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A Guide To Healthy Eating For People With Gall Stones: Warwickshire Dietetic Service
A Guide To Healthy Eating For People With Gall Stones: Warwickshire Dietetic Service
A Guide to Healthy
Eating for People with
Gall Stones
Gallstones are hard crystals of various substances that can form in the gallbladder. The main
function of the gallbladder is to help digest foods by storing and releasing bile into the small bowel.
The bile breaks down fats and other nutrients so that they can be digested and absorbed.
Many people who have gallstones have no symptoms but others suffer from abdominal pain,
bloating, nausea and vomiting. In some people, gallstones can cause pain in the upper-right side of
the abdomen or indigestion after eating foods high in fat.
Studies have shown that being overweight or obese can increase your chances of having
gallstones, especially if you are female. Those who carry a large amount of fat around their waist
are also more likely to develop gallstones than those who carry fat around their hips and thighs.
For people who are overweight or obese, even a small amount of weight loss of 10% of body weight
over a 6 month period can improve health. Adopting a very low fat or a fat-free diet to achieve rapid
weight loss (more than 1.5 kg or 3 lb. per week) is not advised as this may increase your chances of
developing gallstones or increase the size of gallstones.
There is no specific diet for treating symptoms. However eating a healthy balanced diet low in fat
may help.
Use the ‘Eatwell Guide’ on the following page to ensure you have a balance of healthier and
more sustainable food. This includes:
If you lose too much weight or find your condition difficult to control while following the advice in this
leaflet, ask your doctor to refer you to a Registered Dietitian for specialist advice.
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A Guide to Healthy Eating for People with Gallstones
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Diet Sheet Title Here
Page 4
Diet Sheet Title Here
This group includes: All breads, breakfast cereals, pasta, grains, rice, flours, potatoes and
chapattis. Choose at least one food from this group at every meal.
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Diet Sheet Title Here
This group includes: Milk, cheese, yoghurt, fromage frais, milky puddings e.g. custard, semolina,
tapioca, rice pudding; and sauces such as parsley, cheese or bread sauce. It also includes milk
substitutes that are unsweetened and fortified with calcium (e.g. soya or almond milk).
This group includes: all types of beans, lentils, dhal, poultry, fish, eggs, meat, nuts and other meat
alternatives such as Quorn, soya or tofu.
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Diet Sheet Title Here
High fat foods include: butter, margarine, low fat spread, oils, mayonnaise, oily salad dressing,
cakes, chocolate, ice-cream, tarts, pies, pastries, crisps.
Fat is the most calorific nutrient. Some fat is essential, so oils and spreads are the only fats
included in the Eatwell guide (see page 3). All other foods and drinks high in fat should be eaten in
small amounts and only occasionally.
The fat in most food is a mixture of three main types - saturates, monounsaturates and
polyunsaturates. It is important to limit all types of fats, but particularly saturated fats.
Saturated fats are more likely to increase your risk of heart disease. Saturates are found in:
Butter, hard margarine, lard, dripping, suet, coconut oil, palm oil and any foods made
from these including biscuits, cakes, pastries or cooked using them, e.g. chips, crisps
Fatty meat and meat products such as burgers, sausages, pepperoni, pâté, meat pies,
especially pork pies
Cheese especially hard cheese and some cheese spreads.
Rapeseed oil Vegetable oils, e.g. sunflower, corn oil or soya oil
Olive oil Oily fish, e.g. mackerel, kippers, herrings
Groundnut oil Nuts and seeds
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Diet Sheet Title Here
Omega-3 Fatty acids are found in oily fish. They have beneficial effects for heart health. Eat at least
one portion of oily fish per week, e.g. mackerel, sardines, salmon. The darker the colour of the fish the
more Omega-3 fatty acids it is likely to contain.
Trans fatty acids (trans fats) are found in small quantities in some foods from animal sources,
including meat and dairy products. They can also be found in foods containing hydrogenated
vegetable oil.
Like saturated fats, trans fats raise cholesterol levels in the blood so increasing the risk of coronary
heart disease. Most people in the UK do not eat a lot of trans fats. On average, we eat about half the
recommended maximum. Food manufacturers in the UK have lowered the levels of hydrogenated
vegetable oil they use, which means that trans fat levels have been reduced as well.
Try to choose monounsaturated or polyunsaturated oils and spreads, but still use them in
moderation. Look for spreads containing the least saturated fat and most unsaturated.
Examples include:
Monounsaturated - Rapeseed and olive oil spreads, such as Bertolli, Olive Gold, Carapelli, and
supermarket own brands
Polyunsaturated - Sunflower oil and spreads, such as Flora, Vitalite and supermarket own
brands.
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Diet Sheet Title Here
This group includes: biscuits, cakes, chocolate, ice-cream, jam tarts, sweets, sugary
drinks (including fruit juice), jam, marmalade and honey.
Sugary foods are not essential for health so eat less often and in small amounts.
Check ingredient lists. The nearer sugar comes to the start of the list, the more sugar
it contains (see page 10 for more information on reading food labels).
Look out for honey, treacle, molasses, syrup, sucrose, maltose, invert sugar, fructose,
maltodextrin. These are all sugar.
Aim to cut out or reduce sugar in tea and coffee. You could use an artificial sweetener
instead.
Use diet, zero or sugar-free squashes and fizzy drinks.
Choose fruit or sugar free yogurt and have sweet pastries, pies, puddings, cake and biscuits
for occasional treats only.
Salt is the common name for sodium chloride. Too much sodium in the diet contributes to high
blood pressure and therefore heart disease and strokes. Six grams of salt per day is the
recommended maximum daily intake for adults. Children need less.
Avoid adding salt to your food at the table and only add a small pinch when cooking.
Limit salty foods such as salted nuts, crisps, jars and packets of soups and sauces,
ready-made meals and processed meats such as bacon, sausages and tinned meat.
Salt substitutes are not recommended as they do not reduce the taste for salt and can be
harmful in some conditions.
Sea salt has no major benefit over common salt. Despite containing some extra
minerals, it still contains sodium so therefore should be kept to a minimum.
Try using herbs, spices, lemon juice or pepper to flavour your food.
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Diet Sheet Title Here
As your body is made up of approximately two thirds water, it is essential for good health to keep your
body well hydrated. An average adult needs about 3 pints or 1.5 litres of fluid every day; this is about
8-10 cups. Try plain water, low fat milk, squash, tea and coffee.
If you drink alcohol, follow the low risk national guidelines. There is no evidence that drinking alcohol
can be absolutely safe, but by sticking within the guidelines, you can lower your risk of harming your
health. The guidelines state:
Men and women are advised not to regularly drink more than 14 units a week.
Spread your drinking over three days or more if you drink as much as 14 units a week. A good
way to keep to the low risk guidelines is to have several drink-free days each week.
Look at the nutritional label and use the tables below to help you to make healthier choices.
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Equality Statement
At South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust we are fully committed to equality and diversity,
both as an employer and as a service provider. We have a policy statement in our Equality
Strategy that clearly outlines our commitment to equality for service users, patients and staff:
You and your family have the right to be treated fairly and be routinely involved in decisions
about your treatment and care. You can expect to be treated with dignity and respect. You will
not be discriminated against on any grounds including age, disability, gender reassignment,
marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual
orientation.
You have a responsibility to treat other service users, patients and our staff with dignity and
respect.
Our information for patients can also be made available in other languages, Braille, audio tape,
disc or in large print.
PALS
We offer a Patient Advice Liaison Service (PALS). This is a confidential service for families to
help with any questions or concerns about local health services.
You can contact the service by the direct telephone line on 01926 600 054 by email:
[email protected] or by calling in person to the PALS Office which is located in the Lakin Road
Entrance to the hospital.
If you have any queries about your diet, please contact us:
Department Dietetics
Version no 3
SWH No 00791