The gallbladder is the place where bile is stored in the body, constantly storing and concentrating the bile secreted by the liver, and during feeding, the gallbladder discharges the concentrated bile into the duodenum by its own contraction to help digest fat. If the gallbladder has to be removed for various reasons, such as cholecystitis, stones, polyps, gallbladder cancer, etc., people will face a change in their physiological state due to unregulated bile.
At this time, bile will continue to enter the duodenum, and when people eat, they cannot get enough bile to help digestion, and some symptoms of indigestion, such as abdominal discomfort, bloating, diarrhea, etc., will occur.
After removal of the gallbladder, these compensatory changes of the organism are needed to adapt to digestion. This process takes about 2 to 3 months. During this compensatory, adaptive time, the digestion and absorption of fats will be temporarily affected to some extent. In order to adapt to this change, people who have had their gallbladders removed, the amount of fat eaten should be appropriately limited (the so-called low-fat diet), and they can take the approach of eating less and more meals, especially they should not eat too much animal fat food at one time, such as fatty meat, pig’s feet, etc.
After 2 months, according to the response to food, you can also gradually and appropriately increase some fatty foods, from less to more, if uncomfortable, and then reduce or temporarily do not eat as appropriate. After a period of adaptation, there will not be any reaction to fatty foods.
In addition, after cholecystitis cholecystectomy, generally 40% to 45% of patients have satisfactory results and symptoms disappear. However, in a few patients, the original symptoms still exist after surgery, or the original symptoms come back after a period of remission, and some have new symptoms, which are collectively called “post-cholecystectomy syndrome”. Patients with post-cholecystectomy syndrome present with gastrointestinal symptoms such as epigastric pain, colic-like attacks, jaundice, chills and fever, nausea, vomiting, depression, agitation, and progressive weight loss, as well as systemic symptoms. This symptom occurs in 2-8% of people after cholecystectomy.
After surgery, the dietary principle is low calorie, low fat, high protein and high vitamin, control calories to reduce weight, control the total amount of food eaten, each meal should be seven or eight minutes full (especially dinner should be eaten less). Keep the weight within the ideal range, overweight and obese people should lose weight. The first 3 months after surgery are especially important.
I. Reduce fat and cholesterol.
Pay attention to the reasonable combination of meat and vegetables, and try to reduce the fat and cholesterol content in food. After gallbladder removal, due to the lack of sufficient amount of concentrated bile, if excessive intake of fat and cholesterol, it will cause digestive disorders, and in heavy cases, lipid diarrhea, leading to malnutrition. Usually, we advocate the use of vegetable oil, avoid the intake of animal oil, minimize the intake of thick meat soup, thick chicken soup, thick fish soup and other foods, and reduce the intake of nut foods with high fat content such as peanuts, melon seeds, walnuts, almonds, pistachios and so on.
Strictly limit animal offal, egg yolk, squid, sardines, animal brains, fish eggs, crab yolk and other foods containing high cholesterol, eat up to four eggs per week, avoid overeating or excessive hunger, and try to have small and frequent meals.
Second, supplement high-quality protein.
Adequate low-fat high-quality protein can help repair liver cell damage caused by cholecystitis and cholelithiasis, and you can choose fish, shrimp, poultry, tofu and soy products with less oil.
Third, the intake of an adequate amount of vegetables and fruits.
The daily intake of vegetables should be more than 500 grams and at least 2 kinds of fruits to supplement vitamins and minerals and dietary fiber, and can reduce the formation of cholesterol and the absorption of fat and sugar.
Fourth, quit smoking and drinking and eat less cold, hard, spicy food.
Smoking and alcohol abuse can increase the burden on the liver, so be sure to quit smoking and drinking. Eat less spicy and other stimulating foods, such as onions, garlic, ginger, chili and pepper.
Fifth, supplement dietary fiber.
Eat more food with high dietary fiber, including corn, millet, sweet potatoes, oats and other coarse grains, to promote bile excretion.
Sixth, pay attention to the cooking method.
Cooking should strive to light, preferably using stewing, steaming, simmering soup and other methods. Avoid deep-frying, barbecue, smoking, half-cooked boiling method, and use as little as possible condiments, adapt to the changes in the function of the biliary tract after surgery, to reduce the burden on the digestive system. Depending on individual differences, the symptoms of indigestion will last about three months to six months. As time goes by, the common bile duct will gradually expand and will partially replace the role of the gallbladder, and the symptoms of indigestion will slowly ease. At this time, the diet can also gradually overtake to normal.
Patients with cholecystectomy should participate in more physical activities to promote intestinal peristalsis; they should eat more fiber-rich vegetables, fruits and coarse grains to keep their bowels open; they should control their weight to avoid obesity; they should eat more fresh milk and dairy products, which are rich in calcium and vitamins A and D that can inhibit or reduce the secretion of bile acids.