What Vitamins and Supplements Do you use?

OKay, so I don't have a date yet but hopefully by the end of the month I will. So, I have been doing some research on the vits and supplements we need to take. MY GOODNESS!! There is so many to choose from, how could you really know which ones are the best for the gastric bypass patient????? I've looked on Bariatric Aid that obesity help promotes, their prices are pretty reasonable but there are alot of places ex.(walmart) that offers them a few bucks cheaper. This definitly gets expensive, so my question is what do you use? Do we have to take b-12 and iron right after surgery or do you wait for lab work? what's the best calcium? multi vit? b12? iron? thank you thank you nora

Nora, I take Centrum chewables, sublingual B12, Tums (750 mg calcium per) and I don't have to take iron. I buy all of my things at Wal-Mart or Fred's. I find it is cheaper. Patricia

wow, you know i never thought about the tums for calcium. thanks so much patricia!!!

Just make sure you take them one at a time throughout the day. That much calcium (2250) at one time can give you tremendous stomach cramps. From the voice of experience.... I had gone all day and not taken my Tums, so I thought..."They are Tums, how could they hurt if I take them all at once.." I was up for a few hours, walking the floor, going back and forth between " I hope I"m not dying" to "Oh why can't I just die already!" It was not pretty. So, I take them morning, noon and night like a good girl, now. Patricia

NO DISRESPECT INTENDED, MS PATRICIA, BUT IT'S REALLY BETTER FOR YOU TO TAKE CALCIUM CITRATE SUPPLEMENTS INSTEAD OF TUMS ... OUR SYSTEMS USUALLY DO NOT NEED THE ANTACIDS & OTHER INGREDIENTS IN TUMS. SOMETIMES OVERUSING ANTACIDS CAN ENCOURAGE ULCERS OR IRRITATIONS IN A NORMAL STOMACH ... SO, BE CAREFUL WITH THEM IN A POUCH AS OUR ACID LEVELS AREN'T THE SAME AS BEFORE SURGERY. THAT MAY BE ONE REASON YOU WERE HAVING SUCH STOMACH CRAMPS ... TRY THE TWIN LABS CALCIUM CITRATE CHEWABLES FROM THE VITAMIN SHOPPE & SEE IF YOUR POUCH CAN TOLERATE THEM BETTER ... GOD BLESS YOU DAWN & NICK

YOUR SUPPLEMENTS ARE ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ISSUES YOU NEED TO TAKE CARE OF AFTER GETTING IN YOUR PROTEIN & FLUIDS, MS NORA. YES, THIS JOURNEY GETS VERY EXPENSIVE BUT BETTER TO PUT YOUR MONEY INTO YOUR PROTEINS, FLUIDS & SUPPLEMENTS THAN INTO MEDICAL BILLS, BECAUSE IF YOU DON'T GET YOUR NUTRIENTS, YOUR BODY WILL CRASH DOWN THE LINE. I HAD A HORRIBLE TIME WITH EXHAUSTION & FOUND OUT IT WAS BECSAUSE I WAS TAKING THE WRONG VITAMINS FOR A GASTRIC BYPASS PATIENT'S SPECIAL NEEDS. FLINTSTONE'S COMPLETE WERE RECOMMENDED TO US, BUT THEY ARE SIMPLY NOT THE RIGHT SUPPLEMENTS EVEN THOUGH I WAS TAKING 4 OF THEM THROUGHOUT THE DAY. I'D SUGGEST THAT YOU TRY OPTISOURCE FROM WALGREENS ... EITHER THEIR STORE OR ONLINE. THEY ARE CHEWABLE & SPECIALLY-FORMULATED FOR GB PATIENTS. YOU TAKE 4 THROUGHOUT THE DAY. THEY ARE VERY EASY ON THE POUCH. IT WILL TAKE ABOUT 3 MONTHS TO REGAIN YOUR STRENGTH & ENERGY ON A CONSISTENT BASIS JUST BECAUSE IT TAKES THIS LONG TO COMPLETELY HEAL FROM THE SURGERY ... BUT, IF YOU FIND THAT YOU NEED A BIGGER BOOST, THEN TRY SOMETHING LIKE VISTA VITAMINS (THEY HAVE THEIR OWN ONLINE STORE) WITH CHELATED MINERALS. I JUST TRIED THE OPTISOURCE FOR A MONTH & IMPROVED 50-70% ON ANY PARTICULAR DAY. I'VE JUST STARTED VISTA VITAMINS & WILL POST IN ABOUT 3 WEEKS TO LET Y'ALL KNOW IF THERE WAS ANY BIG IMPROVEMENT IN MY ENERGY OVER THE OPTISOURCE, WHICH I WAS VERY PLEASED WITH. DEFINITELY TAKE SUBLINGUAL (MELTS UNDER THE TONGUE) OR LIQUID B-12 DAILY. DON'T TAKE THE ONES YOU SWALLOW AS YOU ONLY ABSORB AROUND 5% THAT WAY. YOU CAN GET THE REXALL BRAND AT WAL*MART VERY INEXPENSIVELY. START WITH THE 500 mcg AMOUNTS & TAKE 2 - 3 A DAY --- 1 PILL EACH TIME THROUGHOUT THE DAY AFTER SURGERY. DEPENDING ON YOUR ENERGY LEVEL & OVERALL GENERAL WELL BEING, EITHER INCREASE OR DECREASE THE AMOUNT AFTER ABOUT 3 WEEKS BASED ON HOW YOU'RE FEELING. I HAVE TO TAKE MEGA DOSES OF 5,000 mcg A DAY BUT AM GETTING MY 1st LABS DONE IN A COUPLE WEEKS SO IF ALL IS WELL, I'M THINKING ABOUT DECREASING THIS AMOUNT IN INCRIMENTS OF 500 mcg UNTIL I HIT A LEVEL WHERE I FEEL A NEGATIVE EFFECT, THEN I'LL KNOW HOW MUCH I NEED NOW THAT I'M FEELING BETTER & MY HEALTH HAS IMPROVED. YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST TAKE B-12 FOR GOOD CELL PRODUCTION & HEALING, & FOR A GOOD NERVE SYSTEM + TO HELP YOUR ENERGY LEVEL. YOU WILL GET RID OF EXCESS B-12 THROUGH YOUR URINE SO YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT OVERDOSING. I TAKE BIOTIN (1500 mcg 2-3 TIMES A DAY) FOR MY HAIR, SKIN & NAILS & I'M GOING TO TAKE ZINC AS WELL. YOU WILL LOSE HAIR; NO ONE KNOWS HOW MUCH. IT'S CAUSED BY THE STRESS OF THE SURGERY & FROM THE EXTREMELY LOW LEVELS OF PROTEIN A GB PATIENT INGESTS FOR THE 1st COUPLE MONTHS AFTER SURGERY WHILE YOUR POUCH IS HEALING. BIOTIN & ZINC SOMETIMES HELPS YOU NOT LOSE AS MUCH HAIR. IT DEFITINELY HELPS YOUR NAILS & SKIN, WHICH ALSO TAKES A BEATING AS YOUR BODY WILL REFUSE TO "FEED" THEM IF IT NEEDS TO USE ALL YOUR NUTRIENTS TO HEAL YOUR BODY. CALCIUM CITRATE (NOT CARBONATE - READ THE LABELS) IS AN ABSOLUTE MUST ... PATIENTS HAVE LOST TEETH & HAVE GOTTEN BRITTLE BONES BY NOT AUGMENTING THEIR INTAKE WITH CALCIUM CITRATE SUPPLEMENTS. I'M NOW TAKING TWINLAB CALCIUM CITRATE CHEWABLES W/ MAGNESIUM & VITAMIN D FROM THE VITAMIN SHOPPE. THERE ARE STORES & YOU CAN ALSO ORDER OFF THEIR WEBSITE. SOME USE TUMS FOR THEIR CALCIUM INTAKE. IT'S NOT REALLY A GREAT IDEA TO DO SO AS YOU ARE GETTING OTHER INGREDIENTS YOUR POUCH DOES NOT NEED FROM THE ANTACID. SO, USE THE WISER CHOICE ... CALCIUM CITRATE IN A CHEWABLE MEDIUM. REMEMBER, WE WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO INGEST ENOUGH FOOD TO GET THE PROPER AMOUNT OF NUTRIENTS ... SO, TAKING SUPPLEMENTS IS A LIFE LONG RESPONSIBILITY TO MAINTAIN OUR GOOD HEALTH. ALSO, OUR DIGESTIVE TRACKS NOW OFFER A "MALABSORBTION" ISSUE IN WHICH WE ONLY ABSORB AROUND 40% OF WHAT WE EAT, SO YOU MAY HAVE TO ADJUST THE DOSES OF SOME OF YOUR SUPPLEMENTS, OTC DRUGS & PRESCRIBED DRUGS. YOU SHOULD NEVER TAKE DRUGS CONTAINING ASPIRIN, NEVER TAKE ANY NSAIDs, NEVER TAKE ANY TIME-RELEASED MEDICATIONS (NOT EVEN PRESCRIPTION DRUGS THAT ARE TIME-RELEASED) & UNLESS SPECIALLY-FORMULATED FOR GB PATIENTS, NEVER TAKE DRUGS IN CAPSULES ... WE CANNOT DIGEST THEM PROPERLY. MOST CHEWABLES WILL HAVE SUGAR IN THEM ... THEY USUALLY WILL NOT BOTHER A GB PATIENT BECAUSE ALTHOUGH THEY ARE USUALLY THE 1st ITEM ON THE INGREDIENT LIST, THEY ARE USUALLY NO MORE THAN 1 SUGAR CARB GRAM. THAT'S A GOOD REASON TO SPREAD THESE TYPES OF SUPPLEMENTS OUT OVER THE DAY ... TO GIVE YOU A LEVEL AMOUNT THROUGHOUT THE DAY & TO LIMIT YOUR SUGAR INTAKE AT ANY ONE TIME. *********** SPECIALLY-FORMULATED VITAMINS/MINERALS ... MUST TAKE SUPPLEMENTS, BUT SPECIALLY-FORMULATED ARE DIGESTED & USED BETTER/EASIER BY OUR NEW DIGESTIVE TRACKS. SUBLINGUAL or LIQUID B-12 ... MUST TAKE CALCIUM CITRATE ... MUST TAKE BIOTIN & ZIN ... GOOD TO TAKE EXTRA VITAMIN C ... GOOD TO TAKE ESPECIALLY IN FLU SEASON B COMPLETE ... GOOD TO TAKE IRON ... TAKE ONLY IF YOUR SURGEON/DOCTOR RECOMMENDS THIS - YOU CAN EASILY OVERDOSE ON THIS SO DON'T SELF-MEDICATE WITH IRON. ************ ALSO REMEMBER TO GET A MEDIC ALERT BRACELET WITH THE MEDICINE INFO I JUST NOTED (WHAT NOT TO TAKE) & ALSO NOTE ... NO BLIND NG TUBE NO GLUCOSE AFTER SURGERY, YOUR BODY IS SO USED TO ALMOST NO SUGAR CARBS THAT IF YOU ARE GIVEN AN IV WITH GLUCOSE, YOU COULD GO INTO A DIABETIC COMA DUE TO SUCH A MASSIVE INCREASE IN YOUR GLUCOSE/BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS. ALSO, IF IN EVER HOSPITALIZED, YOU MUST TELL THEM THAT YOU NEED A SPECIAL MENU WITH HGH PROTEINS & LOW/NO SUGAR ITEMS. HOPE THIS HELPS YOU ... GOD BLESS YOU DAWN & NICK

Lady D, I didn' feel disrespected, don't worry. As to the Tums, my Dr asks that we take either Tums or a prescription like Prevacid etc for 4 months after surgery. With Tums, I can kill 2 birds with one pill. I take 3 due to the malabsorbtion issue. As for the cramping, Calcium supplements have always cramped me. Tums nmakes it not cramp as bad. After my 4 months I will try some other brands, but I don't want to go on another prescirtion drug right now. Patricia

thanks Lady D, what would we do without you??? So your telling me that we will take a vit, b-12 and calcium daily. did i read you right, 3 vits a day? my goodness! thanks again to both you and patricia nora

I'M ON A 4 TIME A DAY SCHEDULE BECAUSE I HAVE TO TAKE MY HEART MEDS ON THAT SCHEDULE, SO I START OUT IN THE MORNING & TAKE MY DIFFERENT SUPPLEMENTS DURING EACH OF THOSE 4 TIMES DEPENDING ON HOW MANY DOSES OF EACH I TAKE ... ONCE YOU GET ON A SCHEDULE (I USE THE ALARM ON MY CELL PHONE), IT'S AS EASY AS WHEN YOU WERE/ARE EATING 4 TIMES A DAY. IT JUST SEEMS OVERWHELMING IN THE BEGINNING. REMEMBER, EACH BODY IS DIFFERENT, BUT ALLLLLLLLLLLL GASTRIC BYPASS PATIENTS NEED THE BASICS OF VITAMINS/MINERALS, B-12 & CALCIUM (WOMEN, ESPECIALLY). HERE'S THE FACTS ... IN EXTREME CASES, YOU CAN ACTUALLY DIE IF YOU DON'T GET ENOUGH PROTEIN & WATER/FLUIDS ... THIS IS WHY THE ELDERLY "WASTE AWAY" ... BECAUSE THEY EAT LESS & LESS SO THE BODY CANABALIZES ITSELF BY "EATING" ITS OWN MUSCLES TO GET ENOUGH PROTEIN TO SURVIVE ANOTHER DAY ... CONSIDERING THAT YOUR HEART IS A MUSCLE, THAT IS VERY SCAREY. I'M FACING THIS WITH MY MOTHER RIGHT NOW ... GETTING HER ON PROTEIN PRODUCTS TO TRY TO REVERSE THIS "WASTING AWAY" PROCESS. OBVIOUSLY, IF YOU DON'T GET ENOUGH FLUIDS, YOU CAN DIE OF DEHYDRATION, BUT THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT IS THAT IF YOU DON'T CONSISTENTLY DRINK ENOUGH, YOU CAN DAMAGE YOUR ORGANS BECAUSE YOU AREN'T FLUSHING OUT THE TOXINS & WASTE. YOU CAN RUIN YOUR GENERAL OVERALL HEALTH IF YOU DON'T GET ENOUGH NUTRIENTS (SUPPLEMENTS ARE A "MUST" FOR US SINCE WE CANNOT GET ENOUGH NUTRIENTS FROM THE LIMITED AMOUNT OF FOOD WE INGEST). MY DOSES ... SUPPLEMENTS ... IF I TAKE OPTISOURSE ... 1 PILL 4 TIMES A DAY IF I TAKE VISTA VITAMINS/CHELATED MINERALS ... 4 CAPSULES 2 TIMES A DAY (MORNING & BEDTIME) CALCIUM CITRATE ... 1 PILL 2 TIMES A DAY VITAMIN C ... 1 PILL 1 TIME A DAY SUBLINGUAL B-12 ... 1 PILL 2 TIMES A DAY BIOTIN ... 1 PILL 3 TIMES A DAY (WILL ADD ZINC AFTER MY NEXT GROCERY SHOPPING TRIP) B COMPLEX ... 1 PILL 1 TIME A DAY AT BEDTIME I WAS IN VERY POOR HEALTH WHEN I HAD SURGERY SO I STARTED THIS REGIME A MONTH PRE-OP TO BUILD MYSELF UP AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. I WILL ADJUST THEM AFTER MY LABS IN MAY. BUT, REMEMBER ... POUCH BABIES CANNOT GET ENOUGH NUTRIENTS ... E-V-E-R ... WE JUST AREN'T ABLE TO EAT ENOUGH &/OR EAT A GOOD ENOUGH VARIETY TO GET OUR NUTRIENTS NATURALLY, SO WE MUST TAKE SUPPLEMENTS OR OUR BODIES WILL EVENTUALLY SUFFER FROM MALNUTRITION. EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT. YOUNGER, HEALTHIER PEOPLE MAY ONLY HAVE TO TAKE THE BASICS ... OTHERS MAY HAVE TO ADD IRON OR MAGNESIUM ... I'VE ADDED THE BIOTIN/ZINC FOR MY HAIR, NAILS & SKIN AS THEY ARE THE LAST ON THE "FOOD CHAIN" SO THEY GET THE LEAST AMOUNT OF NUTRIETS NATURALLY FROM OUR BODIES ... ALSO, I'M BEGINNING MENOPAUSE, SO MY SKIN CAN REALLY GET IN AN UNHEALTHY STATE EASILY. I ADDED B COMPLEX FOR OVERALL GENERAL HEALTH AFTER TALKING WITH MY PHARMACIST & C BECAUSE I GET SO ILL DURING THE WINTER/FLU SEASON. AS YOU AGE & ARE FURTHER POST-OP, YOU MAY NEED TO ADJUST YOUR SUPPLEMENTS UP OR DOWN ... ADD OR SUBTRACT ... AS YOUR BODY'S NEEDS CHANGE. TALK SERIOUSLY TO YOUR SURGEON, PRIMARY PHYSICIAN & DEFINITELY YOUR NUTRITIONIST! YOUR GENERAL OVERALL HEALTH IS NOW IN YOUR HANDS, MS NORA ... BE GOOD TO YOURSELF! GOD BLESS YOU DAWN & NICK PS: YOU WILL BE A TRUE ANGEL IF YOU GET YOUR ENTIRE FAMILY ON A GOOD QUALITY AGE/HEALTH-APPROPRIATE VITAMIN/MINERAL SUPPLEMENT!

THAT MAKES TOTAL SENSE ... I HAD TO STAY ON ACIPHEX AS I DID HAVE REFLUX FOR A COUPLE MONTHS POST OP ... SO, YOUR DOC IS BEING VERY CAUTIOUS WITH YOU ... GOOD FOR HIM! I MENTIONED THE ISSUE BECAUSE WE JUST FOUND OUT NICK WAS ON THE VERGE OF BLEEDING ULCERS ... COMBINATION OF PRESCRIBED ANTACIDS & PRESCRIBED ASPIRIN-BASED PAIN MEDS ... & DOC GAVE US THE "TIME TO CHANGE" "&, HERE'S WHY" SPEECHES. THAT'S GOTTA BE TOUGH HAVING TO TAKE THEM & THEN GETTING BAD SIDE EFFECTS FROM THE CALCIUM ... I'M SURE YOU HAVE, BUT HAVE YOU TRIED TAKING THEM ON AN EMPTY STOMACH ... FULL STOMACH ... WITH MILK ... IN THE MORNING/EVENING ... ETC, ETC, ETC? ALSO, MOST PEOPLE WILL HAVE A BIT OF A PROBLEMS WITH MOST SUPPLEMENTS IF WE TAKE THEM WITH COFFEE OR TEA. I DO HOPE & PRAY YOU FIND A BRAND YOUR SYSTEM CAN TOLERATE WELL ... I'VE BEEN SOOOOOOOOOO BLESSED NOW ... FROM A DEBILITATING REFLUX/GERD/CRAMPING/DIAREAH (sp?) SITUATION PRE-OP THAT WAS HELPED BY NOTHING ... TO NOW POST OP, JUST A FEW BURPS HERE & THERE ... IT'S HEAVEN!!!!!!!!!!! GOD BLESS YOU DAWN & NICK