Hye-young Lee “I was in constant pain and lost 8 kg”… What was it like to go to the emergency room due to ‘this disease’?

Actress Lee Hye-young shared her recent status and revealed that she had been feeling sick all along.

Recently, a video titled ‘Tak Jae-hoon, Tak Jae-hoon, Tak Jae-hoon, Shin Gyu-jin, and Kim Ye-won’s Tak’s Patch EP.28’ was posted on Tak Jae-hoon’s YouTube channel ‘Tak’s Patch’. When Tak Jae-hoon asked how she had been doing for over a year, Lee Hye-young said, “I kept feeling sick. Something kept hurting somewhere, so I couldn’t stand it, so I went to the emergency room.”

The thing that made Lee Hye-young sick was none other than gallstones. He said, “Actually, I had gallstones, but I lost 7 to 8 kg. It felt right because I was wearing old clothes. I changed my thinking and started thinking good thoughts, so I got a lot better. Now that I’ve healed, I come out to laugh.”

Gallstones occur more often in women… Influence of hormones, cholesterol, etc.

Gallstones are a common disease that affects approximately 1 in 10 adults. It is characterized by the hardening of bile produced in the liver and the formation of stones in the gallbladder or bile ducts. The gallbladder is a small sac located below the liver that stores bile produced in the liver and sends it to the duodenum when necessary to help digest fat.

The amount of bile produced is approximately 500 to 1,200 ml (average 800 ml) per day. However, when components such as cholesterol, bile salts, and bilirubin in bile accumulate excessively, they harden into stones.

Gallstones are divided into gallbladder gallstones and biliary gallstones depending on where they are formed, and cholesterol gallstones and pigment gallstones depending on their chemical composition. In particular, cholesterol gallstones are mainly formed in the gallbladder, and are often summarized as ‘4F’ due to their high occurrence frequency in women, people with childbirth, obese people, and those in their 40s or older. On the other hand, pigmented gallstones mainly contain bilirubin and are caused by infection and poor hygiene.

In particular, gallstones occur more often in women. The reason is due to several factors. First, this is because estrogen increases cholesterol concentration in bile. Estrogen levels also increase in situations such as pregnancy or contraceptive use, which increases the cholesterol saturation of bile and increases the possibility of stone formation. Second, progesterone reduces the motility of the gallbladder, which causes bile to stay in the gallbladder for a long time and promotes the formation of gallstones.

When treating gallstones, restricting your diet can lead to weight loss… As gallstones become more severe, you may lose weight.

Hyeyoung Lee also said that she lost a lot of weight due to gallstones. During the treatment of gallstones, diet is often restricted or a low-fat diet is recommended, and such dietary restrictions can lead to weight loss. In most cases, it is rare to lose a lot of weight directly due to cholelithiasis. If cholelithiasis worsens and leads to cholecystitis or cholangitis, indigestion and pain can lead to weight loss due to reduced food intake. In particular, if gallstones make it difficult to digest fatty foods, you may avoid eating fat and lose weight.

If gallstones larger than 2.5 to 3 cm are left untreated, the risk of gallbladder cancer increases. Not all gallbladder stones worsen into cancer, but they must be carefully observed. If gallstones form in the biliary tract (gall duct), the pain is severe, unlike gallstones in the gallbladder which may be asymptomatic. It should be observed through abdominal ultrasound once a year. In the case of asymptomatic gallstones, surgical treatment is not necessary, but since it varies from person to person, it is best to consult with your doctor.

To prevent gallstones, it is recommended to eat regularly and reduce the intake of saturated fat and trans fat. Consuming foods rich in dietary fiber lowers cholesterol levels in bile and helps prevent gallstones. Treatment varies depending on the location and symptoms of gallstones, and methods to remove gallstones include open surgery, medication, and endoscopic removal.