Vitamins and Mineral Supplementation

Why do you need to supplement your diet with vitamins and minerals?

With the amount and type of food you will be eating with the bariatric diet, it will be difficult to get enough vitamins and minerals from food alone. Deficiencies can develop in a matter of months. Iron, folate, B-12 and calcium are the nutrients most affected. Fat-soluble vitamins, such as vitamins A, D, E, and K may also be affected.

Within one week of the surgery you will begin your dietary supplements. Vitamin and mineral supplements must be taken for life. Also remember your vitamin and mineral levels will need to be check every 3-6 months by a metabolic physician.

A daily vitamin and mineral regimen after surgery should include a chewable or liquid multivitamin with iron, 1000 - 1500 mg of calcium and there may need to be an additional B12 and iron or other supplements as recommended.

For me I took Flinstone vitamins with iron twice a day, calcium with vitamin D twice a day, vitamin B-12 and a vitamin C all chewable. You can take any vitamin you want but some of the recommended vitamins and minerals are as follows:

Multi Vitamins
Centrum Chewable
Nature's Plus Chewable
Puritan's Pride Chewable
Isotonix Liquid
Resource Optisource Chewable
Rainbow Light Powder
GNC Liquid Ultra Mega Multi
Bariatric Advantage Chewable
Flinstone Vitamins with Iron (2 per day)

Calcium (with added vitamin D)
Caltrate (calcium carbonate)
TwinLabs chewable (calcium citrate)
Viactiv chewable (calcium carbonate)
Rainbow Light chewable (calcium citrate
Bariatric Advantage chewable (calcium citrate)
Oscal (calcium carbonate)
Citracal (calcium Citrate)

Iron
Fergon Tablet
Ferrous Gluconate
Ferrous Sulfate

Vitamin B12
Nature's Bountty Sublingual
GNC Liquid B12