Diet high in vegetable protein reduces risk of gall bladder surgery

Vegetarian Journal, March-April, 2005 by Reed Mangels

This year, more than 500,000 Americans will have gallstones that lead to surgery to remove their gall bladders. Cholecystectomy, the surgical removal of the gall bladder, is the most commonly performed surgical procedure in the United States. Costs associated with gall bladder disease account for more than $6.5 billion annually. Dietary choices can reduce the risk of surgery to remove the gall bladder. A large study of more than 80,000 women found that women with a high intake of vegetable protein had a lower risk of having their gall bladders removed than did women eating very little vegetable protein. These results suggest that the use of a diet with protein mainly (or solely) derived from plants could reduce the number of cholecystectomies and reduce health care costs.

Tsai C-J, Leitzmann MF, Willett WC, Giovannucci EL. 2004. Dietary protein and the risk of cholecystectomy in a cohort of US women. Am J Epidemiol 160:11-18.