I heard an academic on the radio yesterday, a dietary expert, say that staying on low calorie diets and losing weight rapidly has a high chance of developing gallbladder stones and gout. Anyone heard anything about this? And if so, anything we can do to protect ourselves while on the diet?

I wonder if he or she is the same kind of dietary expert who have been telling people to eat low fat high carb.
I also wonder if he has as much experience in his field as Professor Taylor and Dr Moseley.
The fact is, if a radio producer wants to push a certain viewpoint to listeners, they will always find an “expert” who agrees with that viewpoint. It also happens a lot in court cases.
You just can’t believe everything you hear or see in the media.

Hi Beverley, my gallstones (many) were diagnosed in 2006 and are not bothering me just now and as I am getting healthier and fitter I do not expect that they will, I am in week 11 but have increased my intake a bit now…

Hi I agree with Bill, after all dieticians are still doling out the low fat high carb nonsense! 🙂
Also it is amazing what is happening to people on this diet – I know it is anecdotal rather than trial based – but there are a number of us who no longer suffer from acid reflux – yet the criminals are supposed to be fat, spicy foods and alcohol. Well, we are eating fat, I have not stopped eating spicy food and have had an occasional small glass of wine with no ill effects! 🙂

Hi Beverley,
Reading your post has made me realise that I haven’t felt a single twinge from my ( quite large) gallstone since starting the BSD!
It used to make it’s presence known 2-3 times a week before this. Another benefit I’ve gained from eating this way 🙂

The NHS website doesn’t seem to think losing weight will cause gallstones. In fact, being overweight is considered to be a cause. http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Gallstones/pages/causes.aspx

Usually they take a long time to develop – I mean years.

Hi Beverley
My late mother had both gallstones & gout! She was type 2 diabetic as am I.
Gout has quite a familial trait. Uric acid crystals (from the breakdown of purines found in some foods) can collect in the joints eg toes & is very painful! My son, grandmother & great-grandfather all have suffered from Gout. Try & avoid foods & drink with high purine levels. Purines are also created through the natural process of cell breakdown in the body.
Uric acid is dissolved in the blood & excreted by the kidneys. If you are unfortunate & produce too much Uric acid, Gout can occur.
My mother found drinking more water, resting her feet & of course medication helped. Her attacks were sporadic but very painful. At no time was she told that she was more susceptible to either Gout or Gallstones because she was T2!
Her GP was not helpful or knowledge ( at least he never passed on warnings to her) as to what she should avoid for either condition.
Same old same old!
I believe some foods that were to be avoided with Gout are now thought to be beneficial?
Eureka

Read on the internet:- Some say there is an increased risk of gallstones with low fat, low calorie diets.

We are not on low fat diets, just low carbs…

I know we are on low carbs, but perhaps the person on the radio was talking about a different VLCD?

In 2013 I lost about 12kg on a low fat 1200 calorie/diet. I felt great ………I then had my first severe gallstone symptoms & needed my gallbladder removed. I feel there was a definite connection between the two in my situation. I did a lot of Internet searching for info about it at that time.
I think the BSD is different – not low fat & low calorie like my 2013 diet was.
However I’ll be interested to follow this thread.

She was talking about the 5:2 diet but mentioned about gallstones in relation to losing weight rapidly. I think she said the information came from a study done in Melbourne, Australia. I’ll see if I can find out more.

And yes she was pushing low fat high carb as the gold standard, but it is so pervasive and what Moseley and Taylor are doing is cutting edge though, like most cutting edge stuff, makes more sense and fits the evidence better. She’ll come around given time – eventually this way of eating will become mainstream (again) just like the low fat high carb way of eating did. I am naturally interested in any potential side effect – there’s no way I want or need other health issues and if there is something I can do to prevent them I’ll consider it. Thanks for your input and experience – it’s very reassuring. I keep working on drinking more water every day. 🙂

Cherrieanne that is very good news re your large gall stone.

It’s quite staggering how many people are reporting beneficial changes in medical conditions while on this low carb diet!

So far:
Acid reflux
Gall stones
Asthma
Joint pain

All we expected was an improvement in T2 – or reversal – and weight loss!

Post if you have any other improvements I haven’t mentioned! 🙂

When on the 5:2 earlier this year I heard a few mentions of gallstones particularly in women being a side effect of very low cal diet & high protein – not what we are doing. This was from Prof Longo who MM was researching intermittent fasting with. Good to hear you’re seeing improvements in yours Cherrianne. My improvements have been to
Asthma
Osteoarthritis
Sinuses

I have read that gallstones can be associated with a very low fat diet. Your gall bladder releases bile to digest fat. If you eat little fat then it doesn’t empty itself regularly and stones form. Or something along those lines 🙂

Because of various other issues I have 3 monthly full blood screenings. My Uric Acid levels are normally around 400 umol/l and if I’ve had a lot to drink and too much of the high life (like after Christmas) they can be around 550umol/lt. My last blood test, 4 weeks into BSD showed levels up at 730umol/l. As you can imagine after 4 weeks of BSD I had not been living high on the hog and had not had a drop of alcohol for the entire time. I have my next blood test at the beginning of July and I’ll report back then. In my experience the BSD can can raise Uric Acid levels (and there are several web references to this) I do have a family history of gout (father and both brothers) but I don’t have any symptoms yet

From a little reading, I think the problem is associated with not just rapid weight loss, but also rebound weight gain after rapid weight loss.

I have just finished week 2 of the diet and I have to confess I have been hit with the worst pain from my gallstones that I have ever experienced. That said, I was diagnosed with gallstones before starting the diet and was told I had a serious case so I an loath to link the two. The reality is that I have the blasted things because I am obese in the first place and this plan is a miracle in terms of how easy it is to follow and how much weight I am loosing. My only misgiving was how the issue was glossed over in the book.

Poor poor you I think unless you have had the pain you can’t understand how awful it is. I guess once the stones have been created diet alone can’t dissolve them. Are you going to have surgery to have them removed? I did so and have been fine ever since very little after effects.

Interestingly I have just had my health MOT and despite still being obese my chloresterol levels were astonishingly good and my cardio risk factors under 4% which is nigh on amazing. ( bear in mind I’m the type that Drs look at and assume I have high blood pressure and diabetes which I don’t). I have been on the diet 14 weeks and lost 44 lbs. the sister was so impressed she’s going to read up about the diet herself. Another victory for the BSD!

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Thanks Angiebabe, the pain was something else! I am back at work but having to fast until the evening so I don’t end up on my hands and knees in the office. Seeing a specialist on Friday to schedule the surgery. It might sound daft but I still think the diet is the best thing ever! This was going to happen to me anyway, it possibly brought it on quicker than I expected, that said I am the lightest I have been since before I had my youngest child and she is 9, so as soon as the surgery is over I am getting back on track. Bloody well done on your 44 lbs, you are an inspiration

I hope they book it soon do not not not put on a brave face tell it how it is at its worst and tell them you are desperate! Then once it’s done bliss will return. I’m amazed you can work with it.

Lots of luck with it.

I am going in to get my gallbladder removed in a couple of weeks and spoke to the specialist about the plan yesterday, she felt that it was not so much the weight loss that triggered the attack as the increase in veg with very strong pigmentation, i.e. peppers, tomatoes, etc. Apparently that is what she thinks causes the reaction to the med diet, as she has seen similar reactions when people follow the plan but not the low calorie count. Sticking to the small calorie count but being very boring about the veg and it has really died down. Would love to see some proper studies about this though