Gallbladder Removal Side Effects: What You Need to Know

When my mom had her gallbladder removed, there was nothing wrong with her gallbladder. While many people have gallbladder surgery because they have gallstones or some other issue pertaining to the gallbladder, my mom’s story was different. She was being treated for digestive bleeding that was situated in the area where the gallbladder, liver, and the pancreas spit their juices into the small intestine through ducts to digest food as it exited the stomach. When the surgeon finally rolled her into surgery to stop the bleeding, after days of high-tech but utterly useless and expensive diagnostics (3 gastroscopies and 1 fluoroscopy) she’d been in the hospital for 5 days. I had asked...no, begged the doctors to please just do surgery to stop the bleeding and stop traumatizing my mother with these diagnostics that showed nothing, but to no avail.

The doctor who performed the non-consensual gallbladder removal surgery admitted that there had been nothing wrong with my mom’s gallbladder. “It was fine, but it gives a lot of people trouble so we just removed it for you,” he said. Mom’s theory was that the doctor had nicked it during the surgery to repair the area that was bleeding. At any rate, mom came out of that procedure one organ short and though she saw many doctors after that while she was healing, not once in 5 years time did any of them ever mention to her that she might experience chronic diarrhea after gallbladder removal. Nor did they mention (of course) that there might be a treatment for the diarrhea after gallbladder surgery.

When Mom finally visited me in Mexico and admitted that she reliably has diarrhea 5 times each morning and that she has to wait until the diarrhea ends before she can go about her normal daily duties, I told her that that isn’t normal. She’d gotten used to the problem and since the doctors told her erroneously that it was “normal” and had no treatment to offer her, she’d learned to live with the problem. She did, however, tell me stories about a cousin who had her gallbladder removed only to end up with a colostomy bag and plenty of horrific stories of not making it to the bathroom on time. On those web sites that are sponsored by Big Pharma and the med-surgery industries, they say that people who have had their gallbladder’s removed may experience “urgency” when they have diarrhea, but they kindly leave out the gruesome details of living with this kind of ever-present urgency and the social problems it can create for people.

Having severe diarrhea every day of your life isn’t normal. And it isn’t hard to understand why chronic diarrhea after gallbladder surgery happens. The gallbladder performs several important functions, among them the storage of bile. Bile digests fat. And fats are an important part of the diet and nutrition. My mom told me that often, if she took an Omega 3 vitamin, it would pass through her digestive system entirely intact. This concerned me, particularly because I’d recently learned about the dangers of being low on fat-soluble vitamin K2, a vitamin that has only recently been discovered for its role in escorting calcium to its proper place in the body. Vitamins A, D, E, and K1, and K2 are all fat-soluble. Without adequate levels of vitamin K2 to take calcium to the right location in the body (the bones and not the blood vessels) vitamin D3 assists with calcium absorption but sends that calcium directly into the blood vessels leaving people in danger of developing silent heart disease and/or osteoporosis. My mom was, in fact, having some issues with her teeth and it worried me that she hadn’t been digesting fats and therefore not absorbing fat-soluble vitamins. So I recommended that she take Ox Bile and a selection of fat-soluble vitamin supplements including Cod Liver Oil.

Mom went home with this kit of health-related items and so far, it’s been a learning process. She started by taking large doses of Ox Bile at 1000 mg per meal along with a K2/D3 supplement (it’s vital that you take these two vitamins together in the right proportion or you’ll end up with calcium buildup in your blood vessels), a good multivitamin, and Cod Liver Oil. For the first two weeks, she had nearly constant diarrhea which made sense to me. Because she hadn’t been digesting her fats for nearly five years, she had a lot of goopy, undigested fats impacted in her intestines. The Ox Bile acted like a detergent, scrubbing her intestines clean. She worried that having this urgent, ongoing diarrhea situation was going to last forever, but I encouraged her to continue on with the detox and let her intestines clear out.

Sure enough, after about two weeks, the diarrhea slowed down again. I would guess that this initial stage of detoxification and “clean out” could take a variable length of time for people since everybody’s intestines are of a slightly different length (thus the bile may have more or less work to do in the intestines depending on the person). Mom felt tired and a little sick off and on for those first two weeks, as her body worked diligently to take in those fat soluble vitamins after years of not having them available. I reminded my mom that her body had probably been retaining fat throughout her body to try to protect the stores of fat-soluble vitamins stored up in her body before gallbladder surgery. Her body would have to reconfigure things if she was getting plenty of vitamins again finally. This phase of detox and rebuilding probably wouldn’t continue for longer than a few weeks in most people and if it did, the dose of Ox Bile should be re-evaluated. Nonetheless, at the end of this first stage of detox, Mom had her first solid bowel movement. Once, she even had two of them in a row. Things were clearly changing for the better. She had more energy and felt a little more like herself.

How to Get Rid of Diarrhea after Gallbladder Removal

Now that her energy levels have improved and she’s starting to feel better than she has in several years, we decided that it might be time to lower the dose of Ox Bile. The thing is, bile works like a detergent in the intestines. It cleans out the fat and some of the protein and makes them absorbable as nutrients. When produced and then released into the body in the right quantities, bile causes the stools to turn that classic brown poop-color. If the person has too little bile, stools become loose, light colored, and greasy as the body simply pushes the fats through without digesting or absorbing them. But if a person has too much bile, diarrhea can also occur because the detergent-like qualities of bile causes a frothing throughout the intestines (imagine a washing machine with a full load that has too much laundry detergent added). The key is to find the just right dose of Ox Bile to help get rid of diarrhea after gallbladder removal. If the dose is too high or too low, diarrhea can occur.

There are certain Ox Bile products on the market that are available at a lower dose like 125 mg per pill. If you find that you’re still having diarrhea after gallbladder removal even after you’ve been taking an Ox Bile supplement for a month or longer, consider lowering the dose to somewhere between 125-250 mg per meal. A fatty meal will require a higher dose of Ox Bile while meals that contain mostly carbohydrates will require less. The gallbladder typically squirts bile into the digestive tract about 5 to 20 minutes after food enters the stomach, so you can take your first Ox Bile supplement around 5 minutes after you start eating. Some people take Ox Bile according to another schedule that isn’t necessarily based around meals. Experiment to figure out what works for you.

Be sure to take high quality fat-soluble vitamin supplements like Cod Liver Oil and a vitamin K2/D3 vitamin to enhance the health of your teeth, bones, and heart in addition to the Ox Bile supplement. Without the Ox Bile, your body won’t be able to absorb these nutrients which are absolutely vital to your health.

NOTE: I have read about people who have asked their doctors about ways to reduce diarrhea while taking Ox Bile with the unfortunate result that they’re prescribed a drug that sequesters cholesterol. Taking a drug that affects cholesterol levels in the body will inevitably cause additional health problems.

Gallbladder Removal Side Effects Weight Gain After her gallbladder removal surgery, Mom found that it was nearly impossible for her to lose weight. She'd go out on long walks for several weeks only to find that she'd gained weight. She and I discussed the reasons why this might be happening and it made sense to me right away. Her body was probably holding onto her fat stores because this was where the fat-soluble vitamins were stored. Her body knew she wasn't digesting fats and that she was therefore also not absorbing fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K1 and K2. By holding onto the fat for as long as possible and only dipping into those fat-soluble nutrients for the most necessary things, her body was able to continue to survive. I figured that after a period of time taking Ox Bile, digesting her fats, and taking fat-soluble vitamins as a supplement, Mom would probably start to lose weight. Of course, she already took an iodine supplement, so this wasn't her weight loss problem though some people who are struggling to lose weight after gallbladder surgery might be very interested in the role of bromine overexposure and iodine underexposure in weight gain too.

Do I Really Need Gallbladder Surgery for Gallstones? If you have gallstones, be sure to educate yourself about Helicobacter pylori, a bacterial infection that seems to be able to cause gallstones to develop. Indeed, H. pylori may also play a role in renal stone develop and interstitial cystitis. Some scientists have suggested that the relationship between H. pylori infection and gallstones may happen as a result of a shift in the intestinal flora away from Oxalobacter formigenes (which reduces the risk of developing renal stones because it consumes oxalate). Treating yourself at home for an H. pylori infection may help you reduce the risk of developing gallstones and it may also help you reduce the size of gallstones you currently have.

Studies have shown that 68% of people who have gallstones find relief from pain within 12 months after onset even without surgery. Meanwhile about 33% of people who have had gallbladder removal surgery find that their pain and discomfort remains unresolved after surgery. But is there any other way to remove gallstones besides having surgery? Yes. Dr. Hulda Clark developed a system for safely removing gallstones at home using nothing but Epsom Salts, Olive Oil, and Grapefruit Juice. The system for removing gallstones without surgery begins with a light breakfast the morning of the treatment. This breakfast should be something that’s not too high in proteins or fats like cereal or fruit. Bile will begin to build up in the liver throughout the day after you eat this breakfast. The pressure is important because it will make it easier for the liver and gallbladder to purge gallstones.

Be punctual as you do this gallstone removal treatment. You’ll need the following supplies: Food-grade epsom salts Clean, filtered water Extra virgin olive oil Grapefruits or lemons (enough to make ½ cup of juice) Black walnut tincture L-Ornithine supplement

2:00 PM - Don’t drink after 2:00 PM. Mix 4 Tbsp of epsom salts in 3 cups of water. Put this mixture in a jar in the fridge. This is 4 servings that you’ll drink over the upcoming 24 hours. 6:00 PM - Drink one serving (¾ cup) of epsom salt water. Wash it down with plain water. 8:00 PM - Drink another serving (¾ cup) of epsom salt water. Wash it down with plain water. Get ready for bed. Then, put ½ cup of extra virgin olive oil into a pint jar. Squeeze fresh grapefruit juice or lemon juice by hand into a measuring cup. Remove the pulp with a fork. Make sure you have at least ½ of a cup of juice. Combine the olive oil and juice in a jar along with some black walnut tincture. Close the jar tightly and shake it until it’s watery. Add a dose of black walnut tincture.

You’ll begin to need to use the bathroom one or more times. Make sure that you’re not late for your 10:00 PM drink or the number of gallstones that will be released will be lower. 10:00 PM - Drink the olive oil mixture. Don’t linger on this drink, get it all down within 5 minutes if you can (older or sick individuals may need to take a bit longer). Take 4-8 ornithine tablet with the olive oil and juice mixture to help you sleep. Then, lie down immediately in bed with your head propped up. Lying down will help get the stones out. 6:00 AM or later - Take the 3rd dose of epsom salt water (unless you have indigestion or nausea, then you should wait). Go back to bed. 8:00 AM - Take the final dose of epsom salt water. Go back to bed if you want. 10:00 AM - You can begin eating lightly. Start with juice. Then eat some fruit. Keep your food choices light for the day. Do this cleanse every two weeks as needed. Dr. Clark says that you must purge at least 2000 stones before the liver will be clean enough to cure upper back pain, allergies, and bursitis. The first cleanse will likely only clear up these problems for a few days.

The Gallbladder and Beyond: A Curious Organ at the Core of Digestive Health - The Alive-N-Healthy Digestive Health Series, Volume 1 - NOW AVAILABLE!

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