The gall bladder stores bile, a juice made by the liver; bile breaks down fats. Gall bladder disease often originates with dietary and digestive problems (poor diets, low stomach acid, low fiber, and so on), which cause liver dysfunction, which in turn causes bile to be thicker in consistency and to harden more quickly. The resulting crystal-like deposits are called gallstones. Gallstones often cause no problems, and you can have them for as long as 25 years before you develop symptoms. But when a gallstone moves into the bile duct and gets lodged there, it causes significant symptoms. Even if you don’t have gallstones, your gall bladder can be dysfunctional. It may not be working well, or it may be producing a thickened secretion called sludge; in either case, you may have symptoms, Chronic obstruction of the bile duct can lead to infection, problems with the pancreas, liver, and small intestine, and cancer of the gall bladder and bile duct.

Common Symptoms

• Severe and sudden pain in the upper right portion of the abdomen, often after eating a fatty meal
• Indigestion
• Nausea and vomiting
• Jaundice in severe cases

What You Need to Know

Although gall bladder attacks can be quite severe and painful, almost one-third of those who have their first one will not have another. And many people can have recurrent attacks over several years, without any particular damage or need for surgery.

Synthetic estrogen taken after menopause can increase your risk of gallstones. I recommend that you take natural hormones instead.

General Recommendations

Diet: Because gall bladder disease is more frequent in overweight people, weight reduction is important. If you reduce your intake of fats, fried foods, and sugar, and increase your intake of fruits, vegetables and fiber, you can alleviate and reverse gall bladder disease. However, very low-fat diets (less than 10 percent of calories from far) can also cause gall­ stones, and you should avoid them. Moderate consumption of olive oil is also beneficial in reversing this condition; use it preferentially when you cook. Drinking coffee has been shown to prevent symptoms of gallstones, but it doesn’t prevent the gallstones themselves.

Your Herbal Healing Action Plan for Gall Bladder Disease

If you have unrelenting abdominal pain, fever, abdominal swelling, or continuous vomiting, go to Steps 7 or 8.

Step 1: Cleanse Your Liver and Blood

Start with herbal formulas to clean and detoxify your liver. You’ll not only protect the liver from further toxic damage, you’ll also help reduce or reverse your symptoms because you’ll be producing normal bile. Follow with an herbal formula that cleanses the blood, because toxins will be released from the liver into the blood.

Take a liver-cleansing formula ,that contains all or some of the following: milk thistle, dandelion root, Picrorhiza kurroa root, and artichoke or beet leaf. Some formulas may contain burdock root, cinnamon bark, licorice root, cardamom seed, Uva ursi, ginger, parsley root, and clove buds. After taking this formula for one to two weeks (see label for specific directions; some products may need to be taken for a longer period of time), take a blood­cleansing formula that contains some or all of the following: chaparral, red clover, burdock root, goldenseal, yellow dock, Oregon grape root, bloodroot, mistletoe, periwinkle flowers, lobelia seeds, sheep sorrel, and cayenne. Again, different products will have different recommendations for length of use, but most take one to three weeks.

Because liver and blood cleansing may release toxins, you may undergo a “healing crisis” in which your symptoms suddenly worsen. This can occur at any time-or even several times-during the course of treatment, but it should last only two to three days. Also, if you become constipated, you may need to undergo a colon detoxification as well.

Step 2: Take Peppermint Oil and Milk Thistle

After the cleansing is finished, take peppermint oil (one to two enteric-coated capsule, containing 0.2/ml per capsule, three times a day) and milk thistle (200mg to 400mg a day as 70 percent silymarin extract) to help dissolve the remaining gallstones and protect your liver. Take these together. It may take three to six weeks to see the benefits. Continue taking peppermint oil and milk thistle for several months after your symptoms go away, to make sure the gallstones are fully dissolved.

Step 3: Take Appropriate Chinese Herbal Remedies

If the previous steps do not completely resolve your symptoms, then take Chinese herbal formulas to help dissolve small gallstones and reduce abdominal pain. Chuan Lian Zi, Da Chai Hu Tang, Si Ni Wan, and Long Dan Xie Gan Wan are common formulas used to reverse gall bladder disease. Consult a practitioner qualified in Chinese herbal medicine to detennine which Chinese herbal formulas are the best for you. You should notice improvement within three weeks (sometimes sooner), but you may need to take the herbs longer, depending on your condition.

Step 4: Undergo Acupuncture in Conjunction with Chinese Herbs

Along with the Chinese herbs, I recommend starting acupuncture, especially if your symptoms are severe or you continue having flare-ups. Principal acupuncture points usually include M-LE-23 on the legs (called the gall bladder orifice), with other points elsewhere on the legs, as well as the mid-back and upper abdomen. Ear points include the gall bladder point. Always seek evaluation and treatment from a practitioner certified in aupuncture. You should notice improvement within six acupuncture treatments, but you might need additional sessions to get the maximum benefits.

Caution: Acupuncture can precipitate an acute gall bladder attack if there is a gall stone ready to enter the duct. If this happens, you may need surgery.

Step 5: Take an Appropriate Homeopathic Remedy

If your symptoms still continue, I recommend trying homeopathy next. The most common homeopathic remedies are Carbo vegewbilis or Lycopodium. You should notice improvement within one to two weeks. Consult a qualified homeopathist for guidance as to which remedies will be most beneficial and for proper dosages.

Step 6: Take Lecithin and Vitamin C

If you still have symptoms after trying the previous steps, take phosphatidylcholine (lecithm) (1.2g to 2Ag per day). This supplement may help prevent gallstones if you have chronic gall bladder problems, but it is not effective alone, so take it with the above steps. If you are a woman, you should also take vitamin C (1,000mg daily), which may help prevent gallstones by countering the effects of estrogen on the gall bladder.

Step 7: Undergo Surgery

The previous steps are recommended to help prevent gallstones from forming or to help dissolve them. However, you may have stones that have already formed and won’t dissolve, so they need to be removed if they are causing severe symptoms. Surgery to remove the gall bladder is the definitive treatment for gallstones or a dysfunctional gall bladder. It’s appropriate when you have attacks that involve infection of the abdomen, persistent and disabling pain, recurrent attacks, or damage to the gall bladder or other organs. The procedure can be done through a laparoscope, which requires only a small incision and allows you to recover quickly.

Many gall bladder surgeries are done if the doctor finds gallstones or sludge when investigating abdominal pain or other symptoms, yet pain continues after the surgery. A test may show that you have gallstones, but they may not necessarily be causing your symptoms. Unless your symptoms are severe or there are other signs of danger, such as rever, chills, and vomiting, it’s best to try nonsurgical treatments first, to see whether they relieve your symptoms, before you have surgery. Most people with gall bladder problems can reverse their disease without surgery.

Step 8: Have Gallstones Removed by Lithotripsy

For patients who do not want surgery or cannot undergo surgery, lithotripsy (high-frequency sound waves that break up the stone) can be effective, with the least side effects. Contact dissolution is another conventional method that uses the injection of a drug through a catheter into the gall bladder, but it’s more invasive. You can also take bile salts to dissolve the stone, but this can take several months.

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