On bile
- karenthandiwe
- Mar 20, 2022
- 2 min read
On a normal day, bile is a regular thing. It contains cholesterol, bile salts and bilirubin (secreted to leave the body through faeces) which is a product of the red blood cells – these key components help the liver to release bile when appropriate and participate in the healthy breakdown of nutrients. The intention is to be able to successfully remove any unnecessary waste from the bodies digestion through the secretion of this very fluid.
Despite having regarded bile as a very normal and regular occurrence, it’s function is incredibly unique in that it moves through the body faster than the pressure of vascular perfusion (Boyer, 2014) when the process of bile production was studied on the livers of rats, which isn’t an idea that is completely isolated when bile production occurs for humans.
-Other facts about bile:
Bile can also contain water, electrolyte salts such as potassium and sodium, and also metals like copper.
Bile is most likely to be stored in the body between crucial meals and it is easily activated by signals coming from the breaking down of fatty foods into the liver and bloodstream. If there is damage to this process of breaking down nutrients then it can cause delays in the bile being distributed to the pancreas or alternatively the duodenum which is the first part of the small intestine.
-Common problems associated with bile:
Trapping of the bile ducts are very commonly associated with a serious symptom of Hepatitis C where there is significant damage to the digestive system and which can result in gallbladder inflammation and thus, further illness and difficulties with food consumption.
Another commonly associated problem with bile production is issues with bile reflux whereby bile gets trapped between the stomach and oesophagus during the process of digestion and it is most commonly experienced with problems with acid reflux’s.
The general worsening of existing medical conditions and states if the body experiences problems in encouraging proper digestion when the organs are exposed to highly soluble or insoluble substances. A further example where we may be able to see this link comes from observing our body’s responses to low stomach acid whereby the lack of production of hydrochloric acid leading to acid refluxes and heartburn can be argued to have a direct link with bile’s inability to be adequately directed through the small intestine.
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