What to buy??

Hi!  This is my first post.  I am currently waiting for my Roux en Y surgery date and assume it will be scheduled for about one month from now.  I am excited and apprehensive to say the least.  The posts on this site have been very helpful to me. I would appreciate any advice re; which protein supplement is the best (easiest, most cost effective, best tasting) for getting through the 100grams a day phase? Also any nutrition or vitamin advice is much appreciated.
Thanks!

Everyone likes different proteins and there are so many different types.  I am not sure the sites where people get samples but you might want to post on the RNY site to ask for info on samples.  I like the stuff from GNC - it is called Pro Performance 100% Whey Protein - I use the chocolate and put it in no sugar added hot chocolate. It is delicious and gives me 35 grams of protein per mug - I use a scoop and a half of the chocolate protein powder.  They have aprogram where you can buy a bag and try it. If you dont like it within 30 days, you can return it with your receipt.  IT is a great way to try a few flavors.

For vitamins - you will need a multivitamin 2 times per day - centrum silver chewables is a great option and it tastes good.

For calcium = you need 1500-1800 mg of calcium citrate a day, in 3 daily doses atleast 2 hours apart and not within 2 hours of your iron or thyroid medication, no more than 650mg at a time.  If you want chewables which are recommended at the beginning - you can go to bariatric advantage.com or celebrate.com and get some samples.  I like the cherry lozenges and raspberry chewies from bariatric advantage.  I take one of each, 3 times per day.

You need to take sublingual B12 - minimum of 1000mcg a day or a monthly injection.  Then adjust your dosage based on your labs.

Iron - carbonyl iron plus vitamin C is best.  We dont' absorb other irons.  Get Feosol at CVS but make sure the box says carbonyl iron. It is 45mg per tablet.  This is a minimum dosage.  My NUT recommends starting at 150mg.  You need 200mg of vitamin C for every 30mg of iron.

Vitamin D3 - almost everyone is deficient in vitamin D preop and they don't even know it.  You need a minimum of 5,000-10,000 units of dry D3 from vitalady.com - they come in 5,000 unit capsules - d3-5.  Most people need alot more than that but without labs it is hard to tell.

Vitamin B1 - 100mg per day.

I am also looking to get ready and buy everything I need so that I have it when I get home from my RNY surgery. I just copied your entire list here. I have a few more quetions if you don't mind...

1. Where can I get each of these?
2. I have been taking 50,000 units of Vitamin D once a week for about 3 months now. I have not had my levels checked again yet. Will they check them before surgery so that I know how much I should be taking after? Will they check all my vitamin levels?
3. Is there ANYTHING else I will need to take other than what you have listed here?
4. Do they sell Centrum chewables with iron so that you don't have to take it seperately?

Thanks for all the great info!
Lisa

I am glad to hear you are getting ready ahead of time.  As far as the vitamin levels go, some surgeons do preop testing and some don't.  Mine did. If you want to make sure they get checked, here is a list of what you should get checked on a regular basis post op (I get them done every 3months) and you can ask your PCP to do them preop as well to get baseline numbers to compare to after.  It can also give you an  idea of how  much vitamin D, iron and B12 you will need to supplement.  Once you get the levels, feel free to PM me with your results and I would be glad to give your further suggestions based on your labs.

As far as your vitamin D goes - are you taking prescription D - the little green gelcap? or Dry D3?  The little green gelcap that is prescription is very hard to absorb and post op is basically useless.  It is in oil and we can't absorb that.  You may as well get the right stuff now and start taking it now.  Go to vitalady.com and get Dry D3 - D3-50 from biotech. You can continue taking it once per wee****il you get your labs back.  Most need to take it 2-3 times per week.

Centrum makes a multi with iron but the iron is pretty useless. You need to take a separate iron supplement either way - carbonyl iron plus vitamin C. Either the feosol that I mentioned or Tender Iron from vitalady.com - it is easy on the stomach and doesn't cause constipation. There are chewables for 25mg each or 60mg capsules which have the vitamin C already in them.  The chewables you need to add vitamin C.  You would need to take atleast 2 chewables.

Calcium citrate chewables you can get at either bariatric advantage or celebrate.com - they will send you samples if you request them.  I love the cherrry lozenges and raspberry chewies.  I take one of each , 3 times per day

B1, B12 sublinguals and feosol you can get at any pharmacy

That is really all that is necessary.  Some people like to take biotin to prevent hair loss but I am not convinced that it really works.  You can post to others to ask about it.

Sorry, I just found this post so this is my second message to you today. Yes, I'm taking the green gel caps. I won't fill my perscription again though. So I can take this Dry D3 right after surgery then? Is it a pill or a chewable? How many units are in just one? I will need to be taking 100,000 units after surgery instead of 50,000 right? Because you double everything after surgery right?

Can I take the 60mg iron capsules with the vitamin C already in them right after surgery or should I get the chewables? And if I do need to get the chewables, what do you mean I need to add the vitamin C? My multi vitamins have vitamin C in them, do I need to take more than that? Couldn't I just take my iron with a glass of juice instead?

I got my centrum chewables today so that's crossed off my list

Thank you so much for your help with this! Now that I have my date, I'm kind of in a panic :O

I haven't read your other message yet so I will just answer this one so far. 

For the D3 - definitely dont' take 100,000 units at one time - that is only for DS patients.  RNY patients only need to take 50,000 units at a time but depending on how low your level is, determines  how many times per week you need to take it.  Do you know your vitamin D level?  If it is in the 20's or below, then I would take it 3 times per week once you have surgery and if it is in the 30s or 40's I would take it 2 times per week.  Until surgery, you can take them 2 times per week and that will give you a nice start on raising your levels but it will take time for them to come in the mail.  Go to vitalady.com and get Dry D3 - D3-50 from biotech.  They are 50,000 units, the same dosage as the prescription ones are but they are D3 instead of D2 in oil which we can't absorb.  They are a capsule, so you might have trouble swallowing them the first few weeks.  My doctor told me it was okay to miss 4 weeks of them as long as I started them immediately when I was allowed pills at 1 month.  As soon as I went onto the Dry D3, my level went from 36 to 97 in 2 months, so it really works fast if you take the correct dosage.  The trick is to not cut back once you to where you want to be because then your level will plummet.  You need to continue at the high dosages to maintain.

For the iron - I would take the chewable for the beginning - the capsules are pretty large.  So, you will need to take 2 chewables to get 50mg and to go with that you need 400mg of vitamin C - the vitamin C in your multi doesnt' count - it has to be a separate vitamin C - so look for a chewable vitamin C- check and see if vitalady sells a chewable vitamin C.  It can be more than 400mg but not less.  Also if you know your iron or ferritin levels, if they are low - then you will need to take a higher dose of iron from the start - this is a real basic starting dose.  My NUT actually starts all patients at 150mg.

Everything will work out fine.  Once you have all your supplements, feel free to PM and I will be glad to work on a schedule with you = you can also PM me anytime you have any questions.

My Vitamin D is at 56
My Iron is at 66
My iron binding is at 391
My percent of saturation is at 17%

That is all they checked

I have been taking 50 thousand units of Vitamin D (The green gel ones) once a week for 4 months now and this is where my vitamin D levels are at now.

Will you please let me know what you recommend for me to take, how often, what to purchase and where to purchase them from?

Thank you!
Lisa

Thank you

Thanks for the good advice.  I'm just going to print these and discuss at the hospital.