Weight loss - no gallbladder

HouTxMom59

Good afternoon, this is my first post. I had gallbladder surgery about a year ago and have had no problem maintaining my weight, but after many celebrations and trips, I would love to lose 10 lbs. I am female, age 66, but with no gallbladder and would like to hear from others in same situation. I have always done low fat/low calorie, but am very interested in hearing success stories from those who have lost weight with no gallbladder. Is it possible to do high protein/low carb way of eating or should I stick to low fat? Several of my friends have lost a lot of weight eating keto/low carb high protein, but I am nervous about eating this way with no gallbladder. Thanks in advance!

AnnPT77

I had my gallbladder removed part way through weight loss, at age 59. Other than the anomalous period right after surgery, where water retention for healing made the scale stay high for a long time, I couldn't see that it made any difference in my weight loss rate at consistent calorie level. I didn't change my eating, except to put a few minor foods back in my rotation that had aggravated the heartburn from my gallbladder (it wasn't stones/sludge; it was this weird inflammatory thing called adenomyomatosis, which caused reflux & heartburn).

I was already eating fat on the moderate side, to reduce calories, so I didn't reduce it further after surgery; and I haven't had any digestive distress from consuming high fats occasionally more recently (surgery was 2015, age 59; reached goal weight later that year at 60; maintaining a healthy weight at age 63 now). I'm also hypothyroid (managed with medication) if that matters - I think it doesn't.

Obviously, if you have digestive sensitivity to fats now, you'll want to keep fats low. Other than that, I don't personally see any reason to do anything but manage calories, and strive for decent nutrition/satiation. I didn't use any particular predefined "formula" (low fat, low carb, whatever), other than just striving to feel full, and get decently well-rounded nutrition overall. Ultimately, I lost around 50 pounds in a bit less than a year.

I'm a believer in a "gradually remodel your way of eating" approach to weight loss and nutrition, and wrote up a description of that idea in this thread:

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10636388/free-customized-personal-weight-loss-eating-plan-not-spam-or-mlm

In maintenance, I'm targeting 50g minimum fat (as much as possible from healthy sources like nuts, olive oil, avocados, etc.), 100g protein, 5+ (preferably 10+) servings of veggies/fruit daily. I don't pay much attention at all to carbs, but it looks like they're usually around 200g +/-. As context, most days, I try to come in around 1850 net calories, which is a bit below maintenance level, but eat more indulgently once a week or so to average out to maintaining my weight. For me, 1850 net calories is usually around 2000-2200 gross on exercise days.

Best wishes!

puffbrat

I had my gallbladder removed in 2005. It took about 3 years for my system to fully normalize. Now I rarely have any side effects other than occasional poor response to a very high fat restaurant meal (never happens at home). It has never made any difference to my weight, just forced me to adjust my eating habits for a while.

OooohToast

I had my gallbladder out in about 1997 when I was 25 - it just got the hump, they could'nt work out why. I was grateful to see the little blighter go.

It hasnt impacted my weightloss or gain for that matter

I would say that my liver does get a bit grumpy if I am eating too much highly processed foods but am not sure if its connected - milk thistle helps at those times.

texasredreb

I had mine out years ago. I haven't noticed any difference before or after having it out with anything dietary related.

ConfidentRaven

I had mine out 26 years ago, and have the occasional issue with high fat meals. I did Keto about a year back and I’ll be honest I was in the bathroom shortly after most meals. My system just didn’t do well with the higher fat content or something, I don’t know. Your experience may be different as I’m sure some people haven’t experienced the same issues and it is possible that I was sensitive to something else in my diet around that time.

I did learn a lot during the time I did Keto, I lasted about a month before I decided that it just wasn’t working out for me. These days I just do CICO and try to find the balance of food types that work for me. Good luck!