No gallbladder=no salad???

amberlelynn
amberlelynn Posts: 9 Member
edited November 26 in Health and Weight Loss
Ok, so I had my gallbladder taken out. The surgeon said that since the gallbladder is a crucial part of breaking down raw veggies, I needed to stay away from raw veggies and salad because I won't digest them correctly and could eventually cause a blockage from the raw veggies/salad. I have a friend who had her gallbladder out 10 years before I did who said she never heard of that and she eats salad all the time with no problem...anyone else had their gallbladder taken out and received the same advice I got?
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Replies

  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    I was not given that advice when I had mine out and I haven't had any problems with it. Post-gallbladder issues seem to differ for everyone. I don't have any problems anymore unless I eat an obscene amount of fat in one meal, but I had some issues early on with higher fat meals that cleared up right away. I routinely eat a big salad or half a bag of raw baby carrots without an issue. I think the only advice I really got post-surgery was to avoid anything that gave me issues and eat whatever I wanted that didn't.
  • susanpasq
    susanpasq Posts: 16 Member
    I had my gall bladder out 25 years ago - never heard this , never had any problems with fruits and vegetables. High fats can cause minor problems for me.
  • ccsernica
    ccsernica Posts: 1,040 Member
    I had mine out almost 20 years ago, and I've never heard of this.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    My OH had his gall bladder out around 5 years ago and was told to avoid high fat meals (for a while), not salads. He eats salads no problem.
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
    Wife has had GB out for 5 years. She had to eat low fat for awhile (it seems like maybe 2 months, or 3) but there were no other restrictions after she was past recovery. She was on an "easy" diet for 2 weeks or so though. Maybe the surgeon was talking about short term recovery not long term diet.
  • ccrdragon
    ccrdragon Posts: 3,374 Member
    The gall bladder stores and transports bile from the liver to the stomach/intestines. Bile is used in the process of digesting lipids (fats). Don't know what that has to do with eating raw veggies...
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,269 Member
    Like the others, I was told to keep fats lower for a while, then reintroduce them slowly. I've never heard or read anything about the gallbladder being involved in digesting veggies - it's involved in digesting fats.

    I eat anywhere from 5 to 20 servings of fruit and vegetables daily, including large salads and many other raw veggies (often hundreds of grams at a time) and have never had any problem digesting them post-gallbladder-removal.
  • nooshi713
    nooshi713 Posts: 4,877 Member
    Bile is responsible for digesting fat. Some people need to limit their fatty food intake after having their gallbladder out. Some people can eat whatever they want. There is no reason to limit vegetables. I work in the ER. I have patients with gallstones pain coming in regularly.
  • singingflutelady
    singingflutelady Posts: 8,736 Member
    I've never heard of that for gallbladder removal. I'm on low fiber/low fat because of Gastroparesis and Crohn's but it jas nothing to do with my gallbladder
  • jefamer2017
    jefamer2017 Posts: 416 Member
    edited May 2018
    What?! Mine has been out for nearly 13 years and raw vegetables digest best for me. Spicy food is terrible for me as well as fatty food. I don't even remember getting any nutritional advice from my surgeon. He did the surgery I went for one post op where he took out the staples and never saw him again.
  • Amazon_Who
    Amazon_Who Posts: 1,092 Member
    I had mine out 22 years ago. :#
    I was given zero dietary advice, but learned quickly high fat meals caused issues. I have never problems with anything else.
  • tablefor5now
    tablefor5now Posts: 19 Member
    Yep same here. I had mine out about 9 years ago. Was never told anything like that (and it doesn't appear medically sound since bile is used to digest fats) and I routinely eat fresh veg and salads with no probs. If I eat too much cheese or other high fat foods I feel nauseous. But that's it. Livestrong says "ensuring that you consume at least four servings of fruits and vegetables and four servings of breads and cereals daily is recommended by the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, especially after surgery. Another benefit of including foods that are high in fiber is that it can improve the movement of food through your digestive system and help to reduce bloating." Which is fairly much what all sites say on the topic.
  • firef1y72
    firef1y72 Posts: 1,579 Member
    Really?? Well that's a new one on me, I had my gallbladder out almost 30 years ago and while I struggle with high fat foods (and meat makes my ibs flare), as a vegetarian I'd be in trouble if I couldn't eat lots of veggies.
  • PokeyBug
    PokeyBug Posts: 482 Member
    Are you sure your doctor has a license? In medicine? The gall bladder has very little to do with digesting vegetables. Your gall bladder stores the bile our bodies use to digest fats. When it's removed, the bile just goes directly from your liver to your intestines (I forget which set). Last I checked, the kinds of vegetables we normally put in salads (lettuces, tomatoes, carrots, spinach, cucumbers, onions, etc., are very low in fat.
  • stacybaker707
    stacybaker707 Posts: 126 Member
    Same as every other post, mine was out in January 2010 and never heard of that. I eat tons of raw veggies. Eat away!!
  • LisaMelton1
    LisaMelton1 Posts: 24 Member
    Be had mine out for about 10 years and no problems with raw veg. Now I did try a keto diet and had to quit because can’t digest all that fat. I eat salads nearly every day no issues.
  • thegeordielass
    thegeordielass Posts: 208 Member
    I had mine out 5 years ago I've never heard of this! Like the other said, the bile normally stored in it is used to digest fats - I wouldn't describe veg as fatty by any means. I got no dietary info at all after my surgery.
    I'm not 100% sure I've fully worked out my diet yet as I do frequently end up with "the runs". I suspect that's partially down to my eating schedule though and then suddenly eating a large meal instead of smaller ones through the day.
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
    I still think the surgeon didn't mean it past a brief recovery period which is similar to what my wife was told. She ate a lot of soup and other easy foods for 2 weeks post-op. It might have been overly cautious but there was no harm in it.
  • mortikarobinette
    mortikarobinette Posts: 20 Member
    I had mine taken out and the only thing I have a problem with is fatty foods and grease.
  • amberlelynn
    amberlelynn Posts: 9 Member
    Ok, thank you. I thought it sounded backwards, but I don't know many people who have had their gallbladder out, so I didn't know if it was common advice or not. Thank y'all!
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    I can't wrap my head around the reasoning for this advice unless you have other medical conditions that would make it hard to digest raw veggies. The gallbladder's function is to store bile, which helps digest fat. Without your gallbladder, your liver still makes the same amount of bile, but it goes into your small intestine at a constant rate instead of having some of it stored away. Your body therefore no longer has the ability to release more bile in response to eating a high-fat meal. This is why some people still have trouble digesting a high-fat meal for a little while after they have their gallbladder removed, until the body adapts to not getting extra bile. However, ultimately the body should adapt and be able to digest fat just fine.

    I've heard the "no raw vegetables" advice for people who have IBS or other conditions that make it hard for their bodies to handle extra fiber. If you don't have any conditions like that, the only thing I can come up with is that maybe your surgeon was concerned about having extra fiber (and possibly more gas) in your digestive tract, since that might make healing a bit less comfortable...and that logic seems like a stretch to me. I didn't get this advice after having my gallbladder removed and I don't understand how it would be relevant to not having a gallbladder.
  • kenyonhaff
    kenyonhaff Posts: 1,377 Member
    No gallbladder in me...and I am eating a nice green salad right now. Yup I feel fine...
  • marywilliams6212
    marywilliams6212 Posts: 12 Member
    I was told to limit fried foods, but I wasn’t told anything about raw veggies or fat. Admittedly, my doctor kind of sucked though. I would think you’re fine with veggies.
  • Bellavita31
    Bellavita31 Posts: 1,556 Member
    Had mine out I eat salada and raw veggies no problems
  • MsMaeFlowers
    MsMaeFlowers Posts: 261 Member
    Had mine removed 3 weeks ago, and the only thing I was told was to go easy on foods high in fat until I saw how my body tolerated them without a gallbladder. I eat a lot of salad with no problems whatsoever. So far just seems like the foods I had trouble with before surgery, are the foods I still have trouble with. I had no clue I had gallbladder problems until about 14 hours before my surgery.
  • WholeFoods4Lyfe
    WholeFoods4Lyfe Posts: 1,518 Member
    I've had many issues post cholecystectomy, but eating salads has never been one of them. As someone else said, the gallbladder stores the bile made by the liver. That bile helps digest fat. With the gallbladder removed, there is basically a steady stream of bile. Some people have difficulty digesting fats because they aren't getting that rush of bile, but I've never heard of anyone having difficulty digesting salads for that reason. The ONLY connection that I can think of is perhaps difficulty absorbing your Fat Soluble Vitamins (A,D,E, and K) due to issues digesting fats, but even that is a stretch.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    SaunaSuit wrote: »
    void These Foods with Gallbladder Problems

    Eggs (Research showed that eggs caused symptoms in up to 95% of patients. Try substituting flax seed gel in recipes that require eggs for the "glue". That's 1 TBSP ground flax seed to 3 TBSP hot water. Let cool and add.)
    Pork
    Onions
    Fowl (turkey, chicken)
    Dairy (milk, cheese, cream, butter)
    Gluten (wheat, barley, rye, spelt, kamut, etc.)
    Beans and legumes
    Oranges, grapefruit
    Chocolate
    Nuts
    Trans fats, Hydrogenated, partially-hydrogenated oils
    Margarine
    Fried Foods
    Saturated fats (even coconut oil until feeling better)
    Red meats
    Coffee, regular or decaf - except for acalculous biliary dyskinesia*
    Spicy foods
    Ice cream
    Black tea
    Alcohol, beer, wine, liqueur
    Fruit juice and sugary drinks
    Tap water
    Turnips
    Cabbage, cauliflower
    Oats (for some people)
    Corn
    Avoid all artificial sweeteners, sugar, preservatives, refined and bleached foods (like white flour)
    Avoid smoking if possible as it can exacerbate the symptoms.
    Avoid all possible food allergens.

    Someone who is avoiding eggs, pork, poultry, dairy, gluten, beans/legumes, red meats, nuts, fish (because it has saturated fat), and soy (because it is a possible allergen) . . . how much protein are they getting?

    What is the source of this list?
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