All in One Bariatric Vitamins
There are several different companies that make all-in-one bariatric vitamins. Most of them say you only need four tablets a day.
Most post ops take vitamins four or five times a day. I have a shoe box full of vitamin bottles and once a week I set up my pill container. You know, those things that have little spaces for pills for each day of the week? Otherwise opening all those pill bottles and getting out my vitamins several time a day would be a huge hassle. And most people would love to be able to only take four pills a day, all out of the same bottle. It would make life a lot easier and it would save money.
So how come most of us aren’t taking those all-in-one deals?
Because they don’t meet our needs. It would be great if they did, but they don’t. Just because they print “bariatric" on the label and say you only need four a day, that just doesn’t make it true. Even though some surgeons sell these in their offices (which makes me cringe), that doesn’t mean they meet our needs.
The American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery says we need 200% of the RDA of most things. But most of those brands that say you only have to take four a day, do not give you 200% in just four. With most of those, you’d need EIGHT a day.
The ASMBS also says we need 1500-2000 mg calcium CITRATE a day. It needs to be citrate because we no longer have enough stomach acid to absorb calcium carbonate. But those all-in-one brands usually have calcium carbonate.
We also must take a B12 supplement. We can’t absorb B12 from a chewable multi, or any multi we swallow. We do not have enough intrinsic factor in our pouches. So we have to take a sublingual B12, or the nasal spray, or the shots.
In addition, many of the all-in-one brands contain forms of some vitamins or minerals that we do not absorb well because of our RNY. If you want to take one of these, you can, but if you want to get the nutrients you need, you will need to take a LOT of other vitamins in addition to the EIGHT all-in-one tablets you’d need. Personally, I find a good multi I can take just twice a day more convenient and more affordable.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
to add: Also - we are so different... different bodies, different shapes and sizes... and different absorption - malabsorbtion issues... the idea that we all can take the same vitamin... or just one or 2... all in one... is rather silly...
Most of you can't wear your mother or sister shoes... but try to expect that one vitamin will fit us all?
The basic vitamins... are essential... later on... based on the lab tests- each of us has to decide what they need.. and how much.
i.e. Kelly gets 70-80 gr of proteins and it works for her... but I need 120-150gr of my body gets depleted. But we both get the B12 injections weekly... then iron... my body does not absorb - and I had to get infusions, but she does fine with supplements. And so on...
Hala. RNY 5/14/2008; Happy At Goal =HAG
"I can eat or do anything I want to - as long as I am willing to deal with the consequences"
"Failure is not falling down, It is not getting up once you fell... So pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again...."
If you start with the basics, as recommended by the ASMBS, then you can add more stuff as needed, based on your labs. But since the all-in-one vitamins only give us about half of the basics, you'd end up needing to add a LOT more stuff. I know some people that take these say their labs are all good on them, but I've never talked to anyone that more than a few months out that is on them that could answer questions like what their vitamin A level or zinc level was. They didn't know or had never had it tested. And I've asked a bunch of people. If they don't get it tested, they don't know if it's good or not. And I'm real skepitcal that people on these vitamins have good labs for very long, if they get a complete set of labs done. There may be a few out there, but I've not been able to locate any of them. And I've asked.
Kelly
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
