The Importance of supplements

How are you at taking supplements?  Have you always taken them?  Do you take them because you want to be healthy or because its a In thing? Or do you take them because your new lifestyle requires them?  I do the later... Why, because my bodies system has been re-routed due to the gastric bypass procedure I chose to have done.

This is now a mandatory requirement of mine.  I do have issues with taking my vitamin supplements.  I have never been a person to take medicine, drugs etc.  Only because I have to I do it.  Never having the discipline to take meds or supplements on a regular basis has been a challenge for me. 

So how do I make sure this takes place?  Well you know the office programs on your computer that has a calendar in it? I have mine set up for an entire year to pop up EVERY day to remind me to take my vitamins.  And you know its funny but it works for me.  I stop what I'm doing and take them.

At first I didn't know the importance of taking them until I started getting my lab work completed every 6 months and having issues with some of my vitamin deficiencies.  There were issues with me being fatigued at times, sluggish, hair falling out (I really had a time with this one) I didn't have it to loose to begin with.  Then there were my fingernails/toe nails, they began to become very brittle.  Taking vitamins also gives my body some nutrients that I don't get enough of, due to the amounts of food that I eat.

My daily routine consists of the following vitamins on a daily basis. Multi-vitamin, Calcium citrate, B12 (sublingual)2500 ml.  I also do an injection of B-12 on myself once a month, due to me not being able to keep my b12 levels up.   So what I thought we would discuss today is Vitamin supplements.  We will take them one at a time.  Lets begin with Multi-Vitamins. 

What is so important about Multi-Vitamins? Here is a good breakdown that I borrowed from a website that I frequent quite often for support. Bariatric Eating After bariatric surgery, we are prone to Vitamin Deficiencies due to poor eating habits, restricted food volumes, and simply by virtue that we have had a bariatric procedure. Avoiding long term health problems is easier than trying to fix them once we have them. Soft or broken bones, IV iron infusions, serious fatigue, permanent nerve damage, and leg cramps are not what we signed on for.

Fortunately, bariatric vitamins are created for our specific post op needs. They promote a bariatric vitamin just for Bariatric patients. Very good vitamin.  When I first began taking multi vitamins I used the Flintstones, they were so much easier for me to get down, I could chew them up. As with a pill I had to crush it or cut it into, to get it down.

Here is another good piece of information in regards to taking vitamins:

VITAMIN SUPPLEMENTS AFTER

GASTRIC BYPASS SURGERY

It is important that you take vitamin supplements everyday for the rest of your life after having a gastric bypass. If you do not take your vitamin and mineral supplements after surgery you will become malnourished! This is because not only are you unable to consume enough food (quantity) to meet your vitamin & mineral requirements, but also because you will have a decreased ability to digest and absorb certain nutrients after having gastric bypass surgery.  We recommend that you take a multivitamin, plus extra calcium, iron, B12 and Vitamin D supplements. 
Begin taking a multivitamin twice a day while on liquids during the first 2 weeks.  Add your calcium, iron, vitamin B12, and Vitamin D supplements when you progress to soft foods in the third week following your surgery.
To make sure you are taking everything you need, in the correct dose, and in the correct form, we recommend Bariatric Advantage supplements. These are specifically designed for bariatric patients and their specific needs.

Multivitamins

Start taking one chewable multivitamin/mineral supplement twice a day while on liquids.  When you progress to soft foods, take them with meals.  For the first few months after surgery, we recommend that you take either liquid or chewable multivitamins because they are easier to digest and absorb.  Find a “complete” multivitamin/mineral supplement, meaning one that has 100% of the Daily Value (DV) for all of the vitamins and minerals.  Specifically, we recommend one of the following (generic, store-brand equivalents are fine too).

• Bariatric Advantage® Chewable Multi Formula (twice a day)
• 1 Flintstone’s® Complete (twice a day)
• 1 Centrum® Chewable (twice a day)

About two months after surgery (or when you are able to take pills and can tolerate solid foods), you can switch to a non-chewable as tolerated.  We recommend any of the following, to be taken twice a day with food (generic, store-brand equivalents are fine):

• Bariatric Advantage® Chewable Multi Formula (twice a day)
• One-A-Day® Men’s/Women’s Formula (twice a day)
• Centrum Performance® 
• Centrum Silver®  based on your age (twice a day)

Take one multivitamin twice a day (for example 1 at breakfast, 1 at lunch), rather than both at the same time to maximize your absorption of each vitamin.

 I try to encourage my friends that have had any of the bypass procedures to make sure they are taking their vitamins. I hope that I have helped shed a little light on

Please let me know your thoughts as to how you feel about taking a multi vitamin. Pros/Cons etc.

I'll touch on another vitamin another day.

Resources:
bariatric surgery at the Western Pennsylvania Hospital
http://www.bariatriceating.com/

Tah Tah for now.
Have a great evening and stay dry and warm.
lisa