Can we take gummy vitamins?

Well, sure, we can if we want to.  We can take anything we want.  We're adults and we get to make our own decisions.

However, if we want to get all the vitamins and minerals we need, as recommended by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, we need something better than gummy vitamins.  There are different brands of gummy vitamins and they vary slightly from brand to brand, but every single brand of gummy multivitamins is missing a lot of important stuff.  Some do not have all the B vitamins.  I've never seen a gummy with vitamin K.  They are all missing a bunch of minerals, like copper, zinc, and selenium.  There's one brand, I forget if it's Vitacraves or Vitafusion, that has zinc, but it's missing a bunch of other minerals.

I know there are gummies that say "adult" on the label but that doesn't mean they are suitable for adults.  They are missing too much stuff.  They aren't good vitamins for adults that have not had RNY, let alone for those of us that have had RNY.

I see people post sometimes that they take gummies and their nutritionist said it was OK.  Well, it might be OK with her if they take vitamins that are missing a lot of important nutrients, but it would not be OK with me.  I want to take the nutrients my body needs, and even if my nutritionist says I don't need copper or selenium, I really do.

I also see people post that they take gummies and their labs are great.  These are usually people that had surgery less than a year ago, so they have not had time to develop certain deficiencies.  Also, when I ask them specific questions, like what is their copper level or selenium level, since they are taking a multi without those things, they never know the answer.  Apparently they aren't getting those tested.  If you don't get it tested, you don't know if it's great.  And if you take a vitamin without those things for very long, they are not going to be great.

That is all.

Thanks for this info. I had asked a few days ago of it was okay to do the gummies, but after reading all the info in that previous post I decided to stick to the centrum. I appreciate reading your post. They're always very informative. Thanks!

My NUT says the texture is not good for the stoma and can result in a blockage.

      .oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.Miranda.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.      

I've heard people say that it could result in a blockage, yet I've never seen one single post by a person that actually had a blockage from a gummy vitamin, and I have seen numerous posts from people taking gummies.  That makes me think if it really is possible, it's very rare.  I wonder how many patients your nut has had that actually developed blockages from gummy vitamins?

No idea but its just one of those unnecessary risks. Too many other ways to get my vits that I wouldn't risk it. I was just sharing my NUTs reasoning :P.

      .oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.Miranda.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.      

My mom had RNY and she takes gummy vitamins. I just couldn't see the reasoning behind them for me because I was already vitamin deficient pre-op.

I was taking the Vitafusion Prenatal Gummies before surgery, but I was supplementing with B12, D3, and calcium.  I gave them to my stepdaughter, and supplement her D3 and calcium as well.  If I were actually pregnant, and not just trying, I would probably have gone with a better prenatal, but I got 2 huge bottles for free, and couldn't see wasting them.  I was D and B12 deficient pre-op, so I have been supplementing those for years.  My aunt has osteoporosis, and so I added calcium. 

Speaking of calcium...I just got a 400 pill bottle of 21st Century Calcium Citrate + D for nearly nothing with a promo I had, so I went ahead and got it b/c I didn't have the right kind of calcium (carbonate and something else).  It says 2 caplets are 63% of the RDV...am I right to be taking 4 to get enough?  And is the D in there (as Cholecalciferol) enough that I can drop to 1 5000 IU D3 chewable a day, or should I keep taking 2 of those as well?  

Hogged the post, sorry!  I was gonna post a new topic, but I figured you'd answer in here cuz you're just that nice :~)

Gina :~)

How many mg of calcium is in two of those pills?  630 mg, maybe?  In which case four is not enough, you need six a day.  We need 1500-2000 mg total.

I dunno how much D3 is in the calcium or what your vitamin D level is, so I have no idea how much D3 you need a day.  If you were taking 10,000 IU D3 a day, then no, the D3 in the calcium probably isn't enough to cut back to just 5000 IU D3.  There is probably something lke 500 IU D3 in two of the calcium pills, so if you take six a day, that gives you 1500 IU.  That's not enough to replace 5000 IU.

You're spot on, 630mg in 2 pills.  6 it is...I am fine with doing that until the bottle is gone, but then I'd prefer something that I would only have to take 4 (or less...ha) a day of.  It says to take with food...so I have been taking them at lunch and dinner, since I take my other vitamins at breakfast and night snack.  If I have to add 2 more of them, I'd take them at bedtime, but I don't tend to eat at bedtime.  Do you think I'd need to?  The calcium carbonate chews I was taking didn't have that stipulation, but they were little caramel candy type deals.  

You're such a wealth of information.  When I try to Google this stuff, I get tons of conflicting info and advertising.  Oy.  

Gina :~)

I don't think you'll find calcium that you swallow that you don't have to take six a day.  The issue is that we can only absorb about 500 mg at a time, so we need to take calcium three or four times a day.  And they don't make a pill that you swallow with 500 mg calcium in it, because the pill would be HUGE.  There are chewables with 500 mg, though.

I don't always eat with my calcium so no, I don't think you'd have to.