6 months of Keto and have developed gallstones
itsryanneyo
Posts: 18 Member
So after a month of horrible stomach pains, I finally went to see my alternative medicine doctor. My gallbladder is sludgy and full of pebbles, and she's put me on a pretty good dose of hydrangea root to break up the stones and hi-lipase to get everything flushed out of my g.b... I've read so many different versions of what causes this--eating high fat / eating low fat / eating low fat and then going to high fat. I'm not too terribly wrapped up in what caused it, but rather getting it taken care of. I still battle the constipation that everyone else seems to get past after the first 4 weeks, and I'm sure that this has contributed to my g.b. issues. Anyone else had to deal with this? My results and every other aspect of my well-being are so great, I can't fathom not being on a LC lifestyle. I love my bulletproof coffee, but even sometimes just a few sips is now sending my gut into the ultimate knot. I haven't let this issue keep me from working out, still going strong 6 days a week, but not sure how much longer I'm gonna be able to keep that up...
Any words of advice would be greatly appreciated!
Any words of advice would be greatly appreciated!
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Replies
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Sorry no answer for you, my gall stones acted up after about 5 month's, absolute agony, I can eat normally now but my gall bladder is also full of sludge and stones so waiting for my Dr to suggest a solution - hopefully without surgery! That said I already had gall stones so I doubt if 5 months LCHF made that much difference and I hope to continue eating this way :drinker:0
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Our stories sound so similar! I was 5 months in when my gut started hurting, as well... I did read that if you ate low carb and/or high protein that makes them develop, and then act up when you start loading up on fats. Not sure about you, but that's definitely my story... I was really big into low fat, high protein prior to keto. Please let me know if you have any luck, I'm open to suggestions...0
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I had stones as well, but the story that I read is that they developed from high carb diets, specifically things with sugar.
At any rate, I do the coffee with coconut oil, which is supposed to be digested without the need to involve the gall bladder, and have had not flare-ups since I started on keto.
Please get well, and keep us updated.0 -
I understand gallbladder surgery is pretty common & easily done. Of my friends, it's the high fat / carb girls that have had the most problems. I've been trying to keep my carbs under 20 (less when possible!) and fat as low as I can. Constipation is definitely a problem. Been drinking at lest 8 - 11 glasses of water & taking 1/2 dose (1 pill) of laxative for women maybe every 3 days or so if I'm feeling backed up. Whew, not easy but I'm feeling so good so far! Keto seems to be the way to go - for me at least!0
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Thought I'd tried everything to make my weight tracker 'personal'... aaackk! how'd you do it??!0
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probably NOT what you want to hear, but: just get the thing removed. I had gallstones when I was a teenager and I had it taken out. No more pain, a relatively easy surgery that wasn't hard to recover from, and just generally better health.0
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Full disclosure: I've never had gallstones, and I'm not a doctor. However, you should seriously consider going to a physician instead of just the naturopath. Don't ditch the latter if you enjoy your relationship with them of course, just try to get a second opinion if it's at all an option to you. I feel like there are many different explanations for their occurrence, and ways to treat them, and if you're able to get a second opinion it can't hurt.
Good luck!0 -
I had appendicitis about 6 months after going Keto. It wasn't the cause although circumstantial evidence for knee jerk reactions says so.0
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I understand gallbladder surgery is pretty common & easily done. Of my friends, it's the high fat / carb girls that have had the most problems. I've been trying to keep my carbs under 20 (less when possible!) and fat as low as I can. Constipation is definitely a problem. Been drinking at lest 8 - 11 glasses of water & taking 1/2 dose (1 pill) of laxative for women maybe every 3 days or so if I'm feeling backed up. Whew, not easy but I'm feeling so good so far! Keto seems to be the way to go - for me at least!
Please, please, please, don't do low carb, low fat, high protein. You need fats for fuel, hormone function, cell structure, and nutrient absorption. The route you're going is the road to protein poisoning (aka - rabbit starvation), which can be lethal. Low carb, low fat, high protein is not keto (keto is, by definition, low carb, moderate protein, high fat).
Additionally, chronic constipation means you need to change something. You should not be relying on a laxative to get things moving, no matter how old you are.0 -
Thanks Dragonwolf. I definitely have changed up my eating habits a bit and am feeling (and losing) much better. -No laxative needed!
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Rapid weight loss can cause gallstones (http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/gallstones/) I lost 50ish pounds back in 2005 in about 4 months using Weight Watchers and running and that triggered 6 months of off and on abdominal pain that they FINALLY diagnosed as gallstones.0
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I started having gall bladder attacks 4 years ago. At the time I was a vegetarian that made pretty good food choices. Any time I would indulge in anything fatty I would get an attack (except I didn't know what it was). Then one day I got an attack so bad it forced me to the ER. My gall bladder basically stopped functioning. For three weeks I lived off triscuits, Gatorade, vicodin, and zofran (nausea meds). I had it removed in January 2011.
I didn't tell you this to scare you. I just wanted to let you know that if in the end you have to have it out, don't fear, it's not bad. I was home the same day after surgery, recovery was much easier than the attacks, and my life is completely back to normal.0 -
Thanks, y'all (: So far, I've had it under control for 2 weeks now. It's better than ever! I'm breaking up the stones with Hi-Lipase, Hydrangea and Kefir.0
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I had my gallbladder removed 18 years ago. Back then I was eating a lot of high carb foods and had a lot of stress. Now days they can breakup the stones with ultra-sound. I got the stones due to family history, however everyone was eating the high carb foods.
When I started the Keto I wondered how my body would cope. I found that my body has adapted very well and I feel better than I have in a long time.
This is just my though,no medical background. As it takes a long time to develop stones as in my case, a high fat diet will have the liver working overtime and this may aggravate the gallbladder which probably already had small stones developing.
Your DR. will be able to give you different options and then you can choose what is best for you.0 -
Here's a theory that I remember from reading low-carb experts (probably Volek/Phinney):
Scenario: You have a lot of body fat to lose, and you do so on a low-carb ketogenic diet. In order to maximize your fat loss, you eat little to no fat - so basically along the lines of Lyle McDonald's Rapid Fat-Loss protocol, which is essentially very low carb and only lean meat to meet your protein demands (+ vitamins, minerals and n-3 fat).
In that case, there can be a massive buildup of cholesterol/bile in the gall bladder. If you're never eating much fat, it just sits and accumulates there. The situation would be similar if you eat fat, but it's largely MCT (think bulletproof coffee), which "bypasses" the gall bladder.
So the advice would be to still eat a minimum amount of fat no matter how much body fat you want to lose - the amount I've read is at least 30 grams of (non MCT) fat per meal, this is supposed to make the gall bladder release all of its content into the small intestine.0 -
Here's a theory that I remember from reading low-carb experts (probably Volek/Phinney):
Scenario: You have a lot of body fat to lose, and you do so on a low-carb ketogenic diet. In order to maximize your fat loss, you eat little to no fat - so basically along the lines of Lyle McDonald's Rapid Fat-Loss protocol, which is essentially very low carb and only lean meat to meet your protein demands (+ vitamins, minerals and n-3 fat).
In that case, there can be a massive buildup of cholesterol/bile in the gall bladder. If you're never eating much fat, it just sits and accumulates there. The situation would be similar if you eat fat, but it's largely MCT (think bulletproof coffee), which "bypasses" the gall bladder.
So the advice would be to still eat a minimum amount of fat no matter how much body fat you want to lose - the amount I've read is at least 30 grams of (non MCT) fat per meal, this is supposed to make the gall bladder release all of its content into the small intestine.
I followed a PSMF protocol years ago. Lost 30-40 lbs. Promptly lost my gallbladder. Doc scared me back into my SAD, and i regained the 30-40lbs. gallbladder is still gone. Told doc to take a hike. Found a DO instead of an MD. He's the bomb, as is my endo. I'm having up and down days adjusting to keto without my gallbladder, but I do think I'm adjusting and that's key for me because the benefits WRT inflammation alone have been amazing.0
