True or False: The liver produces bile.

True or False: The liver produces bile.

• A. False
• B. Not sure
• C. Depends on meal
• D. True

Answer: (D)

Bile production is a continuous function of the liver. Liver cells (hepatocytes) manufacture bile all the time and drain it into bile ducts. The bile is then stored in the gallbladder and, when you eat a fatty meal, hormones trigger its release into the small intestine to help digest fats. So the statement is true: the liver does produce bile, with release into the gut increasing after meals. Options suggesting it depends on the meal or that it isn’t produced are not accurate, since production occurs continuously even though its release is meal-stimulated.

Bile production is a continuous function of the liver. Liver cells (hepatocytes) manufacture bile all the time and drain it into bile ducts. The bile is then stored in the gallbladder and, when you eat a fatty meal, hormones trigger its release into the small intestine to help digest fats. So the statement is true: the liver does produce bile, with release into the gut increasing after meals. Options suggesting it depends on the meal or that it isn’t produced are not accurate, since production occurs continuously even though its release is meal-stimulated.