Do you know what one of my favorite organs in the body is? It’s the gall bladder. While it’s a smaller organ, it’s one of the most important. This is because its functions are so very beneficial to our health.
The gall bladder is nicely tucked away somewhat behind your liver, which manufactures bile, and your gallbladder acts as the storage facility for it. What’s the big deal about bile? Well bile is an emulsifier, meaning that it’s like a soap for fats, which breaks fats down into smaller particles so that your intestines can absorb fats. When you eat fat, your gallbladder will then contract and release the right amount of bile to break down those fats.
You may be wondering why fat is so important to our body. It’s basically because fat makes up the cell membrane of every single cell in your body – so this will affect every part of you, including how your hormones function and how much of them are made! Without proper fat absorption you also end up with dry skin and a higher likelihood of depression. After all, your brain is made primarily of fat.
I like to think of bile as liquid gold! Here’s why. It’s not just working at breaking down fats, it also helps to bind toxins to get them out of your body! AND bile softens stool and it makes it easier to poop.
How do you keep your gall bladder functioning properly? Well it’s simple. Make sure you have a healthy amount of fats in your diet. If you’re regularly on a low-fat diet, or eating hydrogenated or other highly-processed fats, the gallbladder doesn’t get properly stimulated to release bile. It can then become congested with stagnant bile that’s too thick to be pushed out. Before you know it, you’ve got gallstones. If too many gallstones form they can block the common bile duct leading to an emergency gall bladder removal. Yikes!
When the gallbladder is gone, the liver has to take over the job of producing bile and storing it. This means your pancreas has to work harder to pick up the slack by secreting more fat-digesting enzymes. And if you’re insulin resistant, there’s already enough strain on your pancreas, so you’re essentially making it work overtime…not a good idea.
