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Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffNormal urine color ranges from pale yellow to deep amber — the result of a pigment called urochrome and how diluted or concentrated the urine is.
But the color of your urine may not always be normal. B vitamins turn urine color an eye-popping green, for instance. Carrot juice can tint it orange. And porphyria, a disease that affects your skin and nervous system, earned its reputation — and its name — by turning urine the color of port wine.
Most changes in urine color are harmless and temporary — the result of certain foods, dyes, supplements or prescription drugs. Occasionally, though, unusual urine color can indicate an infection or serious illness. Talk to your doctor about changes in urine color that persist or don't seem linked to medications or food.
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- Liao JC, et al. Pediatric urine testing. Pediatric Clinics of North America. 2001;48:1425.
- Gerber GS, et al. Evaluation of the urologic patient: History, physical examination, and urinalysis. Wein AJ, et al. Campbell-Walsh Urology. 9th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/151836479-3/0/1445/6.html?tocnode=54299533&fromURL=6.html#4-u1.0-B978-0-7216-0798-6..50005-4_96. Accessed July 28, 2009.
- Post TW, et al. Urinalysis in the diagnosis of renal disease. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Aug. 11, 2009.
- Rose BD, et al. Evaluation of hematuria in adults. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed July 17, 2009.
- Yun EJ, et al. Evaluation of the patient with hematuria. The Medical Clinics of North America. 2004;88:329.
- Mercieri A. Exercise-induced hematuria. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed July 17, 2009.
- Terris MK. The significance of abnormal urine color. Stanford School of Medicine. http://urology.stanford.edu/about/articles/abnormal_urine.html. Accessed Aug. 11, 2009.
