Nezam El-Tayebat Fact CheckA scientific assessment of the “نظام الطيبات” nutrition system
Choose country

Mostly false Certainty of evidence: moderate provisional C-ORG-07

Gallstones cause no symptoms and no harm, have nothing to do with pain after eating, and the gallbladder should not be removed.

Safety note: Severe or persistent upper abdominal pain, fever, jaundice (yellow eyes/skin) or vomiting in someone with gallstones needs urgent medical assessment (possible cholecystitis, cholangitis or pancreatitis).
Conclusion: Most gallstones are silent, but the claim that they never cause symptoms is wrong.
  1. Original statement
  2. Scientific assessment
  3. In plain language
  4. Studies on this claim
  5. Regional context
  6. What applies in my country?
  7. References

Original statement

حصوات المراره جانبيه على حضرتك هي حصلت وخلاص حصوات بس وانتهت القصه على كده مالهاش اعراض مالهاش اثار جانبيه عليك مالهاش مالهاش وجع مزمن يروح لا مالهاش مالهاش وجع علاقه بالوجع اللي بيجيلك في الحته دي وبعد الاكل

verbatim according to source. Translation by the project; the Arabic wording is authoritative.

Translation

Gallstones cause no symptoms and no harm, have nothing to do with pain after eating, and the gallbladder should not be removed.

Origin

Source status
Video transcript (own words)
Attribution
Elawady (machine transcript)
Video
Dr Diaa Al Awady د ضياء العوضي is live! (Open source)
Published
27 August 2025
Timestamp
1:14:08 (location in the original video’s automatic YouTube caption track; confirms where the words occur, not who speaks)
Attribution uncertainty
Archive transcript (YouTube CC or AI-generated); wording may contain transcription errors; no timestamps available.
Claimed mechanism

Symptoms come from wrong food and bowel obstruction, not stones.

Claimed health effect

No harm from gallstones.

Population concerned

People with gallstones

Geographic restriction by Elawady

none found

Diverging source versions

Source status
Video transcript (own words)
Attribution
Elawady (machine transcript)
Video
Dr Diaa Al Awady د ضياء العوضي is live!عرق النسا (Open source)
Published
28 December 2025
Timestamp
not available (transcript has no timings)
Attribution uncertainty
Archive transcript (YouTube CC or AI-generated); wording may contain transcription errors; no timestamps available.

Scientific assessment

Mostly false – Essential parts of the statement are not supported by the evidence or are strongly exaggerated.

Certainty of evidence: moderate – Further research may still affect the assessment.

1. What was claimed?

Gallstones are harmless and cause no symptoms.

2. What is demonstrably correct?

Partly correct: about 80% of gallstones remain asymptomatic (C-GALL background, I-ORG-09), and asymptomatic stones are generally not operated; for uncomplicated symptomatic stones, observation was not worse on general pain scores at 18 months (I-ORG-09).

3. What is wrong or exaggerated?

Wrong as a general statement: in C-GALL (I-ORG-09), 25 of 217 patients (11.5%) under observation had complications before surgery (mainly cholecystitis and biliary colic, also pancreatitis, bile-duct stones and jaundice), 29.5% needed surgery within 24 months, and gallstone-specific quality of life was better after cholecystectomy (difference 9.0).

4. What remains unclear?

Long-term outcomes of conservative management.

5. Which studies support it?

I-ORG-09 (partial).

6. Which studies contradict it?

I-ORG-09.

7. What applies to Germany and Europe?

Most cited cohorts are Scandinavian (Denmark, Sweden) and directly European; RCTs from the UK and Finland are directly transferable. Guidelines in Europe also emphasize defined indications (not verified here in detail).

8. What is known about Egypt?

No Egypt-specific data on rates or outcomes of tonsillectomy, cholecystectomy, hysterectomy, splenectomy or thyroid surgery were identified in this review.

9. What practical conclusion is appropriate?

Silent stones usually need no surgery; recurrent biliary pain or complications usually do.

Assessment details

Rationale for certainty of evidence

Most gallstones are indeed silent, but symptomatic gallstone disease and its complications are well documented; RCT shows benefit of surgery on gallstone-specific outcomes.

Source quality

Transcript statement; contradicts standard medical knowledge for symptomatic disease.

Regional transferability

Applicable.

Individual exceptions

About 80% of gallstones remain asymptomatic and generally do not need surgery.

Regional scope of the claim
general (biological/medical)
Last reviewed
25 October 2026 provisional

In plain language

Elawady said gallstones cause no symptoms and have nothing to do with pain after meals. It is true that most gallstones never cause problems and are usually left alone. But some gallstones do cause pain attacks and complications. In a UK trial, about 3 in 10 people who tried to avoid surgery needed it within two years, and gallstone-related quality of life was better after surgery.

Studies on this claim

Studies supporting the claim (0)

No studies in this group.

Studies contradicting or limiting the claim (1)

  • UK trial: remove the gallbladder or wait?

    Innes K et al.. Health Technol Assess 2024 · PMID 38943314 · DOI 10.3310/MNBY3104
    Randomised controlled trialindependent cross-checkfull text checked★ key study

    Over 18 months general pain scores were similar, but about 30% of the 'wait' group needed surgery, 11.5% had gallstone complications before surgery, and gallstone-specific quality of life was better after surgery.

    Gallstones cause no symptoms and no harm, have nothing to do with pain after eating, and the gallbladder should not be removed.

    Does the study support the specific claim? Partly · Methodological quality: high · Certainty of evidence: see overall assessment of the claim

    Original publication · Scientific details

    Study explained simply
    What did the researchers want to find out?

    Gallstone management

    How was the study done?

    RCT

    How many people, animals or samples were studied?

    434

    What was actually found?

    Similar general QoL; better gallstone QoL with surgery

    How large was the observed effect?

    Difference 9.0 condition-specific

    What do the results mean in everyday life?

    Waiting can be an option, but gallstones do cause symptoms

    What are the study's limitations?

    Short follow-up; many crossovers; unblinded; many questionnaires missing later

    What does it say about Elawady's specific claim?

    Contradicts 'gallstones cause no symptoms'

    Do the results apply to Germany and Europe?

    European

    What can explicitly not be concluded from this study?

    Long-term outcomes

    Scientific details →

Studies with mixed or unclear results (0)

No studies in this group.

Regional context

Germany / EU

Most cited cohorts are Scandinavian (Denmark, Sweden) and directly European; RCTs from the UK and Finland are directly transferable. Guidelines in Europe also emphasize defined indications (not verified here in detail).

Egypt

No Egypt-specific data on rates or outcomes of tonsillectomy, cholecystectomy, hysterectomy, splenectomy or thyroid surgery were identified in this review.

What applies in my country?

General scientific assessment

Mostly false Most gallstones are silent, but the claim that they never cause symptoms is wrong.

This statement concerns biological or medical relationships. The scientific assessment above applies regardless of the country; country-specific food data do not change it.

References

  1. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy versus conservative management for adults with uncomplicated symptomatic gallstones: the C-GALL RCT.. Innes K et al.. Health Technol Assess 2024 · PMID 38943314 · DOI 10.3310/MNBY3104

← Back to overview