Hiel de toro

The gall of bull It is a bitter, alkaline liquid, brownish brown or greenish yellow. In essence, it is bile the bull, which is synthesized in the liver, stored in the gall bladder and discharged into the duodenum, the first part of the small intestine, through the bile duct.

Due to its emulsifying and digestive properties it is used as an ingredient in various pharmaceutical preparations for human and animal use. It is marketed in the form of bile extract supplements. Bile is essential for the proper metabolism of lipid-rich foods, such as dairy products, oils and meat.

Bile gall contains bile acids and bile salts, body salts, minerals and, often, cholesterol. Bull bile promotes the production of bile in the human liver and is indicated as a supplement for the treatment of gallstones, inflammation of the liver and chronic constipation.

It has emollient properties and is also recommended to treat alopecia associated with hormonal changes or stress. Mixed with alcohol, it is used in graphic arts, for paper veining, engraving, lithography and watercolor painting.

Composition

The chemical composition of bull gall resembles that produced by the human body. That is why it is used to increase the production of bile in the human liver and, therefore, achieve a faster degradation of food and absorption of nutrients.

It contains mainly water, cholesterol and bile salts (bile acids). Among the main bile acids are: cholic acid, deoxycholic acid, glycolic acid and taurocholic acid.

Bile also contains bilirubin (a product of the breakdown of red blood cells), sodium and potassium salts and other metals such as copper.

Taurine is an important constituent of bile, it can be found in the large intestine and represents up to 0.1% of the total human body weight. Bile does not contain digestive enzymes.

Mechanism of action

When eating foods containing fats the gallbladder is stimulated to release bile. When it passes into the small intestine, or when taken as a supplement, bile is mixed with food and acts under a surfactant or surfactant mechanism similar to that of a detergent.

Bile salts are amphipathic; that is, they have two extremes: one hydrophobic (the part of the molecule that derives from cholesterol) and another hydrophilic (the part of the molecule associated with the amino acid conjugate).

For this reason they perform two fundamental functions in the digestion and absorption of lipids: emulsification and transport. Bile salts tend to accumulate around the lipid droplets (triglycerides and phospholipids) at the hydrophobic end to form micelles, while the hydrophilic sides remain outward.

This mechanism prevents the lipids from being added and form larger droplets. Since the lipids are dispersed in small micelles, the pancreatic lipase and the other digestive enzymes of the fats have a greater contact surface, which allows them to act more easily.

Bile gall helps to produce more bile to digest and process fats. People who have undergone gallbladder removal can use bull bile to supplement their bile production with meals, as they do not have a storage organ for their own bile.

Properties for health

The gall of bull serves as a dietary supplement, either for healthy individuals or for those who suffer a deficiency in digestive function.

Disorders of the liver, gallbladder, or small intestine can affect the amount of naturally available bile that is needed to process the fat in the diet. In these cases, supplements of bile of calf or bull can supply bile acids or bile salts to help digest food.

The liver of a healthy adult produces between 400 and 800 milliliters of bile daily. This amount is considered sufficient in an individual in good health.

Therefore, probably a healthy person does not require ingesting it. Rather the taking of unnecessary supplements can pose a health risk. In this way the organism is exposed to harmful contaminants or undisclosed ingredients.

Main effects

- Bile is essential for the emulsification, digestion and absorption of fats and the elimination of waste products.

- Without the action of bile salts there would be no lipid digestion and most of the ingested lipids would pass directly to the faeces. By improving the digestion of fats, also increases the ability to absorb fat-soluble vitamins such as A, D, E and K.

- Bile is also a way of eliminating waste substances. Bilirubin, formed by the degradation of hemoglobin in red blood cells, is part of the bile.

- It is a coadjuvant in the treatment of diseases of the small intestine, such as Crohn's disease.

- Bile neutralizes excess acid. The pH of the bile is alkaline (7.50 - 8.05), which reduces the acidity of the content that comes from the stomach.

- The bactericidal action of bile eliminates the bacteria that have survived the passage through the stomach.

- Helps the digestive processes in aging. With age, the secretion of bile can also be affected.

- Increases the body's metabolic rate; that is, it causes more calories to be burned and is a coadjuvant in the control of cholesterol.

- Causes a decrease in gallstones.

- Helps to treat many serious liver diseases, such as cirrhosis and hepatitis.

Side effects

- Nausea, stomach pain and laxative effects may occur.

- In general, the consumption of supplements of bile of calf containing bile acids or bile salts does not represent a danger to health, although its intake may be unnecessary if the digestive health is good. These supplements are considered safe according to the US Food and Drug Administration. UU

How to take it?

It comes in drops or pills. It is ingested with meals, either before or immediately after.

It often occurs in combination with digestive enzymes such as lipase, protease and amylase.

A specific dosage is not recommended, but follow the recommendations indicated on the label of each individual product. In addition, for the strengthening of the hair follicles it is also presented in shampoos.

References

1. Annigan J. (2017). Beef Bile Supplement. Retrieved on April 23, 2018, at livestrong.com
2. Bile (2018). Retrieved on April 22, 2018, in Wikipedia
3. Helmenstine A.M. (2017) Does the Taurus in Red Bull Really Come from Bull Semen? Retrieved on April 23, 2018, at livestrong.com
4. Hofmann A.F., Rods A. Physicochemical properties of bile acids and their relationship to biological properties: an overview of the problem. Journal of Lipid Research. 1984; 25, 1477-1489
5. Ox gall (2018). Retrieved on April 22, 2018, in Wikipedia.
6. Ox bile (s.f.). Retrieved on April 23, 2018, at nationalnutrition.ca.
7. Ox bile (s.f.) Retrieved on April 22, 2018, on biofac.dk