Why You Should Take Your Vitamins

I take 2 multivitamins a day-I use the bariatric advantage chewable kind. I take 1000mcg of B-12 sublingual every day. I post the amount since a lot of sublingual B-12 is only 500mcg so then you would need 2 a day. You need at least 1200mg of calcium citrate each day. My multi-vitamin has some in it so I take 2-500mg calciums to get what I need. You have to take more than the non WLS person since the main absorbtion area in the duodenum has been bypassed. You can not get any benefit from your B-12 unless it is sublingual since the area of your intestine where it can be absorbed has been bypassed. By putting it under your tongue-you absorb thru your salivery glands to get the benefit. You can only absorb 500mg of calcium at a time-the rest would pass on-so that is why you have to space them out. You just cannot get enough nutrition to get these vitamins naturally since then amount we eat just do not have enough quantity. I though since I was using so many dairy products I was getting enough calcium-wrong! We are just different physically now.

Sharra I take one 1200mcg of B-12 sublingual everyday and only one multi-vitamin from Walmart (their cheap brand). Maybe I will up my multi to twice a day and add some calcium to my daily routine. What brand of calcium do you take? And is it ok to take any kind of multi or is there one brand better than the other? I'd really like to hear everyones vitamin routines so I can get some input and ideas here as to what I should be taking and what brands work better then others and how much of everything.

We were told to get a chewable multi vitamin since we need to get the breakdown started at the beginning. If you don't, your vitamin may not get broke down enough to get as much absorbed as possible. I use the citracal chews for my calcium. I found the chewable to be too chalky for my taste and like I said before-these taste like candy. Yummmm. I never forget to get my calcium in....

In the beginning I did take a chewable multi vitamin but after my pouch began to heal I switched over to swallowing a whole pill. Hmmm.... now I'm rethinking this. I never considered that maybe by swallowing my pill I may not be absorbing as much because it's not getting broken down. Maybe I'll switch to chewables again. And I'll have to give the citracal chews a try. By the way, correction on my B12.... it's 2500mcg's a day. It disolves under my tongue. I wish I could find a multi that disolved this easy...lol!

This is such an important topic and it never hurts to be reminded of the need for keeping up with your supplements. I saw the same surgeon that Sharra did so I am on the same track as her. But I get my multi vitamins at Wal-Mart. I get the chewable Centrums. They are not bad, orange flavor. But everyone's taste is so different now. I too take the Citracal Calcium. I like the chocolate and carmel flavors. Our doctor couldn't stress enough about the importance of taking the supplements on a daily basis and that we understood that this is a lifetime commitment. Susan, thank you again for reminding of us of this.

I will def. pass this on to one of my friends who had the gastric bypass. Hopefully she will read this and start taking her vitamins!!! Thanks.

Thanks for the reminder...taking my MVI NOW!