Gallstones diet

Is it alright to eat popcorn for a person with gallstones?
(October 19, 2010)

Gallbladder stones are a condition wherein bile stones form in the gall bladder. When the number and size of these stones grow, the tubing gets blocked, and this in turn, pressurizes the liver and affects the production of bile. There are two types of such stones that are formed: pigment stones and cholesterol stones. Pigment stones are made of bilirubin, while cholesterol stones are mainly made of hardened cholesterol. Those suffering from gallstones can, by following a special gallstones diet, treat this condition.


In fact, gallstone formation can sometimes be prevented by eating right. Gallstones diet foods helps bring down the amount of pain and also reduce some of the symptoms. A gallstones diet is different from a kidney stones diet and therefore it is important to follow a gallstones diet if you have gallstones.

A gallstones diet involves the following:
• Carefully monitoring your diet and reducing food consumption.
• Eating quantities that are sufficient for the system and not overeating irrespective of how nice the food is.
• Eating calmly and slowly as stressful and hurried eating may cause digestive problems and worsen your symptoms.
Here are a few gallstones nutrition tips that you can keep in mind:
• Avoid processed food, packaged food, and junk food, and stick to food that is freshly cooked.
• If you are following a gallstones diet, there are a number of foods you have to avoid such as tea, carbonated beverages, coffee, and alcohol.
• Tap water should be avoided, instead boil your drinking water.
• You should keep away from all refined sugar products, ice cream, refined foods and artificial sweeteners.
• Poultry products, red meat, eggs and pork should be given a skip in addition to beans, nuts and dairy products.
• There are some people in whom Brussels sprouts, broccoli, onions and mustard create a problem. So avoid eating these foods.
• Avoid saturated and fried foods and foods cooked in margarine and hydrogenated oils.
• Avoid excess of fruit juices and include plenty of vegetable juices, apple juice and grape juice in your diet.
• Your intake of cucumbers, beets, green beans, sweet potato, and avocados should be increased. Add more of garlic and vinegar to your gallbladder diet recipes. 
• Lemon and tomatoes are beneficial for your diet.
• Drink some hot water to which lemon juice has been added as this will ensure that your liver remains healthy and clean. 
Your gallstones diet should include plenty of whole grains as they are beneficial in flushing the gall stones and also enhancing the digestive system. So adding corn bran, cereals, muffins, whole wheat cereals, whole grain bread, corn bran, whole grain pasta, buns, and brown rice to a gallstones diet is a great idea.

One of the reasons gallstones form is because of a lack of water intake. As a result of drinking less water dehydration takes place in your body and this causes the toxins to accumulate. Therefore, make sure you drink lots of water.

Treating your gallstones without surgery is an option you might want to try. Research has proven that following a gallstones diet can have an impact on the formation of gallstone and can help in flushing out any gallstones you may have.  Make sure that you consult your doctor before deciding on any type of weight loss diet such as the gallstones atkins diet.

Gallstones diet 

Popcorn, especially buttered popcorn must not be consumed by patients with gallstones. A dietary treatment for those suffering from gallstones should be low fat and low in sugar. The fresh juice of beetroots, carrots and cucumbers when well blended together is an ideal composition as a gall bladder cleanser. This juice when taken twice daily is known to have been beneficial for all kinds of disorders related to the gallbladder, including gall stones. Pear in its raw form or even as a fresh juice is another excellent remedy to treat gall stones. The juice of pears can be consumed safely in liberal amounts as pears are thought to exercise a special kind of healing effect on the gall bladder. Dandelion is also known to promote and enhance the well being of the gall bladder. Approximately 125 ml of the juices of dandelion and watercress must be had twice daily. Along with a strict vegetarian diet, and low sugar foods, the juice helps to normalize the gall bladder functionalities.

Heavy foods including milk, dairy products, fried foods, high calorie foods etc must be restricted at all costs. Please remember that in any case,, prevention is better than cure. If you suspect that you are predisposed to having gall stones or that you have some factors that put you at a risk of developing gall stones, then it is best you start taking precautions in your diet as preventive measures.