Abdominal & Urinary Conditions
The gallbladder stores bile. This substance helps digest fats. Gallstones form when bile hardens into pieces of stone-like material. These deposit in the gallbladder or bile ducts (which carry bile to the small intestine). The stones can range in size from less than a pinhead to 3 inches across.
Signs & Symptoms
* Feeling bloated and gassy, especially after eating fried or fatty foods.
* Steady pain in the upper right abdomen lasting 20 minutes to 5 hours.
* Pain between the shoulder blades or in the right shoulder.
* Indigestion. Nausea. Vomiting. Severe abdominal pain with fever. Sometimes a yellow color to the skin and/or the whites of the eyes.
{Note: Gallstone symptoms can be hard to tell apart from heart-related or other serious problems. A doctor should evaluate any new symptoms.}
Gallstones
Causes
* Ethnic background (i.e., Native Americans) and family history of gallstones. Being middle age.
* Obesity. Very rapid weight loss.
* Being female. Having had many pregnancies. Taking estrogen.
* Having diabetes. Having diseases of the small intestine.
Treatment
* A low-fat diet.
* Surgery to remove the gallbladder. This is the most common treatment. You can still digest foods without a gallbladder.
Questions to Ask
Self-Care / Prevention
* Avoid high-fat foods. Don’t eat large meals.
* Get to and stay at a healthy body weight. If you are overweight, lose weight slowly (1 to 1-1/2 pounds per week). Do not follow a rapid weight loss diet unless under strict medical guidance.
* Eat a high fiber, low-fat diet.
© American Institute for Preventive Medicine