The Rainbow in Your Pee

Okay, this may sound odd. My friend once said that she believed that pee should be yellow and “white” pee is something unnatural. I had a discussion with her and then we reached upon the conclusion that white is the standard colour of the pee, although most of the times we all experience yellow hues. So, today’s question relates to the discussion and what we found out:

Why Is My Pee White?

Obviously, this is not an alarming question for a healthy individual. But did you know that the colour of your pee can vary from pale yellow to purple with about five colours in between. Sounds more like a rainbow right? Here is a chart for reference:

White is the standard colour of urine. A pale yellow colour can be associated with less intake of water into the body.
A lot of times, the colour of your urine can be blamed upon taking excessive multivitamins. The yellow and orange colours of pee is notably due to excessive vitamins and other metabolites (medications such as rifampicin).
Any other colour, however, is reason to visit the doc. The most dangerous of all being red urine which may indicate the presence of blood in your urine. It is never healthy if you “leak” blood from places you’re not supposed to.

A metabolic disorder called Porphyria causes the urine to turn purple. The condition is marked by the increase in Porphyrin, a chemical that helps in the transport of Oxygen by attaching to haemoglobin. Not to worry, as the condition is very rare.

Sometimes I wish people actively searched for stuff like this. It is a normal functioning of the body and the general audience should be aware of this fact. Many a times I have noticed people laugh or creep out when someone asks such questions or tries discussing these things. Let’s try making health a little less “tabooey”.