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Writer's pictureDr Khush Mark

The Glorious Gallbladder

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to share on the gallbladder today. It is such a vital organ that before you decide to have it removed, let me share with you some of its vital roles in the body.

The gallbladder is a small bag/sac just located under the liver and it STORES bile. When we eat, this bile storing organ releases it’s content to help with digestion.

What is BILE?  Bile is basically your detergent, it not only makes fat water soluble it does this by breaking down fats into smaller units that can be used by your body called fatty acids. Bile is made from bilirubin and CHOLESTEROL., salts, pigments and amino acids. Bile is also key in neutralising the acid that comes down from the stomach, in other words, it is alkaline in nature.

BILE IS ALSO ACTS AS A DETOXIFIER, it carries out toxins from the body which mainly come from the liver.

GALLSTONES occur when the bile forms a sludge in the gallbladder. The stones can block the ducts, not just the bile ducts but also the pancreatic and liver ducts. This can create a whole host of problems but the symptoms of gallstones can vary from,

  1. heartburn

  2. gastric reflux

  3. gas and indigestion

  4. tight gripping pain in the upper right abdomen

  5. pain between the shoulder blades

  6. constipation

  7. diarrhoea

  8. headaches

  9. nausea

  10. itchy skin

  11. bloating

Now at university, myself and my colleagues were taught that being FAT, FORTY and FAIR (in skin colour) increases the risk of gallstones. In practice, this is not what I have experienced. I have seen gallstone issues in under 40s, dark-skinned and not necessarily fat individuals.

There is an increased incidence in gallstones due to poor nutritional habits, unhealthy emotions such as resentment, high oestrogen levels, poor liver health, reduced stomach acid and/or low protein intake, leaky gut, dysbiosis, overuse of medications etc.

So it is absolutely vital in addressing some if not all the above causes. Generally addressing say the health of the liver and the gut can balance out all the other issues and get your gallbladder back into good shape.

to health!

Khush

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