My gallbladder is giving me a lot of trouble and I'm pregnant.

[goldingoddess]

To be honest I'm not surprised, in retrospect I had gallbladder problems with my first pregnancy around this same time, the beginning of the second trimester, but I had thought it was a weird form of morning sickness that took the form of stomach aches rather than nausea. This time however I had full on morning sickness nausea and can definitely tell the difference.

My mother and one sister had their gallbladders taken out within a year of their first child being born. The only think that spared my other sister was her battles with anorexia, and a super low fat diet. For me I have been able to treat with bitters and ACV, but I'm here wondering if there are other things I can be doing.

I'm really miserable after every time I eat anything with fat. I feel lethargic, like my food isn't digesting and have bad stomach aches. Since I've noticed the gallbladder issues in the past 2 weeks I've also noticed neck aches and kidney area aches in my musculature. I'm also constipated and am having very light brown poops when I do poop, sorry if TMI.

What can I do?? I'm already drinking ACV, and Agustura's bitters.

[BellinghamCrunchie]

They don't like to take the gallbladder out during pregnancy if at all possible.

You might try Standard Process Cholacor - google it - it has bile salts that will help to digest fats and might prevent the bad stomach ache. You should eat non-fat except for the meals you take the Cholacor with. I got my Cholacor from my Naturopath; I'm not sure if you have to get it through a practitioner or can just order it online somewhere.

You might get some relief from acupuncture/chinese herbs as well.

[goldingoddess]

Originally Posted by BellinghamCrunchie

They don't like to take the gallbladder out during pregnancy if at all possible.

You might try Standard Process Cholacor - google it - it has bile salts that will help to digest fats and might prevent the bad stomach ache. You should eat non-fat except for the meals you take the Cholacor with. I got my Cholacor from my Naturopath; I'm not sure if you have to get it through a practitioner or can just order it online somewhere.

You might get some relief from acupuncture/chinese herbs as well.

Oh I have no interest in having my gallbladder taken out...ever. My mom has never stopped having gallbladder problems despite the surgery.

I'm having trouble finding good information on Cholacor that isn't a company trying to sell the product. from what I can see most of the stuff is saying it is for people who have already had their gallbladder removed.

[eepster]

A super low fat diet is the best option. Especially avoid animal fats. I know this will make it hard to get in the calories necessary for pregnancy, but it is the key.

Also, odd as it sounds, apples were a gall trigger for both my grandmother and I.

[goldingoddess]

Is there a way to control gallbladder problems without switching to a low-fat diet? Has anyone done this? I'm just not really the a low-fat kind of person.

[A&A]

I take a super-high-quality vitamin E to control my gallbladder issues. I'm not sure about taking vit. E while pregnant, though.

[goldingoddess]

Originally Posted by A&A

I take a super-high-quality vitamin E to control my gallbladder issues. I'm not sure about taking vit. E while pregnant, though.

I'll ask my midwife about this next week.

So this morning is the best I've felt in several days, and it's the first time I haven't had any fat for breakfast*sigh*. And today is my hubby's b-day and I made him a cheesecake yesterday, I think I'm going to have to take a bite even if it makes me feel like crap.

[eepster]

It just occurred to me, if you only experience this pain during pregnancy, It might be heartburn caused by acid, and not gall bladder pain. I have had both from time to time, and they are surprisingly similar

[Liquesce]

The only non-painkiller thing that seemed to help when I felt a gallbladder attack coming on was to drink a massive quantity of water and to lay down for a while.

[HeckedyPeg]

When I had gallstones I tried to use the dietary recs from Healing with Whole Foods by Paul Pitchford- "no heavy meat, dairy, eggs; avoid peanuts and other nuts/seeds sparingly; eat primarily unrefined grains, veggies, fruits, legumes; pears, parsnips, seaweeds, lemons, limes and tumeric to hasten GBstone removal" (AVOID tumeric during pregnancy, contraindicated). He also says radishes can help remove stones, eat a few between meals every day. There is also a GB "flush" but I don't think it's a good idea if pregnant.

Chinese herbs would probably be contraindicated in this case (most of them anyway) as they would focus on removing dampness- just too moving during pregnancy.

I unfortunately had to have my own GB surgically removed, a stone got stuck in my bile duct and my GB twisted on itself- very sad. If you can make it through the preg then maybe you can try more vigorous non surgical methods.

Also, make sure it's actually gallstones, an inflamed GB or even pancreatitis can cause the same pain.

ETA: Realizing you didn't specify gallstones! Dietary changes should help nonetheless. Good luck!

[MadameXCupcake]

Aleve is like magic for my gallbladder pain. I had never used Aleve until the hospital said its better for that kind of pain and seriously 2 or 3 and 15 min later the pain is gone.
Also dairy is a big trigger for me and raw milk is fine and actually makes it so I can handle pasteurized dairy. :3

[JaneS]

Apples contain malic acid which can degrade gallstones, not surprising that can cause sx.

Originally Posted by goldingoddess

Is there a way to control gallbladder problems without switching to a low-fat diet? Has anyone done this? I'm just not really the a low-fat kind of person.

Yes, fats are essential for human nutrition. Coconut oil doesn't need bile to digest, that might be a good one to use and is very healthy. Avoid the high omega 6 vegetable fats, those increase inflammation (corn, soy, canola, cottonseed, safflower, etc.)

You need to be especially sure to get enough vitamin A while pregnant, which is only available in animal fat. (Beta carotene in vegetables is not vitamin A and is converted in the body to 10% vitamin A at best).
http://www.westonaprice.org/children...velopment.html

Try digestive enzymes, especially those with high lipase to digest fats, Enzymedica makes one.
http://www.enzymedica.com/products/Lypo_Gold

Enzymes really helped me when I had multiple digestive issues and many women in my family have had gallbladder removed (likely connected to thyroid issues). Since I've worked on my digestion and healed gut I have no more gallbladder pain.

B vitamins are needed for bile salt production perhaps you need more of them. I would do natural food sources such as liver or brewer's yeast or Radiant Life's Stress B liquid.

[eepster]

Originally Posted by JaneS

You need to be especially sure to get enough vitamin A while pregnant,

Too much vitamin A can cause birth defects. Though it is unlikely to see this if one sticks to only natural forms of the vitamin from normal food consumption, it is well documented in retinol supplement.

Excess preformed vitamin A during early pregnancy has also been associated with a significant increase in birth defects.[13] These defects may be severe, even life-threatening. Even twice the daily recommended amount can cause severe birth defects.[14] The FDA currently recommends that pregnant women get their vitamin A from foods containing beta carotene and that they should ensure that they consume no more than 5,000 IU of preformed vitamin A (if any) per day. Although vitamin A is necessary for fetal development, most women carry stores of vitamin A in their fat cells, so oversupplementation should be strictly avoided.

[JaneS]

Originally Posted by eepster

Too much vitamin A can cause birth defects. Though it is unlikely to see this if one sticks to only natural forms of the vitamin from normal food consumption, it is well documented in retinol supplement.

Only chemical forms of vitamin A (retinyl palmitate etc... the crap that is in processed vitamins) has been studied to be teratogenic.

If you go back and read those studies they did not use natural retinol from foods, they used artificial forms. In some cases they used artificial forms and still referred to it as retinol, which is incorrect.

Natural retinol from foods is NOT harmful unless you are eating bear liver (?) with over 100,000 IU of retinol per serving several days in a row. Those are the only reports in the medical literature of natural retinol being harmful.

Yet the advice trickled down is that all preformed vitamin A is harmful without the important distinction.

In fact, I believe, after much research, that this ill gotten advice tars natural retinol (and traditional supps like high vitamin cod liver oil) and greatly harms modern children.... and is in fact contributing to things like heart defects and cleft palates due to vitamin A deficiency.

Traditional diets contained large amounts of vitamin A (and other fat soluble vitamins) that have since been shown to be vital in producing a healthy human... and are sorely lacking in our modern diet. See tons of research on cod liver oil and vitamin A at the Weston A Price Foundation website. (The site I linked in my above message talks about this but much more on the rest of site.)

[eepster]

Originally Posted by JaneS

Only chemical forms of vitamin A (retinyl palmitate etc... the crap that is in processed vitamins) has been studied to be teratogenic.

If you go back and read those studies they did not use natural retinol from foods, they used artificial forms. In some cases they used artificial forms and still referred to it as retinol, which is incorrect.

Natural retinol from foods is NOT harmful unless you are eating bear liver (?) with over 100,000 IU of retinol per serving several days in a row. Those are the only reports in the medical literature of natural retinol being harmful.

Which is why I said it was unlikely if one stuck to the natural forms one would find in a normal (as in one that doesn't include large amounts of polar bear liver) diet. We are in agreement on this.

However, since the OP is looking for things to do fix an ailing gall bladder while pregnant, and has been expressing more desire for medications and supplements than purely dietary changes, I feel it is very important for her to be very aware that vitamin A supplements (as in pills of could pick up at the pharmacy) are not OK during pregnancy.

[JaneS]

Oh ok... this issue just tends to bother me so maybe I overreacted. Also I know of someone IRL with no gallbladder and frank vitamin A deficiency (thyroid eye disease where they bulge out), so it's a very important issue to pay attention to fat soluble vitamins especially while pregnant and especially if one is not digesting fats well.

Also wanted to mention, I'm remembering my own bile/gallbladder issues: probiotics and/or kefir really helped the bile flow a lot, turning stool dark brown (sign of good bile flow).

[Liquesce]

Originally Posted by JaneS

Apples contain malic acid which can degrade gallstones, not surprising that can cause sx.

Are you saying that something eaten is digested, its components are absorbed through the small intestine into the bloodstream which then circulate, infuse the bile in the gallbladder, and directly affect stones in a manner that may cause them to become symptomatic ... all in the ordinarily quite short timespan between consumption and experiencing symptoms?

[goldingoddess]

Originally Posted by eepster

It just occurred to me, if you only experience this pain during pregnancy, It might be heartburn caused by acid, and not gall bladder pain. I have had both from time to time, and they are surprisingly similar

I've have the pain infrequently on a regular basis, if that makes sense. However pregnancy seems to make the frequency more and the pain more. I practically never get heartburn, but when I do, it is a very, very different sensation. Also, the fact that my poops have changed to a lighter color at the same time the pain started, combined with the family history gives me pretty good confidence in my self-dx.

Originally Posted by HeckedyPeg

When I had gallstones I tried to use the dietary recs from Healing with Whole Foods by Paul Pitchford- "no heavy meat, dairy, eggs; avoid peanuts and other nuts/seeds sparingly; eat primarily unrefined grains, veggies, fruits, legumes; pears, parsnips, seaweeds, lemons, limes and tumeric to hasten GBstone removal" (AVOID tumeric during pregnancy, contraindicated). He also says radishes can help remove stones, eat a few between meals every day. There is also a GB "flush" but I don't think it's a good idea if pregnant.

Chinese herbs would probably be contraindicated in this case (most of them anyway) as they would focus on removing dampness- just too moving during pregnancy.

I unfortunately had to have my own GB surgically removed, a stone got stuck in my bile duct and my GB twisted on itself- very sad. If you can make it through the preg then maybe you can try more vigorous non surgical methods.

Also, make sure it's actually gallstones, an inflamed GB or even pancreatitis can cause the same pain.

ETA: Realizing you didn't specify gallstones! Dietary changes should help nonetheless. Good luck!

Thank you for all of this info.

Originally Posted by JaneS

Apples contain malic acid which can degrade gallstones, not surprising that can cause sx.



Yes, fats are essential for human nutrition. Coconut oil doesn't need bile to digest, that might be a good one to use and is very healthy. Avoid the high omega 6 vegetable fats, those increase inflammation (corn, soy, canola, cottonseed, safflower, etc.)

You need to be especially sure to get enough vitamin A while pregnant, which is only available in animal fat. (Beta carotene in vegetables is not vitamin A and is converted in the body to 10% vitamin A at best).
http://www.westonaprice.org/children...velopment.html

Try digestive enzymes, especially those with high lipase to digest fats, Enzymedica makes one.
http://www.enzymedica.com/products/Lypo_Gold

Enzymes really helped me when I had multiple digestive issues and many women in my family have had gallbladder removed (likely connected to thyroid issues). Since I've worked on my digestion and healed gut I have no more gallbladder pain.

B vitamins are needed for bile salt production perhaps you need more of them. I would do natural food sources such as liver or brewer's yeast or Radiant Life's Stress B liquid.

I'll start replacing butter/EVOO with coconut oil to see if that brings me relief. I never knew there was a connection between B vitamins and bile salts, thank you for this.

[JaneS]

Originally Posted by Liquesce

Are you saying that something eaten is digested, its components are absorbed through the small intestine into the bloodstream which then circulate, infuse the bile in the gallbladder, and directly affect stones in a manner that may cause them to become symptomatic ... all in the ordinarily quite short timespan between consumption and experiencing symptoms?

My understanding is that it is more direct, not through bloodstream. Lots online on gallbladder flushing protocols using malic acid.

[savithny]

Originally Posted by JaneS

My understanding is that it is more direct, not through bloodstream. Lots online on gallbladder flushing protocols using malic acid.

But if you're talking about the "flushes" that produce "Stones," -- when those are analyzed, the "stones" are actually curds of soap formed in your stomach and intestines from the mixing of fat, bile, and the acid, not gallstones.