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Show ! YOUR GOOD HEALTH by Noah H. Sloan, M.D. Medical Director, Allstate Insurance Companies GALLSTONES Gallstones are like little pieces of gravel which sometimes form in the gallbladder and keep it from working properly. -The gallbladder is a storehouse and pumping- station for bile which is formed in the liver 24 hours a day. This bile contains chemicals that help you digest fats and oils in food. From the liver, the bile goes to the gallbladder gall-bladder where it is concentrated by removing the water,, and stored until needed. The concentrated concen-trated bile goes from the gall- form around dust particles, become be-come tiny, sand-like particles which tend to get larger as time goes on. These, in turn, continue to irritate the gallbladder and cause more stones to form. When the gallbladder contracts con-tracts to squeeze bile into the intestine, stones may be forced along small bile ducts and plug up the passage between it and the intestine. When this happens there is intense pain and the gallbladder gall-bladder quits working. The gallbladder often is removed re-moved to treat this condition. This does not interfere with a person's ability to digest food because be-cause the bile ducts of the liver step in and do an expert job of concentrating and processing the bile. In fact, the gallbladder may be classed as a non-essential organ without which people can live very comfortably. Many species of animals normally have no gallbladder at all. There is no rigid diet a person must follow after his gallbladder has been removed. He can try any foods he wishes and continue eating those which do not disagree dis-agree with him. If certain- foods bother him, however, he had best leave them alone. Allium Infutami lltalib Cruise GALL I f ) I bladder to the intestine after each meal to help with digestion. If the gallbladder is inflamed, as the result of infection, it empties emp-ties poorly and tiny shreds of lining come free and float around inside the bladder. These tiny shreds get coated by cholesterol in the bile and, just as raindrops |