 Probably the single most common condition I see in my patients in my private practice is issues with the gallbladder and many of these people have upper GI issues like acid reflux and indigestion. Now in this video I thought I would share not only the key signs that your gallbladder is in danger but how we really clinically approach this from the profession of traditional Chinese medicine because this is something that conventional medicine has zero to offer besides surgically removing your gallbladder. Hey guys I'm Dr. Alex Hein, doctor of acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine and author of the health book Master the Day. So before we jump into this video I've put together two very important links that can help. The first is for a free guide which is for daily rituals that can potentially help you add years to your life with traditional Chinese medicine right below the video and the second is if you'd like to become a patient of mine locally in Los Angeles or virtually via telemedicine you can contact my private practice and clinic and learn more again below the video. Now the first sign that your gallbladder is having an issue is sourness in your mouth particularly after meals. So what you're experiencing basically is your stomach acid but from the profession that I'm in traditional Chinese medicine there are many different kinds of indigestion and acid reflux. There's what we call the deficiency type which is typically an issue with lower stomach acid and not enough pancreatic enzymes and there's the excess stomach acid which is really the higher stomach acid sort of picture but particularly when you're experiencing sourness there's gallbladder involvement from our point of view. Now the second sign along with that is obviously indigestion and acid reflux. For many many many people that I see one of the key signs that they have a gallbladder issue and it's not just an enzyme issue or a SIBO issue right just bloating is that they have consistent and persistent acid reflux and digestion. So if you notice more than a few times a week you're needing to take tons and over-the-counter things for your stomach not feeling comfortable with meals. That is a key sign that there may be gallbladder involvement. The third key sign is distention in the right upper quadrant. Now one thing I specialize in in my private practice is abdominal palpation for internal medicine conditions. Now for every single patient that walks through my door I do a specialized kind of abdominal diagnosis for all kinds of internal medicine disorders but for the gallbladder and upper GI disorders these findings are some of the most obvious. There is a zone subcostally underneath the rib side on the right side that you often can feel distention and pressure. So not only can the physician feel that via palpation but you will subjectively notice that a lot a sensation of pressure or just sensation we call it distention right it feels like something is pushing up against the rib cage or against the muscles and that is often what's going on with the inflammation in the gallbladder. That distention can change all the way from sensation to acute stabbing pain that is radiating with acute nausea and vomiting right when someone's having a gallbladder attack. So distention I would say is one key sign as well. The fourth key sign if it's more severe is periodic not only distention but spasmodic pain. So if you're noticing a pain or an ache and the right upper quadrant there underneath the rib side or right sort of you know a few inches below the nipple line on the rib area that is very often a sign particularly if it's after meals that your gallbladder is having a major issue. The fifth sign is nausea and vomiting right so people who are having gallbladder attacks often will experience acute nausea and acute vomiting often associated with that pain as well. So nausea is a key warning sign in my profession besides just experiencing chronic indigestion. When you're getting acid reflux and burning combined with nausea there's more often a gallbladder and in my profession can be also a liver issue. The sixth sign is chronic gas. For a lot of people who have changes in their levels of stomach acid, pancreatic enzymes or bile flow they will experience chronic gas that is sometimes very foul smelling and sometimes even that leads us to sign 7 which is diarrhea. Now I've had patients where they'll say they have chronic diarrhea that lasts for months and months and months but what is distinct about it is that it has a very very foul smell and there is often discoloration in the stool as well. So these seven signs are very key to know and recognize as issues with your gallbladder. It can also be the liver, it can be the stomach, it can be the intestines, lots of different GI issues. But from my profession, traditional Chinese medicine, I want to leave this with a very very important note. The gallbladder is part of the Xiaoyang organ network which is the gallbladder and the triple warmer. The triple warmer encompasses many things but one of the other encompasses is the lymph and the gallbladder is obviously the gallbladder. But gallbladder, triple warmer and the liver are often Xiaoyang organs. Now we utilize certain herbal formulas to treat this issue and in my experience there is no competition. There is nothing conventional medicine has to offer for this besides recommending you remove your gallbladder which is an absurd diagnosis and it is done to such a ridiculous degree I am shocked it is not malpractice more often. There are a few formulas that can readily prevent this and that is not me saying this as an armchair philosopher it's because I have a private medical practice where I've treated people every single year who are basically threatening to have their gallbladder removed from their specialist. They come to see me and in within three to six months they're fine. But don't take my word for it let's jump into literature. There's an interesting paper here that is called the effects of chai hu bu plurum which is one of our most famous herbs here. Now there is an interesting passage here that I want to highlight that chai hu is used to treat diseases related to the digestive system for example hepatitis liver cirrhosis colisistitis which is what we're talking about here pancreatitis gynecological diseases and hyperlipidemia. So one famous formula Xiao chai utang minor bu plurum decoction is one of the most commonly used for well over 2,000 years documented to treat these issues. Not only liver issues but colisistitis and issues with the gallbladder sluggish bio flow acid reflux indigestion that is more commonly one of probably the top five formulas I end up using and one of the main abdominal patterns I see clinically that can reverse this pattern depending on how severe it is. So there's real evidence for that in this literature that is clinically what I use every single days primarily herbal medicine is needed to treat this the internal medicine aspect. But those are the seven signs in my experience TCM is second to none for treating this. There's nothing conventional medicine has to offer typically. So consider that if you're having these signs maybe see someone locally or if you want to see me we have the info for my practice below this video. Alright guys that's what I have for you today. Check out those links and I'll see you soon.