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Mercy urologist Dr. Stanley Silber

Mercy Urologist Dr. Stanley Silber Discusses What Your Urine Color Can Say About Your Health On WBAL's "Woman's Doctor"

The color of your urine can explain things about your health.

Louise Brown, 71, said she started having trouble about four years ago with a bladder infection that wouldn't do away, and her urine looked different.

"It was cloudy, and sometimes it was red, and it was scary," she said.

Brown's primary care doctor referred her to Mercy Medical Center urologist Dr. Stanley Silber, who said typical urine is lemonade colored. A darker yellow might indicate some dehydration or that someone is taking certain vitamins, and the more hydrated you are, the lighter the color.

According to Dr. Silber, brownish urine could indicate some kind of liver problem; blue-green urine could probably mean changing medications or vitamins; and orange-yellow urine could mean that a person had lots of carrots, beets or extra vitamin C, and he added that certain medications could be the cause.

Cloudy urine usually means there's an infection that needs to be checked out, but if the urine is red, it could mean blood.

"The most important thing we worry about is a tumor in the kidney or the bladder or prostate -- somewhere along the urinary tract. We need to study that," he said.

Dr. Silber discovered a tumor in Brown's bladder.

"I had surgery. It was low-grade and it was in the early stages. I've been cancer free for four years," Brown said.

She said those who see changes in their urine color shouldn't ignore it.

To view Dr. Stanley Silber's interview with WBAL-TV11's "Woman's Doctor," click this link: http://www.wbaltv.com/womansdoctor/24649944/detail.html