Will taking milk thistle daily help ease the pain of my gall bladder problem until eventual surgery?
Cholelithiasis is the presence of one or more calculi (gallstones) in the gallbladder. In the US, 20% of people > 65 yr have gallstones, and most disorders of the extrahepatic biliary tract arise from gallstones. Gallstones may be asymptomatic or cause biliary colic but do not cause dyspepsia. Other common consequences of gallstones include cholecystitis; biliary tract obstruction (usually as a result of bile duct stones), sometimes with infection (cholangitis); and gallstone pancreatitis. Diagnosis is usually based on ultrasound. If cholelithiasis causes symptoms or complications, cholecystectomy becomes necessary. Eat a low-cholesterol, low-fat diet. This kind of diet includes cottage cheese, fat-free milk, fish (not canned in oil), vegetables, poultry, egg whites, and polyunsaturated oils and margarines (corn, safflower, canola, and soybean oils). Avoid foods with excess fat in them such as meat (especially liver and fatty meat), egg yolks, whole milk, cream, butter, shortening, lar
