Newbee- Question about Calcium Vitamin.

Hello Everyone!!

First time posting here. I had my RNY done 8 weeks ago and would like advice on what Calcium Vitamins do you use. I friend recommended bariatric advance, but they seem to expensive.

I would appreciate your recommendation on any brand that you take and have worked for you. Specially for the vets in this group.

Thanks a lot,

chews tend to be expensive, although I always have some on hand to take when I don't have access to my other sources (like when I'm out of the house for several hours). Otherwise, I just use generic calcium citrate tablets from CVS or Walgreens - as well as Upcal D, a powder which I stir into yogurt (supposedly you can put it in beverages, but it doesn't dissolve in liquid - it's just a suspension). Both the generic tablets and Upcal D are pretty inexpensive.

First, make sure it's calcium citrate. No other kind will do us much good.

Second, we need about 1500 mg per day. Our bodies can only absorb about 500 mg at a time. So we need 500 mg, 3 times a day, at least 2 hours apart.

And, different vitamins interfere with, or can help absorption of others. Anything you eat or take that has iron in it won't be absorbed within 2 hours of taking calcium. Vitamin C, on the other hand, assists in iron absorption. Coffee and tea prevent iron absorption as well.

Any calcium citrate will do. Generics from CVS can be purchased BOGO very inexpensively. I like the Celebrate Calcium Plus 500 chewable, which are improved, and tasty. Then there are various flavored chewies from different companies that are pretty expensive, and also have a lot of calories for us.

I tried a store brand equivalent to Citrical, which is the best choice sold in grocery stores or pharmacies. I had a lot of trouble with the size of the pills. Even the petites got stuck, but I may just have a weirdly tiny throat. I used the calcium chews for years. They are pretty expensive compared the Citrical, or the store brand equivalent, but it's what I could take.

I now take Solaray Calcium Citrate with D3, K2, and Magnesuim. Those all help the calcium absorb better, and I like that they're all in one capsule that I can swallow easily. I take 9 per day, taking 3 at a time.

They may not be any more price effective, but if you find yourself unable to take the Citrical for any reason, these may be another option. I've seen these at Garner's, but I just order it from Amazon.

Picture for reference. Sorry if the pic is ginormous.

Thank you everyone for your kind reply. I have loved this forum since I discovered it. I was in a Facebook group, but it got overwhelming for me.

Please don't short yourself on Magnesium. To my knowledge, the Bariatric Advantage chews do not have any magnesium at all and after a few years, I started to experience terrible leg cramps. This is very common and as a result, I supplement magnesium separately. Don't use the big brown ones in the gel capsules--that is magnesium oxide and does nothing but help you poop. Just like for your calcium, find a magnesium citrate. I get mine at Vitamin Shoppe.

If you need help pooping, the big brown magnesium oxide capsules work a treat.

Jen

Not one of these?

Thank you Jen!

I too like the Solaray and the Citracal petites and also like the other posters consider magnesium essential to avoid leg cramps .

Too much calcium can cause osteoporosis though and other bad things too so my advice is take it Reasonably .

I take one calcium pill w my mother during my months in Florida ( about 6 months a year ) the rest of the time I rarely bother because I virtually LIVE on fat free dairy products lol . And I always choose calcium containing orange juice too .

My dexa scans r perfect 9 years post op and severe osteoporosis runs rampant in the bird like bones of the mostly slim wimmen in my family . I also do take a low dose fossamax as s preventive measure once a week when I remember .

Thank you so much!