Gut Health Detoxification

Gallbladder Health 101 | Foods for Gallbladder Health and More!

February 25, 2022

Your gallbladder is an important part of your digestive system. Its main job is to store bile produced by the liver. Bile is a mixture of cholesterol, bilirubin, and bile salts that helps your body break down and digest fats. A poor functioning gallbladder can lead to numerous digestive issues and other health issues.

In this article, we discuss gallbladder health and everything you need to know about this important digestive organ.

What is the Gallbladder?

According to Cleveland Clinic: “The gallbladder is a small, pear-shaped organ located under your liver that stores and releases bile. Bile is the fluid your liver produces that helps digest fats in the food you eat. Your gallbladder is located in the upper right part of your abdomen (belly). It sits just under your liver.”

Essentially, the gallbladder is like a storage tank for bile, that releases bile made by the liver via the bile duct whenever it is needed to break down a fatty meal. Bile is a mixture of cholesterol, bilirubin and bile salts. These break down larger fat globules in food into small particles of fat. Smaller fat particles are easier for the digestive enzymes from the pancreas to process and break down. Without bile, our body has a very difficult time breaking down fats from food.

Issues with Gallbladder Health

A well-functioning gallbladder is important for digestive health. There are several conditions that can affect your gallbladder health, and when this happens, it can have a slew of negative health effects. Any disease that affects your gallbladder is considered a gallbladder disease. The major gallbladder diseases are:

Cholecystitis – Gallbladder inflammation
Gallstones – small, hardened deposits that form in the gallbladder
Gallbladder polyps – abnormal tissue growths in the gallbladder
Bile duct infection – an infection that can form when the bile duct is obstructed
Porcelain gallbladder – stiffening of the gallbladder walls caused by calcium deposits.

Gallstones are among the most common of these conditions. Often gallbladder disease causes are also the result of gallstones. They can cause cholecystitis, or gallbladder inflammation, as well as other problems like bile duct stones, gallstone ileus, perforated gallbladder, and abscess of the gallbladder.

Gallstones are small, hardened deposits that form in the gallbladder. They are usually no more than a few millimeters wide but can grow over time to be several centimeters. They can go undetected for many years, but can eventually cause problems if not removed, as they can block the bile duct and interfere with normal gallbladder function.

What causes gallbladder stones?

The majority of gallstones are formed from the cholesterol found in bile. Calcium bilirubinate, a chemical formed when the body breaks down red blood cells, can also be the cause of gallstones, but this is less common.

Symptoms of Gallstones & Poor Gallbladder Health:

Pain in the mid-upper right part of the abdomen
Fever or chills
Jaundice—yellowing of the skin
Nausea
Vomiting
Frequent diarrhea
Abnormal or light-colored stool
Dark-colored urine

If you notice one or more of the above-mentioned symptoms it is recommended to consult with your doctor as soon as possible.

How to Improve Gallbladder Health

Gallbladder health is important for our overall health, as without a healthy gallbladder, we are likely to suffer from digestive issues, which in turn, will have a negative effect on our total health.

Thankfully, there are ways to improve our gallbladder health. This is of course best done as a preventative measure to avoid gallbladder issues, but can also be used to alleviate the symptoms of gallbladder issues and even to assist with treatment.

One of the best ways to improve gallbladder health is by following the right diet for gallbladder health. There are important foods for gallbladder health that you can include in your diet, and there are also some harmful foods for gallbladder health that are recommended to be avoided.

Diet for Gallbladder Health

In general, the diet for gallbladder health includes foods that are high in fiber, calcium, vitamin C, plant-based protein and healthy fats. The diet for gallbladder health recommends avoiding highly processed foods, refined carbohydrates, and foods high in trans fats or other unhealthy fats.

Beneficial Foods for Gallbladder Health:

Berries (raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, currants)
Citrus fruits (oranges, tangerines, lemon, lime)
Apples
Bananas
Fruits of all kinds
All leafy green vegetables (especially dark leafy greens like kale and collard greens)
Potatoes
Carrots
Beets
Broccoli
Asparagus
Vegetables of all kinds
Lentils
Beans
Nuts
Seeds
Fish

Foods to Avoid/Harmful Foods for Gallbladder Health:

Canola oil
Vegetable oil
Safflower oil
Sunflower oil
Spray cooking oils
Dairy (especially cheese)
Red meat
Processed meat (bacon, sausage, ham, salami, hot dogs)
Processed foods (chips, candy, breakfast cereals, pies, pastries, microwave meals, etc.)
Refined carbohydrates (white bread, white sugar, white rice)
Foods with toxic chemicals (read the ingredients on the label; avoid produce grown with pesticides)

By following the diet for gallbladder health, and focusing on including more beneficial foods less harmful foods for gallbladder health, you can make a huge step to improve gallbladder health and digestive health overall. It’s important to purchase only organic food items whenever possible, as pesticides used to grow conventional foods are highly toxic to your health.

In addition to following a diet for gallbladder health, there are other ways that you can greatly improve gallbladder health too.

Gallbladder Health Supplements

Gallbladder health supplements can also help improve gallbladder health and protect your gallbladder from gallbladder diseases and gallstones.

Betaine Hydrochloride

Betaine hydrochloride is a man-made form of betaine that is used as a source of hydrochloric acid (HCL). It is used to treat gallstones, as well as abnormally low levels of potassium (hypokalemia), high levels of the compound homocysteine in the blood, hay fever, asthma, yeast infections, food allergies, and several other conditions. While it can be an effective support for gallstones, it also may cause minor side effects like nausea, stomach upset, and diarrhea, as well as body odor.

Ox Bile Extract

Sometimes people use ox bile extract as a supplement for gallbladder health. It is used to break down lipids (fats) in food passing through the intestine to enable fat digestion and absorption through the intestinal wall. Some of the side effects associated with ox bile extract are stomach cramps, dizziness, headache, cough, gas, and bloating.

Stone Root

Stone root (Collinsonia canadensis) is a strong-smelling herb whose root and rhizome are used to make medicine. It is mainly used for kidney stones, gallstones and other gastrointestinal conditions. The herb is safe to use in small doses, but in high doses can cause dizziness, nausea, and painful urination.

Choline

Choline is a nutrient similar to B vitamins that is involved in developing red blood cells and maintaining nerves and normal brain function. It is essential to effectively metabolize fat, cholesterol, proteins, and carbohydrates. People struggling with gallbladder issues often supplement with choline to help them better digest and break down fats.

Zuma Nutrition’s Kidney & Gallbladder Cleanse

Our Kidney & Gallbladder Cleanse Tonic uses 4 clinically-studied herbs that help to break down kidney stones and gallstones and eliminate them from the urinary tract.† The herbs in this formula have been shown to dissolve stones, prevent stone formation, and relax the ureters to allow stones to pass more easily. † Our formula also uses a therapeutic extraction process that is able to concentrate the active ingredients into a therapeutic liquid extract that is significantly more potent than regular tea powders or capsules.

The herbs used in this formula include:

Chanca Piedra: a medicinal herb that has been used extensively for clearing kidney stones and gallstones. Compounds in Chanca Piedra interfere with many stages of stone formation, and may work by relaxing the ureters, helping to expel stones and their fragments.†

Gravel Root: helps to not only dissolve existing stones but also to prevent their formation. As a diuretic, it helps to relieve kidney edema and urinary retention, which, in turn, may resolve complaints of rheumatism and gout. Gravel root is also used to clear infections of the bladder, urethra, and prostate.†

Chamomile: a popular herb used commonly as an herbal tea. It also has numerous health benefits, including easing gallbladder pain and supporting digestive health. Studies have also shown that chamomile can prevent kidney damage and help to restore kidney health.†

Ashwagandha: has powerful free radical scavenging activity that can prevent kidney failure, help the kidneys function better when damaged, and prevent further damage. Ashwagandha is also an adaptogenic herb that helps the body better adapt to, and recover from, stress.†

Together, these herbs help to remove gallstones and kidney stones, cleanse the kidneys and gallbladder, support the body’s natural detoxification pathways, improve gallbladder and kidney function and improve renal and digestive system health.† Plus the herbs in this formula are 100% sustainable and wildcrafted. Which means, no pesticides, preservatives, chemical fillers, or genetically modified ingredients.

Gallbladder Health Natural Remedies

Some other natural remedies for improving gallbladder health include:

Regular exercise can lower cholesterol levels and can help prevent the formation of gallstones. Maintaining a healthy weight can also lessen gallbladder pain and reduce the frequency of gallbladder pain attacks.

Heated compress. If you suffer from gallbladder pain, applying heat to the painful area may be able to soothe the pain and relieve discomfort.

Peppermint Tea. Peppermint tea is used for a variety of digestive issues, and it may be able to help soothe gallbladder pain.

Turmeric. Turmeric contains a compound called curcumin that has been extensively studied for its ability to reduce inflammation. This may help you lower inflammation levels in the gallbladder, helping to relieve pain.

Summary

Gallstones are among the most common of these conditions. Gallstones are small, hardened deposits that form in the gallbladder. They are usually no more than a few millimeters wide but can grow over time to be several centimeters. They can go undetected for many years, but can eventually cause problems if not removed, as they can block the bile duct and interfere with normal gallbladder function.

In addition, there are many supplements and herbs that can support gallbladder health like our Kidney & Gallbladder Cleanse Tonic. There are also many natural remedies for improving gallbladder health or reducing gallbladder pain like exercise, warm compress, peppermint tea and turmeric.

Your gallbladder is an important part of your digestive system. We hope the information in this article can help you better support your gallbladder, but if you are concerned about your gallbladder health, then please schedule an appointment to consult with your doctor.

References:

https://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/features/gallbladder-diet-foods-for-gallbadder-problems

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/gallbladder-disease

https://www.rxlist.com/betaine_hydrochloride/supplements.htm

https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-89/stone-root

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6092661/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4854999/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2995283/