I developed gall stones and had to have my gall bladder removed recently. Doctor said it was proab due to this diet. He said losing too much weight too rapidly causes gall stone formation, and i formed one and it stuck in the tube causing massive pain.

Lose slow ! Consult your doctor!

Here is a quote from the Atkinscenter.com website:

Indeed, gallstones are associated with rapid weight loss .. due to ANY type of diet, but most often with a lowFAT dietary regimen. It's the rapid loss of weight that triggers the formation and ultimate release of stones, sludge and debris in the gallbladder.

Dr Atkins has the following comments on gallstones/ gallbladder disease:If a person has pre-existiing gallbladder disease, they may need to follow a lower fat version of the Atkins (or other restricted carb) program.

You're right to caution that a person should consult their doctor BEFORE embarking on their weight loss program.

Doreen

LOL Talon We were typing at the same time!

I've posted further details about how the gallbladder works, and why eating fat is important to healthy gallbladder function (click here)

Doreen

I was having digestive problems and pain while following a very low fat diet...after switching to LC...upping my fat intake...I am now lozac free and pain free....some may attest that to the weight loss...I attest it to increasing fat and weight loss both...

Bonnie

I lost 35 pounds in two months and didn't develop gallstones. However I have NEVER followed a low fat diet before either. I believe your doctor is exagerating just a bit there.

As Talon has stated, gallstones are not created over night nor in a few weeks. Low fat diets are mostly the cause of gallstones due to the inactivity of the gallbladder to break down fats in our diet. Because of the lack of use minerals tend to pile up until one day you do use it, bingo....gallstones.

I wish you a speedy recovery and hope you feel better soon.

Doreen, great minds think alike!

I was reading further on the Atkins site about how rapid weight loss and low calorie diest are linked, and how the diets higher in fat tended not to produce stones. Also that it is fat that makes the gallbladder work the way it was intended, while low fat gives the gallbladder nothing much todo to clean itself out. Very interesting reading.

Doreen and Havuk are right though, checking with your doctore before starting any weight loss plan is the best course of action.

I really appreciate the explanation of how the gall bladder works and why we need fat in our diet. I have a friend that lost tons of weight by severely restricting her FAT intake to 5 grams of fat a day. She lost tons of weight...probably over 100 lbs. within a year's time. But had to have her gall bladder out and now has gained it all back. Cutting back the fat so severely is not something one can continue to do indefinitely. So the weight gain. I knew the gall bladder problem was due to her severe diet, but now I know why. Thanks for the info. PS. I am trying to encourage her to try low carbing. I think it would work for her, and be sustainable. Victoria

I had my gaulstone removed while I was on the diabetes diet (low fat) and the doctor told me that 75% of all women who have had pregnancies will have gaulstones. Of this amount only 10% will have differculties that require removal.

Hi Havuk,

Have you considered a malpractice lawsuit against your doctor? I am not a doctor, but it seems totally unnecessary to remove the gallbladder because a stone failed to pass through the bile duct. I would expect that removal of the stone to be the recommended procedure.

Your doctor seems to lack the scientific knowledge for your developing the gallstone. It certainly was not the low-carbohydrate diet as explained here by others. So sorry you picked the wrong doctor. Now, the healthy LC diet will have complications digesting the fats without having a gallbladder.

It seems the average medical approach to a health problem is to cut, chop or irradiate the injured organ until it is dead or removed. The second medical choice is to drug the symptoms away and pretend everything is now OK.

I have personally avoided several health problems by disregarding my doctors advice. Most people believe they must go to the doctor a lot because they have many health problems. Instead, I think these people have many health problems because they go to the doctor a lot. After all, doctors are the third leading cause of death in the USA now, and malpractice kills more than SIX TIMES as many people as automobile accidents.

http://www.mercola.com/2000/jul/30/doctors_death.htm

Kent

Some people may find that they need to follow a lower version of low carb (lower, not low) following a gallbladder removal, but it hasn't caused me a bit of trouble. I had my gallbladder removed 10 years ago and eat all the fat I want (65-70% of my calories from fat) and it doesn't bother me at all. Of course, I also eat plenty of fresh veggies for the fiber. Interestingly enough, I developed gallstones before I had children and after following a low fat diet.

Hi Kent! Just wanted to say a hardy AMEN to your comments!

I'd do everything I could to disolve any stones in me before letting anyone remove a body part that God put in me! All our body parts are in us for a REASON! God doesn't make mistakes.

It seems all doctors want to do is cut things out or off of us and keep us on lots of drugs and call it a 'cure'!! Of course, they'd lose a lot of $$$$$$$$$ if we got well on our own wouldn't they?? So it's in their best interest to keep us in their offices and hospitals and sick.

Sad, but so true.

We need to take charge of our OWN health! Dr. Mercola's site is one of MY favorites too!

I had one gall bladder attack a long, long time ago and I remember reading something about it being prevalent with women who had the 3Fs....fair, fat and forty. Yup, I had to say that, it's not like I can bring that up in conversation very often1

I blamed my attack on canned ravioli. I was only 20 or so when it happened, haven't had any problem since and won't be eating canned ravioli ever again. Of course, why anyone eats it in the first place is beyond me.

I think the three F's are: fat, forty and fertile. Had mine out about 9 years ago. Did a lot of yo-yo dieting before that and it probably contributed to the problem, but it also runs in my family.

Hello, there! I have been registered for some time now, but this is my first post.
Reading this thread put me in mind of a site I came across only yesterday, which puts forward a suggestion for surgery-free relief from gallstones. You drink lots of olive oil and lemon juice, supposed to flush out the stones. Anyone hear of this?


d0nut