Dr. Jonatltan V Wright's

NUTRITION & HEALINGVol. 11, lssue 9 o October 2OO4

The 99.9-percent effective technique for eliminatinggallbladder attacks forever

By lonathan V. 'Wright,

M.D.5ome important functions in yourbody that make it well worthkeeping. Possibly the mostimportant is to regulate bile flow tooptimize fat, oil, and fat-solublenutrient absorption.'Without yourgallbladder, mechanicallg this justcan't happen properly.

If you've already had yourgallbladder removed, there are

"That's right,999 of7,000 gallbladder

some simple steps you can take tokeep nutrient deficiencies fromhappening. But before I tell youwhat to do if your gallbladder'salready gone, let's cover a morerugent question: How can youkeep your gallbladder in the fust,place, and get those "attacks' todisappear for goodl If it was usedas a first line of defense, thistechnique would make 99.9percent of all gallbladdersurgeries-including yours inparticular-totally unnecessary.That's fight,999 of 1,000gallbladder surgeries are entirelypreventable, and without patent

medications, vitamins, minerals,or herbs. This procedure works sowell that I haven't needed to referanyone for gallbladder surgery forover 30 years.

Hospitals already use thistechnique-without even

realizing itIt may sound like I'm making a

totally unsupportable clairn, butresearch about "how to preventgallbladder attacks" was actuallypublished back in the 1960s and'70s by Dr. James C. Breneman,who, at the time, was chairman ofthe Food Allergy Committee of theAmerican College of Allergists, orACA (now called the AmericanCollege of Allergy and Immunol-ogy, or ACAI). Ironically if you'veever been hospitalized with asevere attack of gallbladder pain,but your gallbladder wasn'tremoved, and the pain subsided,you've very likely had "Dr.Breneman treatment."

So what is Dr. Breneman'ssecret for preventing attacks ofgallbladder pain? It's simple:Don't eat or consume anythingyou're allergic to.t And that'sexactly what the doctors do whenyou're hospitalized with a severegallbladder attack-they takeaway all your food, you're givenIV fluids, and you're not allowedto eat anything until the pain

(continued on next page)

i 'If you still have your gallbladdeq

you probably don't spend muchtime thinking about it, even if.youlre-very health conscious. Ifyou don't have your gallbladderanymore, you probably thinkabout it even less. The only timeyou might consider your gall-

. bladder is when it's hurting bad-a situation usually called a"gallbladder attack."

And why should you? After all,nearly a million people every yearhave their gallbladders removed,and they all appear to go onabout their lives just as healthy as ;anyone else. Doctors don't seem ,.1to care about gallbladders much;if yours is subject to "attackso: of .,.,pain, they don't try to help ;lou'r',..;,keep'it: If it hurts too much.or roo::often, the.nearly uniyersal r ,.,.prescription is "just get it out.o

- 5t-ttbough-ienequiree ,srrrgery-and a hospital stay-not to

'

mention thousands of dollars-just go ahead and do it. Besides,it's "covered" by your insurance.

After the surgery you're notadvised to do anything in particu-lar to make up for the loss of yourgallbladder. So it's no wonder mostpeople are under the'impressionthat it's just nod that important.

But if you'v6 read this far, I'msure you've guessed that I'mabout to tell you that there's muchmore to the gallbladder story thanthat. Your gallbladder performs

Measles: Not the monsteri t ' smadeou t tobe . . . . . page6 Even be t te r thano l i veo i l . . . . . . page7

Nutzuttol{ & mntnlcEditor: Customs Sewke Sptrialist

Jonadil V, Wrighr, M.D. Dawn Heidelberg

Publisheri Editorial Associatel

J. C. Thompson Meryl RaEman

Associate Publishen Copy EditorrKimberly Putnam Ken Danz

Mmaging Editor: Designer:Amanda L. Ross Ramsey Brisuefio

@ Copyright 2004 Agora Health, L.L.C., 8 l9 N. CharlesSt., Baltimore, MD 2 | 20l. Reproduction in whole or partis prohibited without wriften permission of the publisher.Dr. Jonathan V. Wright's Nutrition & Heoling is publishedmonthly by Agora Health, L.L.C., 819 N. Charles St.,Baltimore, MD 2 | 20 | . Subscription rates are $74 per year($4.92 an issue). POSTMASTER: Send address changes toDr. Jonathan V. Wright's Nutritron & Heoling, 8l9 N.Charles St.. Baltimore. MD 2120 | .

For ques t ions regard ing your subscr ip t ion , p lease ca l lreader serv ices a t (203)699-3683 (9 a .m. -6 p .m. EDTMon. -Fr i . ) , fax (4 l0 )230- 1273 or send an e-mai l toserv lce@Heal th ie rNews.com. Send cance l la t ions to P .O.Box 206, Bal t imore, MD 21203.

Our mission:Nutrition & Heoling is dedicated to helping you keep

yourself and ybur family healthy by the safest and mosteffective means possible, Every month, you'll get informa-tion about diet, vitamins, minerals, herbs, naturalhormones, natural energies, and other substances andtechniques to prevent and heal illness, while prolongingyour healthy life span.

A graduate of Harvard University and the University ofMichigan Medical School (1969), Dr. Jonathan V. Wrighthas been pract ic ing natural and nutr i t ional medic ine atthe Tahoma Cl in ic in Kent, Washington, s ince 1973.Based on enormous volumes of l ibrary and c l in icalresearch, a long wi th tens of thousands of c l in ical consul-tations, he is exceptionally well-qualified to bring you aunique blending of the most up-to-date information and thebest and still most effective natural therapies developed bypreceding generations.

Nutrrtron & Heoling cannot improve on these hmous words:

"We hold these truths to be se/f-evident, thot oll men orecreoted equal, thot they ore endowed by their creotor withcertoin unolienoble rightE thot omong these are life, Iiberty,ond the pursuit ofhoppiness."

The inalienable right to life must include the right to carefor one's own life. The inalienable right to libeny mustinclude the right to choose whatever means we wish tocare for ourselves. In addition to publishing the best ofinformation about natural health care, Nutrition & Heolingurges its readers to remember their inalienable rithts tolife, liberty, and freedom of choice in health care. Thisinformation is published to help in the effort to exercisethese inalienable rights, and to warn of ever-presentattempts of both government and private ortanizations torestrict them.

All material in this publication is provided for informationonly and may not be construed as medical advice orinstruction. No action should be taken based solely on thecontenr of this publication; instead, readers should consultappropriate health professionals on any matter relating totheir health and well-being. The information and opinionsprovided in this publication are believed to be accurare andsound, based on the best judgment available to the authors,but readers who fail to consult with appropriate healthauthorities assume the risk of any injuries. The publisher isnot resoonsible for errors or omissions,

Moving? Missed an issue? P lease le t us knowwithin 60 days of moving or if you have not receivedan issue. ( ln te rna t iona l subscr ibers , p lease no t i f y uswi th in 90 days . ) A f te r rh is r ime per iod , missed issuescan be purchased for USg6.50 each. Postage costsmay apply to anternational requests.

I

gallbladder(continuedfrom page I)

subsides. It's a "perfect" food allergy avoidance strategy, andworks nearly every time . Unfortunately, the doctors who orderthis procedure every day stil l don't realize why the strategyworks. But back to Dr. Breneman...

Back in 1968, he asked 59 individuals suffering from recurrentattacks of gallbladder pain to go onto an elimination diet todetermine their food allergies.'z Six of these individuals hadalready had their gallbladders out, but were stil l having artacksof gallbladder pain) a situation termed "post-cholecystectomysyndrome," or, as I like to call it, "my gallbladder's gone, but I'mstill hurting anyway." Dr. Breneman reported that all 59 people(L00 percent!) were completely free of gallbladder attacks whenthey avoided their individual food (and other) allergies. And all69 had their symptoms return when they ate the foods they wereallergic to once more.

The primary offending foods were eggs (92.8 percent), pork(53.8 percent), onions (52.2 percent), chicken and turkey (34.8percent), milk (24.6 percent), coffee (21,.7 percent), and oranges(L8.8 percent). Corn, beans, nuts, apples, tomatoes, peas,cabbage, spices, peanuts, fish, and rye accounted for between14.5 percent and 1 percent of gallbladder attacks. In addition tofoods, 14 of the 59 study participants-just over 20 percent-had gallbladder attacks caused by medications.

Food, medication, and other allergies vary from person to person,and the same allergen can cause different symptoms in differentpeople, so it's best to work with a physician skilled and knowled-geable in nutritional and natural medicine to determine whatyour allergies might be. In addition to the American College forAdvancement in Medicine noted on page 8, you might want tocontact the American Academy of Environmental Medicine(316-684-5500, www.aaem.com), for help in determining whichfoods or medications may be triggering your gallbladder attacks.

Gallbladder removal could send your healthon a downward spiral

This approach is so simple, and yet no medical school to thisday teaches how to prevent gallbladder attacks by avoiding yourfood allergies and (in some cases) other allergies. Instead, theycontinue to recommend unnecessary gallstone removal surgery.But the truth is, gallstones don't even cause 99.9 percent ofgallbladder "attacks": allergies do. Avoid allergies, stop "attacks"of pain, and keep your gallbladder! That's it-that's all there isto it. And believe me, it 's worth it. Because without your gall-bladder, your absorption of vitamins A, D, E, K, and essentialfatty acids is very likely to be impaired.

Let me give you a specific example of what can happen if yourbody isn't absorbing enough of these essential nutrients. Severalyears ago, one Nutrition & Healing reader contacted me with aquestion about a very specific problem she was having. Everytime she drove the Los Angeles freeway system, she experiencedrecurrent breakdown of the tissues covering the cornea of her

2 Nutrition & Healing October 2004wvvw.wri g htn ewsletter.com

eyes. Her ophthalmologist attrib-uted the "spontaneous cornealbreakdown" to air pollution andtold her not to drive whenpollution levels rose. She didn'targue with the diagnosis butwondered why everyone else sheknew could drive those samefreeways with intact corneas.

When she asked me thatquestion, I admitted I didn't knoweither but suggested that she tryextra vitamin A (not beta-carotene)to try to stop the problem. Shepointed out that she was eatingcarrots and "yellow vegetables"and taking a multiple vitamincontaining vitamin A. But sinceinsufficient levels are one definitecause of corneal damage, I told herit was still worth trying, especiallysince it's relatively difficult for anadult to overdose on vitamin A,and since any possible overdose iseasily reversible if the vitamin A ispromptly stopped. (This does notinclude women who are pregnantor might become pregnant: Evensmall excesses of vitamin A canraise the risk of birth defects.)

So we went over vitamin Aoverdose symptoms that she shouldlook out for, just in case. Theyinclude headache, progressivelydrier skin, loss of hair (especiallyeyebrows), cracked lips, and pain inttlong bones" (upper arms, upperlegs). I recommended she start with25,000 IU of vitamin A daily andgradually increase the amounttoward a maximum of 100,000 IUdaily, keeping a close watch forboth favorable results and anypossible symptoms of excess.

'When we next talked, she had

very good news:'When she'd gottento 80,000 IU of vitamin A daily,her corneas stopped giving her somuch trouble. They were healthyonce again, with no further break-down, and she could drive thefreeways as much as she wanted.

She'd also had no signs at all of

www.wri g htnewsletter.co m

Let "sleeping" gallstones lie

anyone

vitamin A excess. However, whenshe told her oplrthalmologist thegood news, he panicked and senther immediately to have a vitaminA blood.test, telling her to stoptakin6j.vitamin A right away as shemight be "poisoned.D '-

I ,Hoiryeveq she knew that she.;wasn't having overdose symptoms,and'that her eyes were stayingintact for the fust time in severalyears, so she decided to wait a fewdays for the results of the testbefore stopping. The test reportshowed her vitamin A level to bewell within normal limits, but, toher surprise, she was told sheshould stop the extra vitamin Aanyway, since it was "just toomuch.'Sensibly, she declined tostop, pointing to her now-normaleyes, and instead decided to investi-gate why she might need so muchvitamin A to produce normal bloodlevels and maintain eye health.

She remembered she'd had hergallbladder removed a few yearsbefore her eye problems started.Researching that, she discovered

that normal absorption of fats andoils is very dependent on bil*whichis made by our livers, but "storedfor use" in a normal gallbladder.She knew that vitamin A is a "fat-soluble" vitamin (as are vitaminsD, E, K, and the essential fatry acids)and wondered if perhaps her missinggallbladder might account for herhigh vitamin A requirement.

I told her she was probablyright and asked her a question thatI ask all my patients who've alreadyhad gallbladder surgery. The questionwas (and is): "After your gallbladderwas removed, did your surgeon orany other doctor explain what youshould do to insure normal absorp-tion of fats, oils, and especiallyfat-soluble vitamins?" Of course,her answer, like that of every otherpatient I've asked over the last 30years, was "no."

But despite most doctors' sins ofomission on this topic, itt importantfor you to understand that withoutyour gallbladder, your body just

doesn't generate enough bile to

(continued on page 4)

Nutrition & Healinp October 2lXt4 3

gallbladder(continuedfrom page 3)

break down and absorb manyessential nutrients.

Protecting your body'snutrient-absorption team

You might ask why this is, sincebile is made in your liver and theliver is still completely intact aftergallbladder removal. To understandthe relationship berween the two,you need to know a bit about howyour gallbladder works.

'Sfhen your liver secretes bile, a

relatively large quantity is "captured"by your gallbladder and storedthere for use. When you eat certainfatty or oily meals-a fish dinner,perhaps, with lots of heart-healthyomega-3 fatty acids-and all theincompletely digested oils and fatsare passed from your stomach intoyour duodenum (the uppermostportion of your small intestine), thefats and oils trigger the release ofthe hormone "cholecystokinin"(CCK). CCK travels to yourgallbladder, telling it "oil's coming,

fat's coming!" In response to CCK,your gallbladder contracts, pushingout just the right quantity of storedbile. The bile arrives in yourintestines at the exact time it'sneeded, in the exact quantityneeded. lTorking with your pancre-atic fat- and oil-digesting enzymes,the bile digests and emulsifies thoseoils, making them "just right" tobe absorbed.

Marvelous how it all workstogether, isn't it?

But without your gallbladder,most of that marvelous coordina-tion is lost. The small, steadytrickle of bile from the liver is stillthere, but it's no longer "matched"to the amount of fat or oil you'veeaten in either quantity or timing.The resulting "mismatch" inevit-ably affects your digestion andabsorption and puts your fat-soluble nutrient status at risk.Fortunately (or unfortunately), thesymptoms of inadequate vitaminsA, E, D, K, and essential fatty acidsare rarely as dramatic as the casementioned above; instead they

often take years to develop.'Whenthey do, they're usually not identi-fied (except by nutritionally awarephysicians) and hardly ever tracedback to gallbladder removal.

The missing ingredient formissing gallbladders

And that brings us back to thequestion: "'What should I do if mygallbladder's already gone?"

First, you'll need a bottle of"bile salts" (basicallS bile in tabletor capsule form). After any mealcontaining more than a tiny bit offat or oil, take one to three tabletsor capsules.

Some physicians think thattrying to reproduce a morenormal bile flow with bile salts istoo much trouble and advisetaking large extra quantities of allthe fat-soluble nutrients dailyinstead. But even those whochoose this option need some bileto achieve optimal fat-solublenutrient assimilation, so Icontinue to recommend copyingnature by taking bile salts if yourown gallbladder is gone. You'llnever be able to exactly match theamount of bile you take to the oilor fat you eat the way yourgallbladder did automatically, buttaking bile salts will go a longway in helping the process along,and it's much better for yourhealth than not taking them at all.

FortunatelS there are very fewpotential adverse effects of takingreplacement bile salts. Too much,and bowel movements becomeabnormally dark and sometimesloose. Conversely, too little, andbowel movements are very light incolor-nowhere close to a"normal" medium to dark brown.

Bile salt replacements areavailable in natural food stores,compounding pharmacies, and atthe Tahoma Clinic Dispensary (see"Resourcesr" page 8). I recommend

and save yourself $29,000

4 Nutrition & Healing ltctobr 2001 www.wri g htnewsletter.com

The important safety notemainstream DHEA "news" is leaving out

If you've been reading Nutrition& Healing for a while, it's likely oldnews to you that DHEA helpsmaintain normal immune systemfunction, lowers the risk of manycancers) and may even promotelongevity. But apparently it 's stil l"new news" in mainstream medicine.

At the 2004 meeting of theAmerican Society of Pharmacologyand Experimental Therapeut ics,researchers presented evidenceshowing that DHEA supplementa-tion is superior to a placebo atimproving several importantparameters of "T-cell" function.Since T-cells are one of the majorclasses of immune system regula-tory cells, improving their functionimproves the function of the entireimmune system.

DHEA is a hormone secreted bythe adrenal glands. Levels of thishormone are low during childhood,start to rise at pubertS and are saidto reach a peak in both sexesbetween the late 20s and early 30s.By age 40, most people have DHEAlevels below the physiologic range:I 'm always pleasant ly surpr isedwhen testing shows a healthyDHEA level in anyone 45 or older.I rarely see normal DHEA tests inpeople 55 or older. So I oftenrecommend that people in this agegroup take smal l amounts insupplement form to boost theirlevels back up to a healthy range.

At some point, most of us have

fallen into the "if some is good, moremust be better" trap. Unfortunately,both mainstream researchers and afew natural medicine physicians arestill using or recommending toomuch DHEA without appropriatefollow-up testing, which shouldalways include checking DHE!, andtwo of its metabolites-etiocholan-olone and androsterone.

"ELten with thesecautions, DHEA

remains one of the mostualuable supplements y ou

can take as you Age."

One well-known university-based research project studied theeffects of DHEA on women withthe autoimmune disease lupus.lfhen volunteers took 200 milligramsof DHEA daily, the researchersfound significant beneficial effects.But they never tested foretiocholanolone and androsterone.

Twenty-two years of prescribingand testing for DHEA and itsmetabolites have shown me that thebest, safest DHEA dose is 10 to 15milligrams for women, and approx-imately 50 milligrams for men.Those who use more very oftenhave normal DHEA levels butabnormally high levels of eitheretiocholanolone, androsterone, orboth-abnormally high even for

people in their 20s and 30s. Anduntil research proves that it 's safeto have higher-than-usual levels ofthese or any other hormones, Idefinitely recommend against it.

If you're taking DHEA andusing more than the amountsmentioned above, I'd suggest youeither reduce the quantity or contacta lab to have not only your DHEAbut also your etiocholanolone andandrosterone checked. Even thoughthe lab won't be able to give youadvice, it will be able to tell you thenormalranges for DHEA and itsmetabolites and whether yournumbers fall within those normalranges. Contact Meridian ValleyLab (see "Resources," page 8) oryour own local lab about havingthis done. (I am the MedicalDirector at Mericlian Valley Labs.)In \Tashingtorl state and manyother states, citizens are free toorder their own lab tests withoutan order from a physician-or anote from their mothers.

But even with these cautions,DHEA remains one of the mostvaluable supplements you can takeas you age. If you're over 40, I'dstrongly suggest you consider it.Researchers continue to confirm the"old news" about DHEA: Takingsmall quantities to restore morenormal levels improves immuncfunction, lowers the risk of manycancers, and may even increaselongevity. JVW

the formulas Cholacol, manufacturedby Standard Process Laborator ies,and Bi le Salt Factors, by JarrowLaborator ies. ( I 'm not associatedwith ei ther of these companies.)

For fr.rrther guidance about bilesalt replacement, check with a

www.wri g htnewsletter.com

physician ski l led and knowledge-able in nutritional and naturalmedicine.

The bottom line is, you shoulddo everything you can to keep yourgallbladder. If you're havinggallbladder attacks, find out what

you're allergic to, and deal with it.And if your gallbladder is alreadygone, follow nature's lead andreplace the bi le and nurr ients yourbody needs. JVWCitations available upon request and on the Nutrition &Healing website: www. wrightnewsletter.com

Nutrition & Healinp 0clober 2004 5

Dr Jonathan l'. lfright !

Nutnrtron & HmrrucEdlton qertvsadespcddbt

JmdEn V. WrlSht, M.D. Dawn Heldelberg

Publl:hon Edltorlal Ar3od.tcl

J. C. Thompson Mcryl Raeman

Asodetc Publl:hm Copt EdltonKlmbcrly Putnam Krn Danz

Mueglng Edlton DcrlgnenAmanda L Ross Ramsry B.lsueilo

@ Copyright 2004 Agora Health, LLC., 8 l9 N. CharlesSr, Baltlmore, MD 21201, Reproduction in whole or partis prohlbited wlthout wrltten permission of the publisher.Dr. Jonathan V. Wright's Nutntion & Heoling is publishedmonthly by Agon Health, L.LC., 819 N. Charles St,Baltimore, MD 21201. Subscription rates are $74 per year($4.92 an issue). POSTMASTER: Send address changes toDr, Jonathan V, Wright's Nutntjon & Heoling, 8l9 N.Charles St, Balt imore, MD 21201.

subscription, please call3683 (9 a.m.-6 p.m. EDT

1273 or send an e-mail toSend cancellatlons to P.O.

Box 206, Baltimore, MD 21203.Our misslon:Nutntjon & Heoling ls dedicated to helping you keep

yourself and your family healthy by the safest and mosteffectlve means posslble. Every month, you'll get informa-tion about dlet vltamlns, mlnerals, herbs, naturalhormones, natural energies, and other subsances andtechnlques to prevent and heal illness, whlle prolonglngyour healthy life span.

A graduate of Harvard Unlverslty and the Unlverslty ofMichigan Medical School ( 1969), Dr. Jonathan V. Wrighthas been practicing natural and nutridonal medicine atthe Tahoma Clinlc ln Keng Washlngon, slnce 1973.Based on enormous volumcs of llbnry and clinicalresearch, along with tens of thousands of clinical consul-tations, he ls o<ceptionally wcllaudlfled to bring you aunlque blending of the most uptodato Information and thebest and sdll most efiectlvc naoral theraples developed bypreceding generadons.

Nuuition & Heo0ng cannot lmprovr on drese hmous words:'Wc hold thcsc truths to Dc scf-cvidcng tlrot oll men ore

creoted equol, tlnot|y'r,ey orc endowed by their creotor withcenoln unollenoble rlgfis, iJl.ot onong these ore life, libetty,ond the punuft of hopplness."

The Inallcnabla rlght to life must include the right to carefor one's own llfe. The Inalienable rlght to liberty mustinclude the rlght to choose whatever means we wish tocare for ourselves. In addition to publishing the best ofinformatlon about natural health care, Nutrition & Heolingurges its readcrs to rcmembcr thelr Inallenable rlthe tolife, llberty, and freedom ofcholce ln health care. Thlsinformatlon ls publlshed to help in the effon to exercisethese Inallenable rlgha, and to warn of ever-presentattempts of both government and prlvate organizations tor€strlct them.

All materlal in this publlcation ls provided for informationonly and may not be construed as medical advice orinstrucdon. No action should be taken based solely on thecontents of thls publication; instead, readers should consultapproprlate health professlonals on any matter relating tothelr heakh and well-belng. The informatlon and oplnionsprovldcd In tlrls publlcatlon are belleved to be accurate andsound, barcd on thc best ludgment available to the authors,but ruaderc who hll o consult wlth appropriate healthauthorltlcs assumc the rlsk of any Iniurles. The publisher isnot responslble for. Gnons or omlrslons.

l'lovtng! lrllrcd rn lrrucl Please let us knowwlthln 60 days of movlng or lf you have not recelvedan lssue. (lntcrnatlonal subscrlbors, please notify uswlthln 90 days) Aftcr thls tlm€ pcrlod, mlssed lssuescan be purchased for US$6.50 each. Postage costsmay apply to Internatlonal r€quests,

reader services at

!r'

gallbhdder(continuedfrom page 1)

subsides. It's a "perfect" food allergy avoidance strategy, andworks nearly every time. UnfortunatelS the doctors who orderthis procedure every day still don't realize why the strategyworks. But back to Dr. Breneman...

Back in 1968,he asked 59 individuals suffering from recurrentattacks of gallbladder pain to go onto an elimination diet todetermine their food allergies.2 Six of these individuals hadalready had their gallbladders out, but were still having attacksof gallbladder pain, a situation termed "post-cholecystectomysyndrome," or, as I like to call it, "my gallbladder's gone, but I'mstill hurting anyway." Dr. Breneman reported that all 59 people(L00 percent!) were completely free of gallbladder attacks whenthey avoided their individual food (and other) allergies. And all69 had their symptoms return when they ate the foods they wereallergic to once more.

The primary offending foods were eggs (92.8 percent), pork(63.8 percent), onions (52.2 percent), chicken and turkey (34.8percent), milk (24.5 percent), coffee (27.7 percent), and oranges(18.8 percent). Corn, beans, nuts, apples, tomatoes, peas,cabbage, spices, peanuts, fish, and rye accounted for between14.5 percent and L percent of gallbladder attacks. In addition tofoods, L4 of the 69 study participants-just over 20 percent-had gallbladder attacks caused by medications.

Food, medication, and other allergies vary from person to person,and the same allergen can cause different symptoms in differentpeople, so it's best to work with a physician skilled and knowled-geable in nutritional and natural medicine to determine whatyour allergies might be. In addition to the American College forAdvancement in Medicine noted on page 8, you might want tocontact the American Academy of Environmental Medicine(3L6-684-5500, www.aaem.com), for help in determining whichfoods or medications may be triggering your gallbladder attacks.

Gallbladder removal could send your healthon a downward spiral

This approach is so simple, and yet no medical school to thisday teaches how to prevent gallbladder attacks by avoiding yourfood allergies and (in some cases) other allergies. Instead, theycontinue to recommend unnecessary gallstone removal surgery.But the truth is, gallstones don't even cause 99.9 percent ofgallbladder "attacks": allergies do. Avoid allergies, stop "attacks"of pain, and keep your gallbladder! That's it-that's all there isto it. And believe me, it's worth it. Because without your gall-bladder, your absorption of vitamins A, D, E, K, and essentialfatry acids is very likely to be impaired.

Let me give you a specific example of what can happen if your

body isn't absorbing enough of these essential nutrients. Severalyears ago, one Nutrition & Healing reader contacted me with aquestion about ̂ very specific problem she was having. Everytime she drove the Los Angeles freeway system, she experiencedrecurrent breakdown of the tissues covering the cornea of her

2 Nutrition & Healing ltcrtoDer2ltlti www.wri g htnewsl etter.com