Should your gallbladder ever be removed?

[Winston]

My dads liver is ok now. But his doctors are pressuring him to remove his gallbladder. They think it will cause more problems if it remains. Why do they think this? Do they have a logical reason or are they just guessing? Or is it just the way they were trained by the medical industry? If the latter then couldn't it be profit driven?

We all know that the drug industry controls the medical establishment and is super corrupt right? Even the FDA is just the police arm of the pharmaceutical industry and of the allopathic monopoly on medicine. So it is super corrupt and evil and puts profit over truth and human life. Do the research and see. Many books and websites have exposed the FDA and its true agenda. I hope none of you are gullible enough to believe that the FDA is honest and unbiased and free of corruption. Do you think its a coincidence that the FDA never recommends any natural cure at all?! As if natural cures dont exist and only prescription drugs work. Yeah right. Its a no brainer.

So shouldn't we be skeptical of everything the doctors say? Doctors will always recommend whats profitable to the drug cartel right? Besides there may be natural remedies for healing the gallbladder if one does the research.

Rock did some research on this. He said that most people who have their gallbladder removed report doing ok but they may trouble digesting some oils, but that problem is painless and trivial. A few people regret having it removed but they are in the minority.

I tend to think if God or nature put the gallbladder there, then it must have a purpose. Why interfere and play God with it? So i would prefer to leave it there unless its absolutely necessary to remove it. Im not sure how airtight the doctors case is in wanting to get it removed.

What do you all think?

[MrMan]

Mine got infected. They said I could die, so I had it removed. I actually kept it the first time it got infected. The first time, probably, was the worst pain I had in my life. My wife and I went outside for some romantic time together before a planned interlude. But instead, I started having these horrifically painful sensations that came in waves. In between waves, I was in pain. When the real pain hit, I was in agony. My gall bladder was infected.

I decided not to have it removed right away. But then it hit again, so I had them take it out. They said I could have died. My pancreas was infected. After having it removed, I don't have any real effects. Sometimes french fries or other greasy foods feel too greasy in my stomach, something I did not feel when I was young.

They don't know for sure why some people get gall stones. Some people say it's diet, but I've also read they are not sure.

[Shemp]

Just tell your dad to drink a bottle of hydrogen peroxide each morning. Guaranteed cure for any and all diseases, including baldness, impotence, backaches, ascaris worms, potbellies that won't go away, venereal diseases, etc.

[gsjackson]

I'm told that any time they get someone (i.e., cash cow with insurance) in the hospital with internal problems of indeterminate origin, they want to take out the gall bladder. Must be the most expensive procedure they can get away with without severe and immediate side effects.

Three months ago I went into the hospital with pancreatitis. There wasn't the slightest doubt in my mind that the cause was having taken more prescription drugs in the previous six weeks than I had in the rest of my life combined, owing to knee replacement surgery -- opiates, etc.

But the side effects of prescription drugs is the 800 pound gorilla on the dining room table that doctors aren't allowed to look at. So a ditzy blonde "hospitalist" and Arab surgeon teamed up on me while I was hooked up to an IV to get me to let them take out my gall bladder. The blonde showed me a picture of something circular with lots of dots in it, clearly implying it was an x-ray of my gall bladder with multiple gall stones in it. Meanwhile the Arab played the bad cop and told me about all his patients who died from pancreatitis. Told me I needed to "think on a higher level" (I was obviously reluctant to have one highly invasive procedure just six weeks after another).

Long story shorter, the next day they decide maybe it isn't the gall bladder, and are off chasing some other theory. I check out of the hospital "against medical advice," go see my GP a few days later, he looks over the hospital records and informs me to my great surprise that neither the ultrasound x-ray or an MRI showed any gall stones at all.

Dodged a bullet getting out of that hospital intact. Anyway, a long way of saying I agree, Winston, that the gall bladder probably has some purpose, and anyone should be very leery when they're told while vulnerable in the hospital that it needs too be removed.

[Winston]

My cousin said that the inflammed gallbladder could be the cause of the liver abscess infection. Can an inflamed gallbladder be life threatening? Or only painful? Why arent there ways to heal it? Why are doctors so eager to take it out?

Gsjackson, surely all these doctors cant be knowingly scamming us on that right? Doctors have a conscience too right? They wouldnt advocate something unless they honestly believed it was for the best right?

[Winston]

I found this online. Would it heal an inflammed gallbladder? A liver detox makes sense since the liver and gallbladder are connected right?

https://www.earthclinic.com/remedies/hy ... -buy6.html

Hi Lanie... Regarding your allergy problem, most allergies can be overcome by gently detoxing the liver. See this article:

The True Cause of Allergies

From the article:

"There are three things causing your allergies:

#1 Your Liver is overproducing histamines because it has too many toxins

#2 Your thyroid is low, and that sets the rate of the liver

#3 Your adrenal glands and lungs are weak ... "

For a more detailed explanation of the relationship between allergies and the liver see this link:

http://www.liversupport.com/wordpress/2 ... er-health/

So the best remedy for your problems is to gently detox your liver to get rid of your toxins by taking the following:

Chanca Piedra -- 1000 mgs twice a day at mealtimes.

Milk Thistle -- 1000 mgs twice a day at mealtimes

Alpha Lipoic Acid -- 300 mgs twice a day at mealtimes

Selenium -- 100 micrograms twice a day at mealtimes.

Vitamin C -- As Ascorbate, 1000 mgs twice a day at mealtimes.

Magnesium -- 250 mgs twice a day taken as magnesium citrate or magnesium gluconate. Taken coutside mealtimes.

The above detox will also help to gently purge gallstones from your liver/gallbladder and help to remove any kidney stones as well.

[Winston]

Just tell your dad to drink a bottle of hydrogen peroxide each morning. Guaranteed cure for any and all diseases, including baldness, impotence, backaches, ascaris worms, potbellies that won't go away, venereal diseases, etc.

Excuse me but you cant just drink hydrogen peroxide straight from the bottle. You got to dilute it first with distilled water. Otherwise it can be toxic and burn your stomach. Man dont give dangerous medical advice like that.

Didnt you see the thread where me and droid are debating the benefits of hydrogen peroxide? Why didnt you comment in it?

viewtopic.php?f=27&t=19354

[gsjackson]

Gsjackson, surely all these doctors cant be knowingly scamming us on that right? Doctors have a conscience too right? They wouldnt advocate something unless they honestly believed it was for the best right?

Lol. As far as the "knowingly" goes, they take pains not to know things, such as the side effects of prescription drugs. And an American in search of money can rationalize anything -- it's only a useless gall bladder, they say to themselves, and you.

I really got the impression from doctors and nurses that having your gall bladder removed is seen as life enhancing elective surgery. Except for one nurse, who said she felt like she'd been run over by a truck for quite a while after the surgery. I think that having the procedure is something that hypochondriac women are regularly coerced into. The sort of women who often develop autoimmune conditions from all the invasive procedures they consent to -- another area in which doctors remain willfully ignorant. Can't be opening any can of liability worms in the profession.

Retiredfrank is funning with you.

[Winston]

I've been doing some research and most sites say that removing the gallbladder is ok and that most people have no problem with having theirs removed. However, this article is an exception and so is sort of a maverick article. What do you think? Does it make sense? I'm not a doctor, so I can't say, but even if I was, I would be biased by my "education" and my knowledge would depend on the sources I read. Who's to say that only authoritative government sources can be trusted?

https://jonbarron.org/article/healing-l ... allbladder

Gallstones and the biliary system

As we discussed last issue, gallstones don't start in the gallbladder; they are related to cholesterol metabolic defects originating in the liver itself. They also happen to be associated with obesity and pregnancy. Essentially, if the cholesterol produced in your liver is too thick and becomes too concentrated in the bile and sits too long in the gallbladder, it can crystallize and form gallstones. It is estimated gallstones result in some 600,000 hospitalizations and more than 500,000 operations each year in the United States alone. Bottom line: it's one of the most prevalent digestive disorders known.

The usual treatment is laparoscopic surgery to remove the gallbladder. The surgery itself has now become so routine that it can be completed in about an hour and the patient leaves the same day -- back to work the next day.

However, because it does not address the underlying cause of the problem (metabolic issues in the liver), gallbladder surgery often does not resolve the patient's discomfort. And because it eliminates the body's regulating mechanism for the release of bile when needed, it often creates new digestive problems of its own. In fact, after gallbladder removal, some 13% of patients report persistent pain. Another 17% report chronic diarrhea, and another 20% report intermittent digestive problems and pain. The bottom line is that although surgeons will report an almost 100% success rate for the surgery, patients will report a 50 % failure rate. It's all a matter of perspective. The surgeon considers the surgery successful if the patient survives, there are no immediate problems, and she collects her fee without a lawsuit. The patient, unfortunately, has to live with the long term results.

The biliary tree
The biliary tree is the anatomical term for the treelike path by which bile is secreted from the liver on its way to the duodenum.



It is referred to as a tree because it begins with a multitude of small branches coming from the thousands of liver lobules which empty into the common bile duct, which is sometimes referred to as the trunk of the biliary tree. Hanging off the trunk, tucked up into the liver is the gallbladder. It is a secondary outpouching, if you will -- an outpouching of the bile duct coming from the liver, which is itself an outpouching of the digestive tract. The gallbladder lies in a groove under the liver, between the two lobes, and is a soft, thin-walled sac, shaped like a fat carrot, with its narrow end pointing toward the bile ducts.

Liver duct system
Bile drains from the ultra small bile ducts (ductiles) that service each of the liver's tens of thousands of lobules into progressively larger ducts, culminating in the common bile duct. The right and left hepatic ducts join just outside the liver to form the common hepatic duct.

Bile passing through the common bile duct exits and enters the gallbladder through the cystic duct. Most physicians refer to the gallbladder as a vestigial organ (as they do the appendix) -- meaning that it's lost most of its original function and now pretty much "gets in the way." To them, this explains why the gallbladder does not usually empty completely, which allows gallstones to form -- leading to pain, infection, inflammation, and even cancer. This also explains why they remove upwards of half a million gallbladders a year in the United States alone.

They are wrong!

The gallbladder serves a definite function. It is not vestigial. It regulates the flow of bile so that it can "push out" into the digestive tract in bursts as needed to assist in the digestion of fats. In fact, the gallbladder will contract to squeeze out stored bile when stimulated by a fatty meal. Without the gallbladder, bile merely dribbles out in a constant flow, thus being present when not required and insufficiently present when needed. This can lead to a whole series of digestive problems including poor digestion, intestinal distress, diarrhea, and an inability to fully break down fats. In fact, many people, as they age, need to take an ox bile supplement (available at all health food stores) with their meals to compensate for insufficient bile in their digestive tracts. If you have digestive problems after eating fatty meals, it's one of the first things you (and your doctor) should look at.

It is important to understand that problems with the gallbladder rarely stem from the gallbladder itself. They stem from the liver, which if not functioning properly will manufacture bile that is prone to "stoning." Thus removing the gallbladder does not eliminate the problem; it merely eliminates ONE place problems can manifest. Where else can problems manifest? If you follow the biliary tree down past the gallbladder, you will find that the common bile duct joins the pancreatic duct before entering the duodenum through the ampulla of Vater. And there's the problem. Although stones and sludge formed in the liver can no longer get trapped in the gallbladder (if it's been removed), they can still quite easily get lodged in the pancreatic duct and ampulla of Vater. This causes the digestive juices secreted by the pancreas to back up into the pancreas itself and start inflaming and digesting pancreatic tissue. This is called pancreatitis.

In other words, by merely removing the gallbladder and not addressing the underlying problem of "bad bile" being formed in the liver, you may potentially merely be moving symptoms from the gallbladder to the pancreas. Fortunately, there are alternatives. Dietary changes will often help. But the best way to optimize the health of your liver, gallbladder, and pancreas is to regularly cleanse and flush the liver and gallbladder.

[Winston]

Wow check out these liver flush/cleansing protocols. It claims to get rid of stones in the liver or gallbladder. What do you think? Do liver flushes and detoxes get rid of gallstones or heal the gallbladder?

http://www.drclark.net/en/disease-a-pro ... er-cleanse

http://www.drdavidwilliams.com/bad-gall ... reatments/

https://www.cancertutor.com/liverflush/

[Winston]

Below one of the most popular alternative health doctors, Dr. Mercola, explains why the gallbladder is necessary and should not be unnecessarily removed as it is being done by mainstream medical doctors. What do you think? Does he make sense?

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/artic ... adder.aspx

Five Important Tips if You've Had Gallstones or Your Gallbladder Removed

April 10, 2004 | 262,913 views
978
By Dr. Joseph Mercola
with Rachael Droege

The New York Times regional newspaper interviewed me about gallbladders and I thought it would be useful to review this common problem. I have seen many hundreds of patients who have had their gallbladders removed and I don't recall anyone ever telling me that their surgeon advised them to do something to compensate for removing this important organ.

Just about every one of them was told they didn't need their gallbladder and that it was perfectly fine to have it removed. This is reprehensible ignorance as it condemns the patient to a lifelong deficiency of essential fatty acids.

Why? Because after your liver produces bile, which emulsifies fats for improved fat digestion, half of it goes to the small intestine, and the other half is stored in the gallbladder until it's needed.

About 500,000 gallbladders are removed each year in the United States, typically due to gallstones, which affect about 15 percent of Americans. Gallstones form when bile is in the gallbladder too long and it collects and settles. Although most gallstones dissolve naturally and produce no symptoms, if one ignores warning symptoms and does not address the reasons why their gallbladder is not functioning properly, then the disease can progress to the point where the pancreas is inflamed or the gallbladder is seriously infected and may have to be removed to save a person's life.

Signs of Gallbladder Disease

If you have any of the following symptoms then your gallbladder may not be functioning properly:

Pain when pressing on the gallbladder, which is directly under the last rib on the right on the same plane as one's nipple. This is usually due to gallbladder "sludge" (thick bile).

Stone on a gallbladder ultrasound.

Greasy stools that are loose and tend to float to the top of the toilet bowl. This indicates improper fat absorption.

Treatment Methods

As I said in my interview, regular exercise is one of the best things you can do to address gallbladder dysfunction. This is a great proactive prevention step but most people don't worry about their gallbladder until they have a problem. Unfortunately, by that time exercise alone is not going to cut it.

At that time a gallbladder flush may provide some relief and once the symptoms abate an aggressive cardiovascular exercise program can serve to permanently improve the gallbladder.

It is also imperative that you clean up your diet. One has to stop eating sugars, reduce or eliminate the grains and eliminate all fluids but water. You can consult my nutrition plan to make sure you're eating enough healthy foods.

Further, the gallbladder is frequently infected when it is diseased so large amounts of high-quality probiotics will also be helpful in correcting the problem.

What to do if You've had Your Gallbladder Removed

High-quality fats--especially omega-3 fats -- are essential for good health and if you don't have a gallbladder you will have an impaired ability to absorb them. Trying to digest fat without bile is like trying to wash greasy dishes without soap--it doesn't work very well. If your gallbladder is removed then you need to compensate by providing an increased level of fat digestive enzymes (lipase) to compensate for this.

Unless you receive a gallbladder transplant, which is unlikely, then you'll need to continue taking the enzymes for the rest of your life to ensure that fats can be absorbed and used by the body for their many important functions.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/artic ... adder.aspx

I addressed this issue in a previous posting several years ago, but thought it was worth reposting as so many people have unnecessary surgery to have their gallbladder removed. In my experience, more than half the time the gallbladder is taken out, the patient's pain that prompted the surgery still remains.

This is because the surgeon never fixed the problem. They only treated the symptom. This makes about as much sense as putting a piece of tape over the idiot light that would come on in your dashboard if your engine oil pressure is low. This would clearly solve the problem, the light would not bother you anymore, but you would be looking at expensive engine repairs if you failed to treat the cause of the light being on.

If you have abdominal pain that is immediately below your last rib on your right side and lined up with your right nipple, especially if your press down in that spot, there is a good chance that you have a gallbladder problem.

The first step is to immediately follow the eating plan. Regular exercise has been consistently associated with a decrease in gallbladder problems.

If the pain persists the article above provides a far simpler less expensive option prior to surgery.

I believe it is nearly criminal what traditional medicine is doing to the public when it comes to managing this problem. It is RARELY ever necessary to remove someone's gallbladder. If one ignores warning symptoms and does not address the reasons why their gallbladder is not functioning properly, than the disease can progress to the point where the pancreas is inflamed or the gallbladder is seriously infected and may have to be removed to save a person's life.

However, it is important to have a proper perspective here. Nearly ONE MILLION gallbladders are removed every year in this country and it is my estimate that only several thousand need to come out.

So, not only are surgeons removing these organs unnecessarily, but also in their nutritional ignorance they are telling patients that their gallbladders do not serve any purpose and they can live perfectly well without them.

This is a lie.

The gallbladder serves an important digestive function. It is required to emulsify fats. What is emulsification? One can easily understand this concept when washing greasy dishes. It is nearly impossible to properly clean greasy dishes without soap as the soap emulsifies the fat so it can be removed.

Similarly, the gallbladder stores bile and bile acids, which emulsify the fat one eats so it can be properly transported through the intestine into the blood stream.

Anyone who has had their gallbladder removed will need to take some form of bile salts with every meal for the rest of their life (I use and recommend Beta Plus from Biotics Research), if they wish to prevent a good percentage of the good fats they eat from being flushed down the toilet.

If one does not have enough fats in the diet, their entire physiology will be disrupted, especially the ability to make hormones and prostaglandins.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/artic ... rgery.aspx

I believe that one of the biggest crimes in modern American medicine that nearly one million people each year undergo is having gallbladders sacrificed on the altar of the surgical table. Nearly every one of these patients did not need their gallbladders removed. They just needed to thin out their bile and clean up their diet and the body would have self-regulated and eliminated the problem.

However, if you, or anyone you know has their gallbladder removed, bile acid replacement is required for the rest of your life, unless you obtain a gallbladder transplant. Trying to digest fat without bile is like trying to wash greasy dishes without soap, it doesn't work very well. One needs bile to emulsify fats so they can be absorbed and used by the body for their many important functions.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/artic ... tment.aspx

Dr. Mercola's Comment:

Normally I do not address individual health complaints, so readers please do not send those in as there is no way that it can effectively be addressed in this format. However, this question represents a very common problem I believe it needs an answer at it will serve to help many individuals who read this.

First of all, I believe it is nearly criminal what traditional medicine is doing to our public when it comes to managing this problem. It is RARELY ever indicated to remove someone’s gallbladder. If one ignores warning symptoms and does not address the reasons why their gallbladder is not functioning properly, than the disease can progress to the point where the pancreas is inflamed or the gallbladder is seriously infected and may have to be removed to save a person’s life. However, it is important to have a proper perspective here. Nearly ONE MILLION gallbladders are removed every year in this country and it is my estimate that only several thousand need to come out.

So, not only are surgeons removing these organs unnecessarily, but in their nutritional ignorance they are telling patients that their gallbladders do not serve any purpose and they can live perfectly well without them. This is a lie. The gallbladder serves an important digestive function. It is required to emulsify fats. What is emulsification? One can easily understand this concept when washing greasy dishes. It is nearly impossible to properly clean greasy dishes without soap as the soap emulsifies the fat so it can be removed. Similarly, the gallbladder stores bile and bile acids, which emulsify the fat one eats so it can be properly transported through the intestine into the blood stream. Anyone who has had their gallbladder removed will need to take some form of bile salts with every meal for the rest of their life, if they wish to prevent a good percentage of the good fats they eat from being flushed down the toilet. If one does not have enough fats in the diet, their entire physiology will be disrupted, especially the ability to make hormones and prostaglandins.

So, let’s get back to the original question. If one has gallbladder disease it can be evidenced by:

1) Pain when pressing on the gallbladder, which is directly under the last rib on the right on the same plane as one’s nipple. This is usually due to gallbladder "sludge" (thick bile).

2) Stone on a gallbladder ultrasound.

3) Greasy stools that are loose and tend to float to the top of the toilet bowl. This indicates improper fat absorption.

Then what is the proper course of action?

Long time readers of this newsletter will be very familiar with the essential first step. It is imperative to clean up the diet.

One has to stop the sugars, and reduce the grains and eliminate all fluids but water. The gallbladder is frequently infected when it is diseased so large amounts of good bacteria will also be helpful in correcting the problem.

[MrMan]

If I drink a few drops of hydrogen peroxide in a glass of distilled water, Winston, will my gallbladder grow back?

[Winston]

If I drink a few drops of hydrogen peroxide in a glass of distilled water, Winston, will my gallbladder grow back?

Please don't waste my time asking stupid questions just to ridicule me. That contributes nothing to this topic and has zero value and is a nuisance. Thanks.

[Winston]

Holistically and Naturally Treating Gallstones, Gallbladder Attacks, and What You Can Do About Them Without Getting Butchered by a Surgeon

http://healthwyze.org/reports/206-holis ... -a-surgeon

[Rock]

I would drop the hocus pocus type remedies all over the internet from consideration. I had gallstones which caused painful attacks several times over the course of many years. The attacks got more frequent with time. Glad Taiwan ER visits are so cheap. None of those remedies seemed to have any effect on my stones. I had 18 large ones by the way.

Then I found a hospital online in Dongguan China which specializes in removing gallstones while leaving the organ intact for those patients whose gallbladders are still functioning well in spite of stones. I went there for a thorough diagnosis and was told I was a good candidate for the surgery. I had it done the next week. That was well over 2 years ago. I returned late last year for a follow-up and ultrasound showed none of the stones had returned. Moreover, my gallbladder function was completely in normal range.

I had separate ultrasound done in Taiwan and they confirmed the diagnosis I got in Dongguan.

Since after my surgery, I've so far never had any gallbladder pain. BTW, that hospital is coincidentally within walking distance of where zboy works.

Winston, if your dad is not suffering from gallstones or gallbladder pain and the function is normal, what is the specific doctor's rationale in Chiayi for recommending he have it removed?