Eating Veggie Protein May Spare Gallbladder

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Misty L. Trepke

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Eating Vegetable Protein May Spare Gallbladder

By Reuters Health

Jul 25, 2004

 

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women who get a lot of their dietary

protein from vegetables are at reduced risk for having their

gallbladder removed, which is usually performed for gallstones and

related problems, new research suggests.

 

" In animals, vegetable protein can inhibit gallstone formation, " Dr.

Chung-Jyi Tsai, from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston,

and colleagues note. However, few studies have looked at this

association in humans.

 

As reported in the American Journal of Epidemiology, the researchers

studied data from some 121,000 women participating in the Nurses'

Health Study. Over 20 years of follow-up, 7831 women underwent

gallbladder removal, also called cholecystectomy.

 

Total protein intake and animal protein intake had no effect on the

risk of cholecystectomy. For vegetable protein, however, the risk of

cholecystectomy dropped as intake increased.

 

" These results suggest that increased consumption of vegetable

protein in the context of an energy-balanced diet can reduce the risk

of cholecystectomy in women, " the authors conclude.