Gall Stones |
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| Written by Thomas Cowan, MD |
| July 1 2003 |
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Question: I am a 40-year-old woman who has just been told by my physician that I have gall bladder stones, that my gall bladder is diseased and that it needs to come out. Is there a natural approach to healing this problem? Answer: Establishment medical thinking says that if you have stones in your gall bladder, it is diseased and needs to come out. But do gall stones mean that the gall bladder is diseased? The gall bladder is a reservoir or holding tank for bile salts, which the body uses to digest fats. When we eat fat, the body releases bile into the digestive tract to break it down into absorbable fatty acids. Bile salts are made of cholesterol. Gall stones are a sign that your body has "decided" to increase its reservoir of cholesterol. Why would it do this? The obvious answer is that it has become "afraid" that the supply of cholesterol is low, therefore it uses the strategy of storing extra for a "rainy day." Actually, it's quite a clever and innovative strategy. Your gall bladder is not diseased, it doesn't need to come out. In fact, we know that taking your gall bladder out will increase your risk of cancer. As in war, doing violence to an innocent (or in this case, helpful) organ leads only to even greater suffering (cancer, or more "terrorism"). The reason that removing the gall bladder leads to cancer has been the subject of study and research for over 40 years. The best guess is that when you remove the reservoir for the bile acids they get secreted into the intestines in an "inappropriate " fashion. "Inappropriate" could mean not in its usual rhythm, or in an altered form. The excess cancer risk is seen in the right side of the colon, exactly where these bile salts enter and "irritate" the colon. Over the years, I have become convinced that most of what we call disease is actually the body's adaptive strategy to less-than-optimal circumstances. Modern medicine gets rid of this adaptive strategy without fixing the underlying cause, leading to side effects that are worse than the original disease. So what should you do? First, do not believe that your gall bladder is diseased! Second, give your body what it needs, in this case more cholesterol. Once your body is convinced that you are serious and will provide it with a steady stream of cholesterol, which it desperately needs to stay alive, it will give up the flawed strategy of storing extra, the stones will dissolve and you will be well again. I know of two people who adopted this strategy, and within a year their stones completely dissolved. Actually, you might want to thank your gall bladder for devising such an innovative strategy for keeping you alive until you learned how to eat in a way that provides your body with the materials it needs to be healthy. The best way to provide your gall bladder with cholesterol is to eat plenty of animal fats. If you eat a lot of vegetable oils and trans fats, the gall bladder is likely to become inflamed. If you are on a lowfat diet, the gall bladder atrophies because it does not have enough work to do. What about a diet for those who have had their gall bladder removed? The conventional advice is to go on an extreme, lowfat diet. But your body still needs good fats, and still produces bile to digest them. Even without your gall bladder, you should still eat healthy animal fats and avoid processed vegetable oils. The gall bladder is a rhythmical organ and secrets bile at certain times of the day--ideally at meal times. When you have a gall bladder, you always have bile salts stored and so do not necessarily have to eat at set times of the day. For those who have had their gall bladder removed, it is important to eat meals in a rhythmical fashion--three meals per day at approximately the same time each day, and with no snacks in between. In order to enhance the sense of rhythm and supplement the supply of bile, I prescribe Cholacol, the Standard Process bile salts formulation, 1 tablet with each meal. Swedish bitters, 1/2 teaspoon mixed with a little water, taken just before each meal may also be helpful. In order to provide ample protection for your colon, be sure to take cod liver oil and other foods rich in vitamin D. Avoid all processed and grilled meats and any foods containing carcinogenic substances that could supplement the irritating properties of bile secreted into the intestines. Â This article appeared in Wise Traditions in Food, Farming and the Healing Arts, the quarterly magazine of the Weston A. Price Foundation, Spring 2003. About the Author
Dr. Cowan is the author of The Fourfold Path to Healing (New Trends Publishing), a companion book to Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon. He a board member of the Weston A. Price Foundation, a regular contributor to our "Ask the Doctor" column and the Foundation's quarterly journal, and has lectured throughout the US and Canada. He has three grown children and currently practices medicine in San Francisco where he resides with his wife Lynda Smith Cowan. His book The Fourfold Path to Healing is now available from Amazon.com and NewTrends Publishing. Visit Dr. Cowan's website at fourfoldhealing.com.
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Chanca Piedra
written by Lara, Jan 08 2012
There's a herb called chanca piedra or "stonebreaker" which has been used by natives of the Amazon to break down kidney and gallbladder stones so they can be excreted.
Reply to Carrielee from Sally
written by tjboyd, Dec 22 2011
We have not heard of this method, but for sure, properly prepared beans are a great food, a good source of magnesium and other minerals. Another great food for pregnancy nausea is raw milk, sipped throughout the day.
Beans?
written by Carrielee, Dec 21 2011
What about eating properly prepared beans and legumes as a way to cleanse the body of toxic bile? The soluble fiber in the beans bonds with the bile and carries it out. Toxic bile ends up becoming "grainy" then "stony". I wrote about this on my blog, site link above. It is also helping me with pregnancy nausea! (increased hCG levels cause increased bile flow, which lead to nausea.)
Reply to June
written by tjboyd, Oct 27 2011
Hi June,
Here is an article with a lot of information and advice: http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/the-role-of-oxalates-in-autism-and-chronic-disorders You can also find other scattered information on the site by using the search box at the top of the page.
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written by June Heatwole Flory, Oct 26 2011
My husband age 64 just expierenced a kidney stone. He was 2 days passing the tiny chip, the size of a BB, and endured the most excruciating pain he had ever been through. What causes them, and how can he prevent ever having one again? Thanks, June
Muscle testing technique
written by Anne Cox, Oct 23 2011
I no longer have a gall bladder so I need the extra support and I use Cholecol from Standard Process. I used to get very bloated after eating protein and fatty foods. I looked like I was about 7 months pregnant.
I had surgery about 9 years ago and it was the worst mistake I ever made. I was recently taught the "sway method" which is a muscle testing technique that you can use on yourself. Our bodies can tell us what it needs and I have used this to help me get my health back. It is working! This is very empowering because it is helping me take my nutrition needs and health into my own hands by allowing me to listen to my own body's needs (something I have ignored for 34 years). How I have adapted this technique is to stand still, using swaying forward as "yes" and swaying backward as "no". I have used this technique to ask my body If my body needs cholacol right now or not, Cholacol is a bile salt that helps break down fats when your body doesn't have any available. Sometimes my body says "no" it doesn't need cholacol and most of the time it says yes. I follow up with another question by asking my body if my liver has produced enough bile for this meal and sometimes the answer is yes. I believe this technique can prevent "dumping", which is where too much bile is present and diarrhea ensues. I have also used this technique to find out if my liver also has hepatoliths, which are liver stones that are like gallstones and the answer was yes, I have stones in my liver. I have learned from researching this subject that gallstones are not just a gall bladder problem, but a biliary problem and stones are not usually just in the gallbladder when you have them, but in the liver as well. I have been able to used the sway method to find out how much milk, saturated fat, water, etc. that my body is asking for. This article by Dr. Cowan is so important and helpful because no surgeon will tell you surgery is not necessary. They used scare tactics and gave no advice on what to do after surgery when I had surgery. It took me 7 years to figure out that my problems with fat metabolism hadn't gone away. I just wished I had known this information by Dr. Cowan and the Weston A. Price Foundation 20 years ago so I could have prevented my problems in the first place. Before you get a cholecystectomy, try these recommendations. I wish I would have.
Gallstones
written by Diana Mckenzie, Oct 10 2011
My mother, sister, and grandmother all had their gallbladders surgically removed. I had problems after my children were born. Even though I was trained as an LVN...I always looked to the natural answer.Short story, I found Jon Barron's website,(one of the few folks I trust with my health) used his formula formally called "STONEBREAKER" now called KGP, Kidney,Gallbladder,Pancreas FLUSH,cleans,disinfects,and dissolved ALL TYPES of STONES, I have given away bottles of this to 3 men who suffered with chronic kidney stones...Make a friend for life, I suffered from GS but no longer. I stay pain free with KGP, Prolectyic enzymes, digestive enzymes!! Go read up on it...JON BARRON,
Sugar and Gallstones?
written by Juls, Sep 14 2011
I have recently started having trouble with gallstones and was wondering if there is a connection between sugar and gallstones. I had my first attack after July 4th weekend in which I ate way way too much sugar and junk food. We had already been in the process of switching to the Nourishing Traditions way of eating but during the holiday I ate whatever I wanted including lots of cake. After experiencing so much pain, I got serious about changing my eating habits and closely followed the NT way of eating. I ate lots of eaggs and meat without pain. I didn't have another attack until a little over 2 months later after a weekend of eating whatever I wanted which again included lots of sugar. This may only be coincidence but I am hoping that avoiding sugar will prevent further attacks. I will be seeing a surgeon soon regarding my recent ultrasound that my doctor described as being "chopped full of gallstones" but I was curious if anyone else had had success with avoiding sugar and preventing gallstone attacks?
Massage Therapist
written by Sherry in Colorado, Feb 18 2011
Try Visceral Manipulation
As a Massage Therapist, I recently learned to drain the gall bladder using techniques call Visceral Manipulation. We also worked the liver, stomach, small and large intestines and the sphincters (like valves). Dr Cowen mentions "rhythm"...in VM, the term is motility, meaning the organs vibrate slowing from the center line laterally and back to center (more or less). All organs should be in synch and all the sphincters should operate correctly. This is really amazing work, but you should know that it requires a lot of skill to do it right. Check out the Barral Institute or massagetherapy.com for practitioners. Some Osteopaths and PTs are also trained in this work. It's definitely worth trying before cutting out a critical organ. Even if you don't think you need it, it would be worth an eval to make sure things are tip-top.
gallstone cure ?
written by jane, Feb 09 2011
I found the following information for a remedy to gallstones. I really don't know if it is worthy as I don't have gallstones. But apparently it has worked for others. I found it on sherryelton.co.nz site. It is very simple and easy to try so might be worth someone's while if they want to give it a try...not much to lose that's for sure. I would be interested to hear if it has worked for anyone else.
Gallstone cure Peel some potatoes fairly thickly. Boil them in water. You are making a 'potato peeling' soup. Strain off the liquid, throw away the peelings and keep the 'soup'. Drink 5 cups of this soup every day for 5 days. You may find the taste a bit bland, but as you down each cup, remind yourself of the advantages of keeping your gallbladder. It will make living a healthy happy life much easier. The woman who told me about this recipe had used it and had felt her gallstones being painlessly passed at day five. Remember if you have your gallbladder removed you will need to take bile salts with each meal for the rest of you life. Do it sooner rather than later.
An alternative...
written by Mike (Fat Fiction), Dec 21 2010
First off - I'm all for increasing saturated fats in the diet so count me as a follower. But this advice doesn't ring true, from someone who's spent countless hours researching this. The body is not holding on to cholesterol that's the issue here - it's inbalanced bile combined with bile stasis.
The more dietary cholesterol you eat, the more bile you need to transport it, and the quicker the turnover the bile. However, the demands on bile salts are greater. Excess cholesterol in fats is no problem if you don't have bile stasis. The primary cause of gallstones is the combination of vitamin/mineral deficiencies and calls on bile production at the same time leading to bile stasis. That's why both losing weight (increased cholesterol) and eating fat (cholesterol again) get blamed for creating gallstones though neither are strictly to blame. I do have (had?) gallstones, and am testing this out: www.fatfiction.co.uk/gallstones
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written by Wyandotte, Dec 16 2010
Not all health challenges are curable by following Weston Price principles of nutrition, or any other food-based "cure". Once you have a toxic condition - and I would say that gallstones are a form of toxicity - you need to go beyond and above mere food recommendations. I would look into herbal medicine if I were experiencing the symptoms described by some of the people here.
Also, I would like Dr. Cowan to finally show up and give his responses and further viewpoints on this topic. Or at least somebody from the WPF with knowledge & experience in this area. Thank you.
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written by ROWilson, Dec 05 2010
I wonder if the doc would be singing the same song if he had actually suffered the pain and associated conditions because of gall stones. The pain of a blocked bile duct along with an involved pancreas is potentially life threatening. My general feeling is get rid of the gall bladder if you docs so advise. AND, if you have not yet suffered the pain of a gall bladder issue, live you life true to WAP diet, so you don't develope the stones or at least minimize the problem.
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written by CV, Nov 08 2010
I have just seen a surgeon that insists on having my gallbladder removed, I refuse for now. My Mom had Jaundice at 17 and refused too, she is now 56 with no stones. I am 31.
He did tell me that it is true that I got my gallbladder problem cause I lost weight too fast. It does cause for your gallbladder react in keeping cholesterol. the only frustrating part about my visit is that he doesn't allow me to have another ultra sound in the possibility that it was just calcified stones. I want this re-examination before! i am not overweight at all. I just resented the smirk that I can't keep a healthy lifestyle to prevent stones from happening, all i know, as I've only had one single attack. I 'll only take this seriously when I actually get a second attack. (I had polyps not stones)
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written by sondra, May 20 2010
I just had an ER visit a week ago from a severe gall bladder attack. This post is not helpful to me because it's 99% speculation with anecdotal stories of two people. I have been having pain off and on for about 9 months. I have done the liver/gall bladder cleanse, and passed something - but evidently not gall stones because I still have those. The ER Dr. told me that was a joke and you can't pass anything larger than sand out of your gall bladder. I don't know who to believe. All I know is that I am in pain, and it was a meal high in animal fat and butter (no unnatural fats) that set me off into incredible pain. If someone could show me some clinical evidence that eating more cholesterol and animal fats not only prevents but dissolves existing gall stones, I would take this more seriously, but I don't know how someone who is already in pain can even do this if it triggers attacks.
Additionally, gall bladder malfunctions can be deadly if left untreated. The inflammation can spread to the pancreas and liver. I know of some who have spent weeks in the hospital recovering, and would have died otherwise. I would just urge anyone reading this to investigate everything thoroughly. I believe in the WPF principles, but I have found them a little late in life and don't know how I will be able to avoid getting my gall bladder removed unless I do eat very little fat - which goes against what I believe is healthy.
... written by Wyandotte, May 01 2010
The doctor is assuming that all gallstones are made of hardened cholesterol. There are also calcified stones, which form around a base of a bit of organic matter. I read this in Adelle Davis' book, and in other books also.
After a liver flush, I discharged a passel of this kind of hard stone. I don't think the formation of these stones has anything to do with a gallbladder unhappy with not receiving enough healthy fats. I have not eaten a lowfat diet in spite of avoiding meat. Also, my grandmother, whom I resemble, had gallbladder problems and she, living on a small farm most of her 95 years, consumed all the healthy fats that the WAPF recommends. I can assure you that there was no lowfat dieting in those days. As far as I can understand, it is more complicated than Dr. Cowan implied. I should think that maybe consumption of sugar is an angle to look at, since it interferes with the B vitamins needed for bile salt production. Of course it is all rather compex and not that simple, I know. But sugar should be looked at as a major culprit, not just lowfat diets. As a matter of fact, everyone I know who once had a gallbladder ate a normal amount of fat.
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| Last Updated on Saturday, June 06 2009 16:03 |
Thomas Cowan, MD, discovered the work of the two men who would have the most influence on his career while teaching gardening as a Peace Corps volunteer in Swaziland, South Africa. He read Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston Price and a fellow volunteer explained the arcane principles of Rudolf Steiner's biodynamic agriculture. These events inspired him to pursue a medical degree. Cowan graduated from Michigan State University College of Human Medicine in 1984. After his residency in Family Practice at Johnson City Hospital in Johnson City, New York, he set up an anthroposophical medical practice in Peterborough, New Hampshire. Dr. Cowan has served as vice president of the Physicians Association for Anthroposophical Medicine and is a founding board member of the Weston A. Price Foundation.
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