Health Fitness

Could my knee pain be caused by my gallbladder?

Knee pain, problems and injuries make up a significant amount of the cases we see in the clinic these days. Arthroscopes and knee replacements are some of the most common surgeries performed today. However, in many ways, our current lifestyle is less active and easier on our knees than ever before, so why the high number of knee problems?

No doubt there are many contributing factors, but one that we have found to be important in a large percentage of the cases we see in the clinic is a hidden underlying reason…a connection between gallbladder function and a major muscle in the knee. called popliteus.

It sounds unlikely at first, but the gallbladder and popliteus muscle are connected by the gallbladder acupuncture meridian. This connection has been scientifically confirmed through muscle testing using Applied Kinesiology, a form of chiropractic.

When the gallbladder is under stress or not working properly, it causes the popliteus muscle to “shut down” or become neurologically inhibited. This means that the muscle is not activated correctly and only has a fraction of its normal strength.

The resulting weakness has a devastating effect on the stability of the knee joint. Popliteus is a small muscle at the back of the knee that is involved in the “screw start” mechanism of the knee. This is the small amount of rotation (only 5 degrees) that occurs when we fully straighten the knee, allowing us to “lock” the joint. When the popliteus doesn’t work properly, it really destabilizes the entire knee joint.

This muscle weakness affects both knees, but most commonly it manifests as a symptom in one knee…usually the dominant or most used knee. It can cause knee pain in all positions, but one of the most classic signs is knee pain that is worse walking down stairs than walking up stairs (or worse downhill than uphill). The pain is most often felt below the kneecap, although the responsible muscle is at the back of the knee. Another sign of this problem is that the muscle will often be very tender if you press behind the center of the knee.

So what causes the stress on the gallbladder that “turns off” the popliteus muscle?

Well, the function of the gallbladder is to store and concentrate bile, which is then expelled into the intestines to help break down the fats we have eaten. This means that if we are eating a high-fat diet, the gallbladder has to work harder to perform its function.

This is why someone’s knee can feel “up and down,” or better one day and then worse the next. People are often confused by the fact that how your knee feels doesn’t seem to be related to how active you are…in fact, it depends more on what you ate that day.

The gallbladder also has a role to play in detoxification, as all the fat-soluble toxins in the body are broken down by the liver and excreted in the bile. This means that if the body is particularly toxic, the gallbladder can come under stress again, causing the knee problem to come back.

Unfortunately, a high-fat diet and a toxic environment is a very common combination of factors in our Western society…perhaps the reason why we see more and more knee problems?

If you have a recurring knee problem, get it checked out by a chiropractor who practices Applied Kinesiology…you might find the hidden reason why it keeps coming back!

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