It uses its strength to spit a wad of stored bile into the small intestine after a meal, teaming up with the deconstruction gang that turns our food into fuel. Unlike the stomach or the liver or the small intestine, though, the gallbladder is a disposable worker. Take it out, and the liver and small intestine fill in for the missing organ. The gallbladder isn't that important. Roughly half a million of us will give up our gallbladders this year, mostly because of gallstones.
Gallstones happen because bile is a tricky liquid.
If the liver puts too much cholesterol into the basic mix, or not enough of the bile salts and detergents that keep cholesterol floating free, then bits of the cholesterol can solidify in the gallbladder. They begin to grow like grit in an oyster. Throwing Stones When gallstones start to move, they can get stuck in the cystic ducts that lead out of the gallbladder. The gallbladder clamps and contracts, trying to spit out the bad seed. Before the organ gives up and rests, our right sides may ache.