People usually don’t like to talk about their toilet problems, but for some it’s a huge problem. Currently, up to two billion people have diarrhea in a year, a colossal number. Diarrhea is usually not a disease in itself; it is a symptom of many harmful processes in our digestive system. Some people may experience chronic diarrhea, which occurs when the diarrhea persists for more than two weeks and there are more than 3 watery stools a day.

This article focuses on chronic diarrhea after gallbladder removal. Why do many people suffer from it? Is there a non-drug alternative medicine approach to this unpleasant condition?

The medical term for gallbladder removal surgery is cholecystectomy. This type of diarrhea is a symptom of post-cholecystectomy syndrome; disorder that often includes pain, gas, bloating, bile reflux, etc.

Let’s focus on the nasty stuff first. Even brilliant operation technique and surgical experience cannot prevent this complication after gallbladder removal surgery. Statistically, about 10% of people without a gallbladder will sooner or later have chronic diarrhea. In the US, 700,000 gallbladders are removed annually, so we have a large number of patients with that problem after surgery.

According to the medical literature there is no cure for this disorder, there are only medications to control diarrhea. Even professionals acknowledge that the cause of diarrhea after gallbladder removal is unknown. Anyway, doctors call chronic diarrhea after gallbladder removal “bile acid” diarrhea because bile acids are the culprit. Bile acids are essential parts of bile.

Bile is produced by the liver and goes to the gallbladder for storage. When semi-digested food passes from the stomach to the first part of the small intestine-duodenum, the gallbladder contracts. It pushes bile through the bile duct and sphincter of Oddi into the duodenum to digest fatty foods.

Our body uses bile acids from bile as a detergent to make fat droplets smaller. It helps the enzyme pancreatic lipase to break down fats into glycerol and fatty acids, which can be absorbed along the intestinal wall. This is a bit tricky, but without understanding, it’s hard to figure out how to get help.

In the normal situation, when the bile is alkaline, the bile acids are soluble. Any abnormal acidic change in bile pH leads to precipitation of bile acids. Insoluble bile acids are highly aggressive substances that corrode and irritate the gallbladder, bile ducts, the sphincter of Oddi, and the duodenum, causing inflammation, ulcers, and eventually cancer. Doctors found a higher incidence of colon cancer in humans after gallbladder removal. The acidity of bile and the precipitation of bile acids is the main reason for the development of inflammation and stones in the gallbladder. There is much more medical information on this topic in my eBook: Healthy Pancreas, Healthy You.

By the way, people lose gallbladder due to acidic bile which causes inflammation and gallbladder stones. The gallbladder stores bile for a long time; therefore, aggressive and acidic bile acids have more time to cause damage and inflammation. Not surprisingly, the gallbladder becomes the first and most common target of the surgical knife.

However, gallbladder removal surgery does not normalize the acid-alkaline condition of the bile. After gallbladder surgery, irritation and inflammation persist in the liver’s bile ducts, bile duct, sphincter of Oddi, and duodenum. Bile/pancreatic reflux can move this aggressive mixture into the stomach causing gastritis, persistent heartburn, damage to the esophagus, etc. Going down, bile/pancreatic reflux can cause abdominal pain and diarrhea.

Let’s stop here and think about what can cause human bodies to turn acidic. Modern food full of acidifying products. They are sugars, meats, cereals, milk, alcohol and unhealthy fats. On top of that, antibiotics in food and as medication kill friendly gut flora; therefore, allow overgrowth of yeast and bacteria in the gut. In turn, this creates constant fermentation and produces many acidic substances.

Therefore, keeping bile alkaline is extremely beneficial for people without a gallbladder.

There are three natural ways to do this: eat an alkaline diet, take alkaline minerals, and drink alkaline healing mineral water. Drinking healing mineral water is very popular in Europe.

Surgeons have performed cholecystectomy for 150 years. Therefore, doctors knew the consequences of gallbladder surgeries such as pain, indigestion, and diarrhea from that time. European doctors have recommended drinking healing mineral water for hundreds of years. The small town of Karlovy Vary was a sacred place for people with disorders of the gallbladder, liver, and pancreas. Europeans have been drinking this hot spring water, or preparing it from steamed geyser salt at home, for over 250 years. Many articles and books in German, Czech and Russian support the healing action of Karlovy Vary healing mineral water after gallbladder removal.

Drinking healing mineral water prepared with genuine Karlovy Vary thermal salt may have some beneficial actions. Karlovy Vary Thermal Salt Tin:

• Supply the body with alkaline minerals, bicarbonate and trace elements, which are essential parts of bile and pancreatic juice.

• Make the bile liquid and alkaline, so it will be less aggressive.

• Decrease spasms of the sphincter of Oddy (sphincter of Oddy dysfunction)

• Decrease bile/pancreatic reflux

• Normalize stool

• Promote proper digestion

This is a safe and effective natural remedy for people with post-cholecystectomy syndrome, but it takes time to achieve positive results. I suggest monitoring the pH of your saliva and urine at home to see any changes. The pH of saliva and urine are a window for us to see the acid-alkaline balance of the body. “I eat healthy”, “I don’t drink alcohol”, “I exercise”, I often hear from my patients. In fact, they are surprised when the pH of their saliva and urine is less than 6.6 (acid state).

Heartburn, whose medical name is chronic metabolic acidosis, is rampant now. Today, metabolic acidosis is considered by nutrition experts to be at the core of several digestive and metabolic disorders.

Another natural way to neutralize acidity in the body is to take alkaline mineral supplements. The best for this job is cellular magnesium-potassium.

Exacerbation of chronic diarrhea after gallbladder removal is highly dependent on dysbiosis (Candida yeast overgrowth and/or small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). Antibiotics and some other medications, poor eating habits , heavy metal toxicity, and alcohol disrupt the normal microbial balance within the small and large intestines.

When friendly gut flora is not present, opportunistic infection, such as harmful bacteria, yeast, and parasites, take over the GI tract. According to medical research, dysbiosis leads to precipitation of bile acids, which worsens chronic diarrhea.

Contrary to common belief, eating low-quality yogurt and taking probiotics generally cannot restore the natural balance between friendly gut flora and opportunistic infection. The use of antibiotics and antifungal agents cannot restore the proper natural balance in the intestine. The “kill and destroy” approach is not for this case.

Restoring friendly intestinal flora is a slow process that includes a healthy diet, colon hydrotherapy, drinking healing mineral water prepared with genuine Karlovy Vary thermal salt, taking quality-tested probiotics and nutritional supplements. Colon hydrotherapy by washing the colon can remove bile acids and establish an environment for beneficial bacteria to reside there.

Diarrhea after gallbladder removal is not a new thing. People have suffered from this type of chronic diarrhea for a long time. For now, scientific research and clinical evidence support the efficacy of herbs in digestive disorders, especially chronic diarrhea. Herbs can promote the release of bile from the liver; make bile liquid and alkaline.

Chronic diarrhea after gallbladder removal creates problems with digestion, pain, loss of fluids, minerals, trace elements, vitamins, and essential fatty acids. It can cause many symptoms, which are very far from the colon. These problems can include depression, low immunity, disorders of the skin, adrenal glands, thyroid, heart and vessels, producing additional symptoms and other treatments. Worried about where the toilets are, sanitary pads and diapers are not the main solution for chronic diarrhea after gallbladder removal.

Don’t give up seek help. You need to find the licensed alternative medicine practitioner with knowledge to work with.

The information contained herein is presented for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This information should not be used to replace the services or instructions of a physician or qualified health professional.