Post VGS.. What vitamins are you taking?

Lindsay A.
on 11/3/12 6:44 am - vaudreuil, Canada

I am 2 weeks and 3 days Post-op.. oh and minus 30 lbs (-31 on a good day) lol

I'm taking 

2 flintstones chewabales (complete) 

Chewable chocolate Caltrate with vitamin D

and Vitamin b12 (1200mg) 

 

Am I missing anything?

 

    

PatXYZ
on 11/3/12 8:10 am, edited 11/3/12 8:11 am

Do you mean the VSG (Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy)?

It is impossible to know what you are missing without complete labs, but lets start with this:

Caltrate is the wrong kind of calcium. You need calcium citrate, not carbonate - these chews are worthless to you. If you want a chew, BAriatric Advantage makes one out of calcium citrate. I use the Celebrate Calcium Plus Tablets as they have added Magnesium and K.

If you are deficient in D you will need a much, much higher dose, quite likely 5,000IU per day of D3 at least, possibly much more depending on how deficient you are (most Canadians are deficient). You need to get tested to determine this.

Flintstones are not recommended in Ontario as a multivitamin. I like the Bariatric Advantage High ADEK multivitamin, and others routinely use Centrum 50+ chewables or the Spectrum Forte (Shoppers Drug Mart brand) or Prenatal multivitamins.

You almost certainly need iron, virtually every menstruating female needs it after bariatric surgery. Recommended forms of iron for bariatric post-ops include carbonyl, heme or polysaccharide iron. How much you will need depends on your labs.

Your B12 needs to be sublingual, not pills or the Jamieson strips as they will not be properly absorbed, or you can get a monthly injection.

ETA: You may also need other supplements, like zinc or vitamin A, or other B vitamins, but only a complete set of labs can tell you all of this. Get your family doc to order a complete nutritional panel that includes all of these things, it should be about 14-15 vials of blood.

I had OHIP approved Duodenal Switch surgery with Dr. Dennis Hong at St. Joseph's Hamilton on March 7th, 2012. Want more information on the DS in Ontario? Send me a private message!
Pat-60
on 11/3/12 3:43 pm

I am taking a prenatal multi-vitamin recomended to me by my clinic, I don't think Flintstone chewables is good enough, you need more because you food intake is a lot less.   The calcium should be calcium citrate with vitamin D.  I give myself a B12 injection each month instead of taking a pill daily.  I also take an iron supplement daily.  The prenatal vitamin and calcium citrate will just be a part of my life forever.  The others will depend on the results of my blood work. 

As you continue to lose weight you will find you have so much more energy.  I sometimes felt that if I didn't do something really active like a fast walk I would climb the walls!  Not only is the weight lose responsible for you feeling so good but the vitamins you are taking also.   I am 15 months (down 120 lbs) out and still eat very little to get full.  Without vitamins I just couldn't function properly. 

Nov 29/10   Referred to St Josephs Hamilton
Dec 6/10    Orientation
Mar 9/11     Nurse, Dietician & Social Worker
Mar 31/11   Internest
May 26/11  Surgeon & pre-surgery class
JULY 11/11  VSG, hernia repair by  Dr Mehran Anvari
suebdc
on 11/3/12 6:17 pm - Kinburn, Canada
VSG on 01/26/12

I had a sleeve also, I use the opurity chewable,plus calcium and vitamin d, everything else is in the vitamins, never had any problems with blood work and I am 10 months post op.

 

Sue

Sue

    
PaulaToronto
on 11/4/12 5:12 am - Toronto, Canada

I take Kirkland brand prenatal vitamin cut in two - flintstone is not enough

1,000 vitamin D

1,000 calcium citrate (Welless liquid)

Proferrin Iron

B12 shot 1,000 per month

What does your clinic recommend? The prenatal, Vitamin D, calcium and iron and B 12 is pretty standard. Talk to them at you one month appointment.

Highest W 312   Referral W 252   Surgery W 237   CW 156  Height 5'6"            

      

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