OK Kelly, you're up!
I'm taking 190 mg. of iron daily in addition to what's in my multi and my 6 month labs said my iron absorbtion rate was low, although the levels are up from my 3 month labs. I also take 500mg. of vit. C to help with absorbtion. Are there different types of iron out there that absorb better than others? I'm using Nature Made right now. Thanks in advance.
Tim T.
(Edit:)- my calcium citrate is taken hours apart from the iron or multis-
I take: 1-500mg Vitamin C, 2 Sundown 25mg Carbonyl Perfect Iron ***take 2 hours from Calcium/Dairy Products***
Age at RNY: 55, Height: 5'4", Consultation Weight: 331 lbs-12/1/2009, RNY Surgery Weight: 281 lbs-3/22/2010, Goal Weight Reached: 141 lbs-6/23/2011, Lowest Weight: 126 lbs-12/11/2011,
Current Age: 61, Current Weight: 161 lbs-5/20/2016, Total Weight Loss Maintained: 170 lbs 
I like carbonyl because it is absorbed really well and usually does not cause constipation. I really do not like ferrous sulfate because it's not absorbed very well and it usually stops you up something awful. There is also ferrous gluconate and ferrous fumerate, which are better than ferrous sulfate, but not as good as carbonyl (in my opinion).
For your vitamin C, you need 200 mg C for every 30 mg of iron. So if you're taking 190 mg iron, you need about 1200 mg C to help with all that absorption.
Now, it seems like there are some people after RNY that just don't absorb iron well no matter what they do. There is another type of iron, heme iron, the name brand is Proferrin, that works better for some people. It's expensive and I would personally try the carbonyl first. But there are also some people that end up needing iron infusions because they just don't absorb any kind of iron well.
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.
I'll try the carbonyl and up the C, thanks again!
Best,
Tim T.
I doubt you'll need anywhere near 190 mg of carbonyl iron.
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.
the tender irons are easy on the stomach, non constipating and highly absorbable plus they have the vitamin C in them so they are very cheap. They are 60mg each, so you can take 2 of them also getting 120mg per day, all in one dose the bottle is 400 capsules - rather than I think the feosol is like 100 tablets - so the bottle might be less but the tenders last so much longer and you dont have to buy extra C. I took the feosol when I was pretty early out and it wasn't pretty but the tenders are great. So many of us post ops use them.
You can get your vitamin D from the same website - dry D3.
