The question of using bariatric vitamins to support bariatric diets is a recurring one.  Some people may think that the expense of using bariatric vitamins isn’t worth what you get—if they think there’s any benefit at all to it.  There are actually several benefits in particular to using bariatric vitamins. 

The first, and most obvious benefit of using bariatric vitamins over multivitamin pills is that they’re made to be easy to digest.  With the size of your stomach now, this is important, since it means that your tiny stomach is emptied faster and ready to have food.  This is important especially now that you’re eating 5 or 6 small meals a day. 

Bariatric Vitamins Bypass Malabsorption 

For the most part, normal vitamin pills aren’t harmful–they just don’t deliver enough useful vitamins to justify the expense.  This is a problem that bariatric vitamins bypass.  

Malabsorption is common with most standard vitamins–even the chewy ones.  In order to make them solid and hard or soft and chewy, the manufacturer has to add absorption-hindering filler. 

Some solid multivitamins try to adjust for this problem by providing anywhere from 2 to 10 times what you actually need in their pills.  This can open you up to other problems, specifically vitamin/mineral toxicity.  

This can cause additional strain on your body, as the volume of these vitamins spike in your system, causing nausea or worse symptoms until the vitamins flush out of your system.  This can damage your kidneys and liver.  

The best way to get your bariatric vitamins is in capsule form with no additional fillers or additives.

If the product you are using has anything listed in the supplement facts under ingredients besides the vitamins you need, it is not the right choice for you.

There is absolutely no need for any additives to be in your gastric bypass vitamins. If there are they are hindering the absorption and not letting you reap the full benefits.

Chewable Vitamins are not the Answer

You’ve probably seen advertising for chewable supplements. They are loaded with fillers and additives. They may taste good and look pretty but they simply cannot give you the full vitamin and mineral payload you need. This is because the very ingredients that make your vitamins easier to swallow, also make them more difficult to digest.

Improve Your Health: Don’t Hurt it with Fillers in your Bariatric Supplements

One of the main reasons you had bariatric surgery is to improve your health. You are more than likely well aware that you will need to take bariatric vitamins for the rest of your life. There is no reason to take ones that include fillers. Here is a list of just some of the fillers we have seen included in some of the most popular products:

• Silicon dioxide
• Stearic acid
• Titanium dioxide
• Povidone
• Ethylcellulose
• Shellac

Let’s take a closer look at stearic acid. Wellsphere, the popular online source for health knowledge says this about stearic acid:

While the companies that produce Vitamins and Supplements may want you to believe that the use of Magnesium Stearate and Stearic Acid in your pills is safe, they are not fooling anyone. You owe it to yourself and your future well being to go to the cupboard right now and remove any pills in there that might contain anything with either of these highly dangerous supplements in them. The market has supported this shoddy, irresponsible production for too long and the health of the industry’s consumers should not need to suffer for it.

That clearly should be enough to scare you away from using any product that has these fillers in them. Post gastric bypass surgery should be a time of getting healthy and staying healthy. Make sure you are getting the most out of your supplements and not making things worse.

If you’ve been taking other energy supplements, however, you may want to reconsider them.  Only your doctor can tell you what’s best for you, but you might want to re-evaluate what you’re taking based on your individual, unique situation via the info provided below.

Ginko Biloba

Many people like to take ginko biloba either for their memory or for their energy level.  One thing most people don’t know about ginko biloba, though, is that it can work as a blood thinning agent. This isn’t usually a problem for most of us.  But if you have to go on blood thinners (such as if you have a specific need for a heart condition), or if you use a medicine like Asprin which thins out your blood, this is a factor of which you should be aware.

Energy Drinks

What about energy drinks?  These drinks often contain massive doses of B vitamins.  That doesn’t mean they are any substitute for a good B supplement, though!  Aside from the fact that using energy drinks this way will actually cost you a whole lot more than a good B supplement, there are other aspects to consider such as calorie intake and sugar intake.

If you’ve had heart problems at any time in the past, an energy drink might not be a good idea for you.  And if you’re already taking a B supplement, you don’t want to overload your system.  Finally, these kind of drinks can cause a crash that will leave you feeling even more fatigued than before.

The Importance of Bariatric Multi-Vitamins

Whether you need a simple bariatric mult-vitmain, or whether you need to take B or other extras to keep yourself going, make sure you take a good gastric bypass supplement so you can stay healthy and energized.  B vitamins and iron will provide you with energy and Zinc will help you metabolize the food you eat, while Calcium citrate and other minerals will help you to absorb the above-mentioned vital nutrients.