The gallbladder is a small pear-shaped organ that sits on the right side of our bodies just beneath the liver. Its primary function is to store and secrete bile. Bile is a yellow-brown fluid produced by the liver, which helps us digest fats. Our liver produces up to three cups of bile a day. Our gallbladder can store up to a cup of bile as it awaits a fatty meal.
When we eat, our gallbladder contracts and pushes bile into the small intestines where it helps with the digestion of fats. Bile is made up of water, cholesterol, fats, bile salts, proteins and bilirubin. Under certain conditions, substances in the bile, especially the cholesterol or bile pigment (bilirubin) can harden into stones gallstones. Gallstones can be as small as a grain of sand or as large as a golf ball. We can develop one large stone or a multitude of smaller ones.
Many people with gallstones have no symptoms at all. Others go through life relatively symptom free, experiencing minor symptoms such as abdominal bloating, intolerance to fatty foods, belching, intestinal gas and indigestion. For others, however they may suffer what is called a gallstone "attack". Gallstone attacks often follow a fatty meal. Symptoms of an attack include steady, sever pain in the upper abdomen that can last from 30 minutes to several hours. Sufferers may also experience pain in the back between the shoulder blades or under the right shoulder. A gallstone attack is often accompanied by nausea or vomiting. If symptoms such as sweating, chills, a fever or a yellowish color to the skin or whites of the eyes occur, it is important to seek medical assistance.
There are a number of factors that increase your risk of having gallstones. Those at a higher risk include women, especially women who are pregnant, on hormone therapy or taking birth control pills, people over 60 years of age, Native and Mexican Americans, overweight individuals and individuals who fast or go on crash diets and lose a lot of weight quickly.
It is important to recognize that if the gallbladder is loaded with stones, there is very little room to store bile and fat digestion may become impaired. In turn, the unused bile can back up into the liver causing liver congestion. If this is the case, it is important to evaluate your liver's health prior to cleansing on your gallbladder.
Recommendations For Wellness
The traditional treatment for gallstones is to have your gallbladder removed. There are, however, a number of things you can do to reduce your risk of producing gallstones or experiencing a gallstone attack.
Reduce your consumption of saturated fats typically found in red meat and pork, while increasing the amount of fresh fruits and vegetables you consume.
Start a diet and exercise program, but avoid crash dieting which can increase your risk of gallstones. Both diet and exercise can help you reduce your risk of producing gallstones.
If you are taking birth control pills or are on hormone replacement therapy, speak with your doctor regarding your risk of forming stones or have them check your gallbladder for the presence of gallstones regularly.
Studies indicate that coffee increase the flow of bile and may help to decrease the risk of gallstones. If you decide to add a little coffee to your health plan for this reason, make sure you only consume organically grown coffee beans.
Supplement with vitamin C. Vitamin C is needed by the body to convert cholesterol to bile acids in the body.
Lecithin has been shown to help break down and transport fat molecules and may help dissolve gallstones. Studies indicate that it is helpful in protecting us from gallstone formation.
Safflowers can be used to thin body fluids as well as aid in the digestion of oils.
Nature's Sunshine Gall Bladder Formula can be used to help stimulate circulation, improve liver function & aid in the production of digestive fluids.
Do a gallbladder flush. During a gallbladder flush, 1-2 cups of olive oil are consumed to simulate the gallbladder into releasing bile. This increased demand on the gallbladder to release bile works to push the stones out.
If you think your liver is congested, or if you have been having minor symptoms of gallstones for a long period of time, it is important to support and cleanse your liver for a period of time before doing a gallbladder flush. Try taking herbs such as milk thistle, dandelion or a liver cleanse formula.
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Copyright Body, Mind & SoulHealer 2004. All rights reserved.
Dr. Rita Louise, Ph.D. is a Naturopathic Physician and a 20-year veteran in the Human Potential Field, but it is her unique gift as a medical intuitive and clairvoyant that illuminates and enlivens her work. Author of the books "Avoiding the Cosmic 2x4" and "The Power Within: A Psychic Healing Primer", her unique insights bridge the worlds of science, spirit and culture and are changing the way the world views physical, mental and emotional health. To schedule a session and experience Dr. Louise in action, visit http://www.soulhealer.com or call 972-475-3393
Comments
#1 Re: Getting Rid Of Gallstones Naturally
My dear mom had what you describe here and she followed 2 treatments at the same time: one with drugs==> Oxbil and one with a herbal tea especially designed for this illness(the the is called hepatobil).<< hemroid treatment >>
#2 Natural Gallstone treatment another view
It seems very pitiful to me that for all the hate of Science that the testimonials could make use of Science in the defense and furthering of real knowledge. A C.T. scan and ultrasound can detect gall stones. If such flush techniques work, a simple before and after scan, ultrasound being the cheapest, would enhance any kind of avocation of gall stone elimination through natural means. But symptomatic relief is all that I've seen in the many web pages talking up rare root ingestion to special fasts, Apple, olive oil flushes, radish and turmeric ingestion etc. It's fortunate no one you've come across that has real allergies to these ingredients has tried the solutions and went into shock and died. For example, a number of these solutions contain high concentrations of Salicylates, which can be toxic to certain allergic people and represent a potential danger to the health of certain individuals.
Testimonials also have the clear disadvantage of ever or rarely being critical, for certainly for some, the treatments are ineffective. No statistics can be applied to determine overall efficacy, nor in the instances where it is or isn't, provide a logical provable reason why. No rigid controls or follow up can be conducted and while any incompetence in the medical community is deplorable, the Naturopathy, and similar modalities of treatment have even less oversight by any guardian body than standard medical treatment.
While most might be out a few hundred dollars and their suffering extended, others could lose a part of their long term health or perhaps their lives by delaying treatments, that while might be imperfect, have at least a more statistical basis for success than anecdotal supported treatments.
By and by I want to make clear I have no medical training or provide comment that's authoritative beyond a certain common sense. I do hold a degree in technology and have worked with the detection technologies in question and a certain level of science. Being a pragmatic person, I'm always interested in what works over that which doesn't, but have learned that most things have a logical reason why they work and a repeatability that can be relied on, without a lot of extra special circumstances or untraceable interference, failure, or success getting in the way. Yes, untraceable success can be as problematic as a failure, because nothing of real value is learned in either case.
I think its important that the reader know this, additionally because, I have no agenda. I've had my own level of frustration with medicine and have found satisfactory reasons why, but haven't formulated an all inclusive way to deal with it. I have no easy answer however, I would suggest if you have trouble with no matter how many different Doctors you see, that a better one is just around the corner and it's just a matter of finding which corner. Just my 2 cents.
#3 PAIN FOR GALLSTONES..
HI EVERYONE,
I HAVE READ IN AN ALL NATURAL BOOK THAT AN 8oz. glass of APPLE JUICE WITH A TABLE SPOON OF APPLE CIDER WILL STOP PAIN AND TO MY SURPRISE IT WORKED..
#4 hello I have had my
hello I have had my gallstones for about five year and i have only been told by my doctor that I can only have my gallbadder/gallstones removed by having a op.
Can you tell me if the doctor can give me pills to dissolve the gallstones please.
Also can I have a baby with gallstones ? / will the gallstones hurt the baby or will they just give my pain?.
I have also seen that a person can flush gallstones out but the doctor said to me that it does not work ?.
Please can you HELP me because I SO want my gallstones out of me and to have a baby and to get on with my life.
Thank you for your time ,liz..
#5 Gallstone cure
i would like to know how can i get rid of gallstone without surgery. my son is sixteen years and has gallstone for the past thirteen years,please help me if you can.thank you
my name is Joyce from Grenada.
#6 Please help
I have been diagnosed as of yesterday to have gall stones. I have pain very frequently and have been suffering 4 some time now. I was reading the suggestions and was wondering if I can try the flush without taking the milk thistle, dandelion ot liver cleanse formula. Or do I need to do that before the flush.
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