can mean intense hydration. Although it doesn’t seem like it, too much water can lead to the dilution of urine, to a colorless color, and to frequent urination. If you reduce the amount of water and the color of your urine returns to a pale-yellowish color, then there are no reasons for concern. However, if you do not hydrate intensely, do not go to the bathroom often and yet your pee color remains clear, it’s best to see a doctor for investigation. In this situation, clear urine can indicate liver problems or the onset of diabetes.
Foods that Make Pee Clear
Drinking too much water will make your pee clear.
7. What Does Strong Smelling Pee Mean?
- If the morning pee has a strong foul smell, it can be a sign of a urinary infection. Urine that smells like fish is typical of a metabolic disorder called “fish odor syndrome” or “trimethylaminuria.”
- When pee has a strong ammonia smell, it is typical of severe dehydration.
- Urine that smells fishy is typical of a metabolic disorder called fish odor syndrome or trimethylaminuria.
- When pee has a sweet smell, it’s not good news. This is often a sign of diabetes complications known as diabetic ketoacidosis or diabetic acidosis. This condition also gives pee a dark, brown color.
Foods that Make Pee Smell Foul
Certain foods we eat give a strong smell to our pee, especially asparagus, cabbage, cauliflower, and garlic. If you haven’t eaten any of these foods, but your urine smells strong, you may have a health problem.
8. What Does Foamy Pee Mean?
Foamy urine is a sure sign of proteinuria (albuminuria), caused by an accumulation of bile salts or proteins circulating in the urine in the form of albumin. Proteinuria is a sign of a kidney problem or heart disease, especially in diabetic or hypertensive patients.
Foamy urine is often the first sign of nephrotic syndrome, a serious disorder due to damage to the kidney system, following a viral infection, diabetes, or lupus. Foamy urine can also be caused, in some cases, by a fistula, an abnormal connection between the bladder and the vagina or between the bladder and the rectum, in people affected by certain serious diseases, especially Crohn’s disease, or tumors.
9. What Does Cloudy Pee Mean?
Cloudy urine is typical of a urinary infection. Sometimes the pee also has a strong smell. The infection can occur and remain localized in the bladder, leading to cystitis, but if it goes up to the kidneys, it can lead to pyelonephritis. Bacteria and mucus cloud the urine. Infections located in other parts of the urinary system, especially in the urethra, are often transmitted during sexual intercourse.
What Does Cloudy Urine in Men Mean?
In men, cloudy urine with shades of red is most often due to an inflammation of the prostate (prostatitis), itself due to a urinary infection or a sexually transmitted disease. For men who have benign prostatic hyperplasia, the risks of having a urinary infection are higher because they never empty their bladder completely. However, non-evacuated urine is a very favorable environment for bacteria.
What Does Cloudy Urine in Women Mean?
Urinary infections are also common in women who have a very active sexual life. During intercourse, bacteria can reach the urethra, which allows the urine collected in the bladder to drain. In women, the urethra being relatively short, bacteria quickly penetrate the bladder.
What Color Is Healthy Urine?
The color of healthy urine is pale yellow.
What Is Frequent Urination A Sign Of?
There may be several different causes for frequent urination, in both men and women. The most common are:
- a sign of the onset of diabetes, especially if it is accompanied by intense thirst.
- polyuria can also signal a urinary infection or a sexually transmitted disease, especially if it is accompanied by secretions.
- the frequent desire to urinate is also one of the most common symptoms of menopause.
- in men, benign prostatic hyperplasia also increases the frequency of urination. In fact, prostate hypertrophy compresses the urethra and blocks urine and as a result, the bladder is difficult to empty and never completely, hence the permanent desire to pee.
Nocturia (frequent urination during the night) can have several causes. It may be the side effect of some drugs prescribed by the doctor, such as diuretics, and drugs against cardiovascular or mental disorders. Nocturia can also be caused by kidney dysfunction or a heart attack. People who drink a lot during the day, especially caffeinated drinks, beer, or other alcoholic beverages, tend to urinate at night.
Foods That Change Pee Color
The foods that can change pee color most often are asparagus, foods, and herbs that are rich in anthraquinone, namely rhubarb, senna, and dwarf everlast, and a high intake of beta-carotene, namely carrots, spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cantaloupe, and winter squash. Medical drugs can also change urine color.
Read Also: What Is Color Therapy – 7 Health Uses of Colors
We hope that by the end of this article, you have found the answer to the question “what does my pee color mean” and are more empowered. Please consult a medical doctor if the color of your pee is abnormal or if you have other accompanying symptoms. If you’ve enjoyed this article, please share the word.
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