 |
Waist Away Gallstones
By WLR Dietitian
|
Having a fat tummy – even if your body mass index (BMI) is
within the normal range – could mean you’re more likely to
develop gallstones and need surgery to remove them, according to
a new study published in the journal Gut.
Researchers studied more than 42,000 women aged between 39
and 66 for 14 years. During this time, more than 3,000 women
needed gallstone surgery. However, those with a waist
measurement of 36 inches or more were almost twice as likely to
need surgery to remove their gallstones compared with those with
waists measuring 26 inches or less. The reason for this link is
likely to be because fat around the waist is more metabolically
active than the fat elsewhere in the body, say the researchers.
WLR says:
It’s well established that being an ‘apple’ shape – where
excess fat is stored around our waists – increases the risk of
several medical complaints, including
type 2 diabetes, high
blood pressure and heart disease. However, few previous studies
have found that rounded waistlines also increase the risk of
needing surgery for gallstones.
Gallstones occur more commonly as we get older and
approximately one in 10 people over the age of 40 have them,
with women aged between 20 and 60 years being twice as likely to
develop them as men.
Gallstones are made when excess
cholesterol in the bile – a
substance that digests fat – forms crystals in the gall bladder.
This small, pear-shaped organ, located just under the liver and
the ribs on the right hand side of the body, may also empty too
slowly causing the crystals to stagnate.
Many people with gallstones have no symptoms but they can
cause severe pain just below the ribs on the right-hand side of
the body. This pain may travel to the back between the shoulder
blades or to the right shoulder and may also be accompanied by
nausea and vomiting.
Attacks are often triggered by eating fatty foods and are
sometimes linked with bloating, belching and indigestion.
A low-fat diet may be helpful in relieving the symptoms of
gallstones – and also has the advantage of aiding weight loss.
However, if symptoms don’t improve or there are signs of
infection in the gall bladder, surgery may be necessary. Usually
this is done by keyhole surgery and involves removing both the
stones and the gall bladder.
Fortunately, losing weight is one of the most important
things you can do to stop gallstones from forming in the first
place. A large clinical study shows that being even moderately
overweight increases the risk for developing gallstones,
possibly because it tends to reduce the amount of bile salts in
bile, resulting in more cholesterol, and slows down the emptying
of the gallbladder.
Having said this, fasting and losing weight rapidly also
increases the risk of gallstones. This is because as the body
metabolises fat during rapid weight loss, it causes the liver to
secrete extra cholesterol into the bile, potentially causing
gallstones. Meanwhile, fasting slows down the emptying of the
gallbladder causing cholesterol to build up in the bile. As a
result, it’s important to lose any excess pounds slowly.
Finally, to lower your risk of many diseases, it’s also worth
checking out whether you have too much fat stored around your
middle – even if your BMI is normal. This is as simple as
measuring your waist.
For men, you’re at an increased risk of health problems if
your waist measures 37in (94cm), and at high risk if it measures
40in (102cm) or more.
For women, your risk is increased if your waist is 32in
(80cm) and you’re at high risk if it’s 35in (88cm) or more.
If you’re at an increased risk, it’s a good time to start
making some lifestyle changes to lower your risk of disease. If
you’re at high risk then losing fat from your
midriff will
almost certainly benefit your health. |
