What are the functions of the gallbladder? The functions of the gallbladder are mainly 1, storage and concentration of bile. When not eating, most of the bile secreted by the liver flows into the gallbladder, and the mucous membrane absorbs the water and inorganic salts therein, thus making it concentrated for storage, and it is recorded that the normal gallbladder can concentrate the bile secreted by the liver up to 10 times; 2. After eating, especially after greasy food, under the action of hormones in the body, the gallbladder can contract to a greater extent and discharge 50-70% of its bile, thus mixing the food and bile to help digestion and absorption of food, especially fat; 3, secretion function. The gallbladder mucosa can secrete mucus, which has the function of protecting the gallbladder mucosa. What are the effects of gallbladder removal on the human body? In general, removal of the gallbladder does not have a great impact on the human body. Under normal circumstances, after eating fatty foods, the gallbladder contracts and discharges bile to mix with the food to facilitate the digestion and absorption of lipids. After removal of the gallbladder, bile is lost as a storage site, and bile secreted by the liver can be discharged into the intestine at any time. Although the hepatocytes can increase some bile secretion with the reflex when eating, in general, the bile excretion and the eating of lipid food are less coordinated than before. Therefore, some patients may experience diarrhea after eating lipids for a period of time after surgery, but digestive function can generally return to normal with compensatory functions such as bile duct dilation. What is the role of the bile ducts? The role of the bile ducts is to serve as a conduit for the transport of bile. The bile ducts above the confluence of the common hepatic duct and the cystic duct mainly allow bile secreted by the liver to flow into the gallbladder, while the common bile duct is mainly responsible for transporting gallbladder bile into the intestine. What foods contain high levels of cholesterol? In addition to fatty meats and egg yolks, there are many foods that are rich in cholesterol. For example, mollusks such as snails and seafood such as cuttlefish, and animal offal. What does the change in the size of the gallbladder reflect? Normally, the gallbladder volume of normal people also changes. When eating, the gallbladder contracts and discharges bile with an average volume of about 15 ml, while the gallbladder volume can reach 90 ml when fasting, which is mainly the result of the coordination between the discharge and storage of bile and eating. In patients with cholecystitis and gallbladder stones, especially those with frequent attacks, the gallbladder becomes smaller and smaller due to repeated inflammation, and loses its ability to contract, finally becoming a layer of fibrous tissue wrapped in stones and completely losing its function, which is medically known as atrophic cholecystitis. Why do cholesterol stones tend to occur in the gallbladder? The gallbladder is used to store and concentrate bile, so the concentration of bile cholesterol in the gallbladder is relatively high and crystals are more likely to precipitate. When the gallbladder contracts, some bile remains, and the concentration of cholesterol in this residual bile is even higher, making it easier for cholesterol crystals to form. In addition, some glycoproteins secreted by the gallbladder will further promote the formation of cholesterol crystals, so cholesterol stones are more likely to occur in the gallbladder.