Calcet Creamy Bites

I'm of the opinion that if it's working for you right now, it's better to take that than nothing at all if you're having pill problems.  Obviously we absorb citrate the best, and that should be your goal but I say go with what works for right now.  My surgeon (though we all know they are not the best people to take vitamin advice from) went from a pretty hard stance on the citrate to take whatever you'll take on a regular basis, even if it's a chew.  I personally have to take hydroxyapatite, so you have to find what works for you and stick with it.  

I spoke to Vitalady today and I can open the capsules and sprinkle them on something.  The rep said to be careful because they are very full.  So that's my plan for now.  I'm going to take at least 1-2 of the bites a day though for two reasons.  One they don't bother my belly and it's like having a piece of candy.  Since I'm not eating much of anything else and almost no carbs I'm not worried about my carb count plus I'll get that extra bit of calcium and vit d.

ok I guess you are talking about the ones I take- from Celebrate . . they are pretty good but I do get a little tired of the taste now  after a few months. . .

I also tried the UpCalD that you can order on Amazon that is a powder and I heard it was like a candy taste. The powder actually choked me a bit and I havent tried had them regularly since.

I do have the chewable calciums from Celebrate too but again the taste is getting to me now.

I have some liquid Calcium Citrate with magnesium too but it is very thick and yukky tasting.

The ones from VL can be dissolved in water and they are basically tasteless that way. Whatever settles to the bottom and doesnt mix in is fillers I heard here on OH. I am drinking more half & half too and hope that counts for something but I know I am getting behind.

After all is said & done dissolving the ones from VL is probably the easiest. With all my options tho I find I can do a little here & there of the different ones options . ..

I'm going to be opening her capsules after talking to them today and learning it was ok.  I'm also going to be taking the chews (1-2a day) just as a bonus since they are super yummy and i have them anyway.  I figure they would get boring after a while.  I heard about the UpCalD  I'm going to check that out. 

Thanks!

I put the Upcal powder in my cold drinks. Doesn't dissolve well in hot ones.

yes that would work using the UpCalD in a drink wouldnt it? Don't know why I don't think of these things too . .I am going to do that. I noticed I can swallow those blue capsules (VL calcium citrate) now so am doing that too - I had the worst time getting pills down months after the DS. In fact I just used the Gumme Vites from Sam's Club for 3 months as I couldnt get anything else down my throat. I even tried dropping pills down a tube into my throat but it didnt work too well. It was a constant worry as malnutrition if not taking everything is stressed so much here. My surgeon even went down my VL list and told me I could get iron infusions later and to skip that one and how he thought some of them like copper & zinc& magnesium were covered by the multi. I found Celebrate and their chewables and have been more compliant ever since. I never have gotten down the big magnesium citrate ones but found a liquid. My 6 month labs were short on potassium but ok otherwise tho I am sure they might be trending down but I dont know for sure as they cant find the preop labs at AZWLS. It does get much easier in a few months to get the pills down tho I have to do them one by one and can't toss down a handful like some. I got a lot of good suggestions along the way from people here about them if you care of read all my old posts. I kept talking about it here as I worried about it so much so I got a lot of suggestions on how to get them down. But I will say my throat seemed a lot more closed up for months than it is now.

There are various chews and some are carbonate so be careful of that. Also, some ingredients like sugar alcohols could bother you. Otherwise, chews can be a good way because they are large and carry a big punch of calcium.

Upcal-D worked for me early out. I find it gritty though. Might bother you.

The most transparent way of getting in calcium has to be the Bariatric Advantage crystals. We did samples at a support group. I absolutely could not tell they were in the liquid (I think it was crystal light lemonade). A bit on the expensive side, but hopefully something like this can get you through the early stages until you are able to just pop pills.

I have no idea on how these compare, but I thought I'd mention that someone on the main board posted that the BA chewy calcium bites are buy 2 get 1 free right now, and I know we're always keeping an eye on costs... hth

ok I put the UpCalD in some orange juice this morning an could not tell there was a powder added. I must also tell you that the Calcium PLUS from Celebrate can be tolerated well for a few months before you get tired of the taste. You only need 2 a day to get the required amount of calcium, or less if you use the CalUpD or the chews as part of the equation. The crystals someone mentioned sound worth checking out too but you have a lot of good suggestions here now and  you should be able to work with it. One reason my surgeon said to skip the Iron too is that it sometimes causes problems absorbing other things and upsets the stomach and since I was having trouble that would be the one to avoid all together for now. But I am also post-menopausal so my need isn't as great either I suspect.  Anyway I think we have a store of vites built up that will carry us (tho we are all different) thru the first few months. (No one like to admit that as they don't want anyone slacking or to start out with noncompliance habits!) But I think I worried too much so I hope you don't . .