China: Boy turns yellow from feasting on oranges

A four-year-old boy in Weifang, Shandong Province, saw his skin turn
yellow a day after eating more than five oranges at one sitting. The
boy's mother, surnamed Ma, took him to hospital immediately. It turned
out the boy was suffering from excessive consumption of carotenoid.
Medical staff told the boy to stop eating oranges and drink more
water, and his symptoms would subside.



Source: chinadaily.com.cn

I think "the rest of the story," as Paul Harvey would say, must have been that the child ate many oranges (and perhaps other beta carotene-containing things) over a long period of time. 5 oranges in one day ought not to do it. Certainly there are cultures where sweet potato is the staple in the diet, and everyone develops orange "whites" of their eyes, and orange pigment in the skin. And of course, if you buy the famous brand of yellow-skinned chicken, realize they got that way by eating large quantities of marigold flowers in their diet. I suppose such chickens are a good source of vitamin A if you eat the skin.

From a mother's (and aunt's) standpoint, two of my nephews, when they were starting out on vegatables, would only eat carrots and sweet potatoes for my sister, no other green vegatables. They were a definate shade of orange, primarily seen in their face, ears and skin creases (tight baby fingers, thigh folds, etc. I used to call them Beta babies. It definately happens, but your diet has to contain large quantities of beta carotene (relatively speaking). Every once in a while I see a Beta baby in the store and just smile - you know mom and dad are giving in to their baby's every desire at 6 months old! Regards, Barbara