Vitamins

Information on this page is provided for a reference. These are what I am required to take or take on my own. Check with your surgeon for your specific plan.

My surgeon’s mandatory vitamin regimen:

1. Multi-Vitamin

• 1-2 per day with meals
• 2 children’s chewable or 1 adult chewable or liquid. Once regular diet is returned a regular (non-chewable) adult multi-vitamin or prenatal vitamin.
• Multi-vitamins will help ensure that you are getting enough of the micronutrients you need.
• No interactions.
• Gummy vitamins do not provide the necessary vitamins in adequate amounts. Consider finding a multi-vitamin specifically for bariatric patients or make sure your multi which has adequate amounts of all necessary micronutrients.

2. Vitamin B-12

• 500 micrograms tablet or sublingual daily or 1000 micrograms monthly of injectable B12
• Any sublingual, tablet, or monthly injection is acceptable
• Helps with blood cell and nerve function, digestion, and absorption of food and protein synthesis. Deficiency may cause certain types of anemia.
• No interactions.

3.  Calcium citrate with Vitamin D-3

• 1200-1500 mg daily. Best absorbed in doses of 500-600 at a time.
• Take with meals.
• Citrical +D or any equivalent brand with calcium citrate.
• Citrate is better absorbed since it doesn’t require the acid from your stomach to be absorbed.
• Maintains bone strength, helps heart to pump correctly, and repairs soft tissue.
• Caffeine, spinach, and whole grains may decrease absorption.

Additional vitamins I take:

1. Biotin

• Supposedly helps with hair regrowth, though doesn’t seem to affect me.
• 2/day

2. B-Complex

• 1/day

3. D

• 1/day (because my labs were low)