suzie8112
01-14-2007, 11:43 PM
Since I had my gallbladder out 10 years ago, I've been battling digestive problems. Sometimes days of diarrhea, sometimes constipation and severe bloating (I'm a size 2 but I look 3 months pregnant!!!). It's rare for me to have a normal...time. My doctor thinks I'm somewhat lactose intolerant, but the thing that's weird, is the only time I get bothered by cheese (even low fat) or milk is in the morning. Any other time of the day, any kind of dairy never bothers me. I don't even have dairy too much anyway, but when I do, I'm ok. Spicy foods don't bother me. I've been trying to read about soluable and insoluable fiber, and I'm getting frustrated. I mean, how am I supposed to eat healthy and maintain my weight (everyone says eat less refined sugar, ie white rice, white bread, pasta) but everything on IBS says stay away from whole grain and STAY with white rice, white bread, and pasta??? And the veggie part, about skins.... I don't know what to do. I'm going to try and see a nutritionist, but in the meantime, any advice???? I try and drink lots of plain water, just bought some fennel tea (haven't tried it yet), I'll buy some Metamucil or something, but I'm just at a loss about all this.
There seems to be no rhyme or reason with when I get it. Sometimes one food aggravates me, other times that same food is fine. Sometimes I have no D, just bloating. I don't "feel" constipated, but maybe I am? I don't know!!
:confused: Thanks.
There seems to be no rhyme or reason with when I get it. Sometimes one food aggravates me, other times that same food is fine. Sometimes I have no D, just bloating. I don't "feel" constipated, but maybe I am? I don't know!!
:confused: Thanks.
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Laenini
01-15-2007, 12:18 AM
Your gall bladder acts as a little reservoir of bile acids. When you eat a fatty meal, bile is needed to help your body break down and digest the fat. In people who still have their gall bladder, eating that fatty meal causes the gall bladder to contract and release the needed bile into the small intestine to facilitate the fat digestion. Once your gall bladder has been removed, the doctor hooks up your bile duct to your small intestine directly and there is a constant small trickle of bile into your small intestine. Your body can no longer control the amount of bile released into your digestive tract.
Now for most people this isn't a big problem, they do just fine anyway. But some people have a touchier stomach than others and they can run into a bit of trouble after gall bladder surgery. If you eat more fat in a meal than that trickle of bile can handle, you may get some diarrhea from the undigested fat (just like taking a dose of mineral oil as a laxative!) Conversely, excess bile is irritating to some people and if you are not eating enough fat to use up the trickle of bile you can also have some digestion problems. Sometimes its obvious that there is a lot of bile in the stools, and if that is the case you can get a bile acid binding drug (cholestyramine) from the doctor that can be helpful.
Try paying attention to your fat intake versus your symptoms and see if any of this makes sense for your problem. By watching your fat intake you may be able to improve your symptoms.
Good Luck!
Now for most people this isn't a big problem, they do just fine anyway. But some people have a touchier stomach than others and they can run into a bit of trouble after gall bladder surgery. If you eat more fat in a meal than that trickle of bile can handle, you may get some diarrhea from the undigested fat (just like taking a dose of mineral oil as a laxative!) Conversely, excess bile is irritating to some people and if you are not eating enough fat to use up the trickle of bile you can also have some digestion problems. Sometimes its obvious that there is a lot of bile in the stools, and if that is the case you can get a bile acid binding drug (cholestyramine) from the doctor that can be helpful.
Try paying attention to your fat intake versus your symptoms and see if any of this makes sense for your problem. By watching your fat intake you may be able to improve your symptoms.
Good Luck!
desiii
01-15-2007, 06:30 PM
^^ Great advice there.
I would also suggest that you start diarizing what you eat every day. You may have a slight intolerance to something other than lactose.
Keep in mind that everyone is different. So you have to research foods for yourself. If your body responds better to the white starches than whole grains, so be it. Maybe the best fibers for you are found in fruits and veggies.
Two fruits that work well for me are bananas and avocados. They're naturally easy to digest and kind to the tummy first thing in the morning.
I would also suggest that you start diarizing what you eat every day. You may have a slight intolerance to something other than lactose.
Keep in mind that everyone is different. So you have to research foods for yourself. If your body responds better to the white starches than whole grains, so be it. Maybe the best fibers for you are found in fruits and veggies.
Two fruits that work well for me are bananas and avocados. They're naturally easy to digest and kind to the tummy first thing in the morning.