I need to get back into the swing of taking my vitamins and I’m thinking it was easiest to remember at mealtimes. Exactly how many hours do we need to wait between calcium and the iron in the multivitamin for it to absorb properly? What about calcium and calcium? I’m thinking calcium at breakfast and lunch and multivitamin at dinner but I don’t ALWAYS wake up super early so there may be less time between the two calcium’s on occasion. I used to do the multivitamin with breakfast and calcium at dinner and bedtime BUT now I make my protein shake into a Proffee (protein shake and iced coffee) and my tummy doesn’t like the vitamin with it diluted that way.i suppose I could try taking the multi with my evening snack which is a Greek yogurt? What do you guys do??

Edited April 30, 20242 yr by ShoppGirl

I take my multi first thing in the morning with breakfast at 7am and then take calcium at 10, 2, and 6 (I take two calcium chews and a calcium chocolate for "dessert").

I honestly don't take an extra calcium anymore. I take the bariatric multivitamin w/ iron in the morning and that's it. I was told once you hit 6 months out, you don't need it anymore because you'll get what you need from your food. Hmmm...I wonder if I should ask about it again.

35 minutes ago, SleeveToBypass2023 said:

I honestly don't take an extra Calcium anymore. I take the bariatric Multivitamin w/ Iron in the morning and that's it. I was told once you hit 6 months out, you don't need it anymore because you'll get what you need from your food. Hmmm...I wonder if I should ask about it again.

we were told taking vitamins (and other supplements) was for life. The malabsorption of vitamins with either RNY or DS (and its other versions - like SADI) is permanent. That said, I was told by my endocrinologist (whom I see for osteoporosis) not to take calcium supplements anymore, because I was spilling a ton of it in my urine, and my blood levels of that and that other value (forget which one it is - but it's the one that indicates whether your body is leeching calcium from your bones) indicated I had hypercalcemia - which can damage your kidneys. I have my levels tested regularly, and it's clear that my body is absorbing enough calcium from my food - but I think I'm an exception.

If i remember correctly, i took my multi and one of my calciums in the morning with a tbsp of greek yogurt (if i didn't i'd get nauseous because i don't eat in the mornings...never did, even pre-surgery, and still don't). then 2 more calciums with Vit Ds later in the day/evening.

i only had to take iron for 1 week, and during that time i didn't take the calcium cuz they were sooooo humongous and i didn't yet learn the greek yogurt trick.

i remember sometime around month 2 post op i started taking those chewable calciums (chocolate flavoured, yum!). did this for a couple months then went back to the ginormous horse tablets.

now i am in no way endorsing the following (without talking to your doc first), but full disclosure, i stopped taking any/all vitamins/supplements around the 1.5 year mark. my doc/team knew this and had no concerns because my labs always came back satisfactorily....and continued to do so until my last followup with my surgeon at the 5 year mark last fall. going forward i suppose this will need to be monitored at my annuals with my primary care doc.

oh, i should mention i'm also a sleeve....

So it's supposed to be at least 2 hours between iron and calcium and I think the same for calcium and calcium as your body can only absorb about 500 mg at a time.

I take my multivitamin in the morning. Not quite first thing, as I take my probiotic/prebiotic first on an empty stomach, then usually have a proffee or reg coffee depending on the day. I am currently on 2 calcium chews a day, so I split that between midday and nighttime.

I was first taking a bariatric multivitamin w/iron and 3 calcium chews a day. At my 8th month post-op checkup, my vitamin D levels were on the higher end of normal so my dietician wanted me to cut back. So I had to switch to a regular multivitamin (bariatric has 3000iu of Vit D) and cut back on the calcium chews since they also have about 800 iu each of vitamin d.

Even though in my diet I get in quite a bit of calcium rich foods, I was advised to continue with the 2 chews a day as unfortunately a blood test doesn't give a clear picture of what is happening in the body calcium wise.

If you are deficient in calcium, your body will pull it from your bones. The blood work will look good as it is getting calcium, but slowly your bones are getting weaker. It's usually not until it's too late that you may be aware with teeth, bone and other body issues.

23 minutes ago, Shanna NYC said:

f you are deficient in calcium, your body will pull it from your bones. The blood work will look good as it is getting calcium, but slowly your bones are getting weaker. It's usually not until it's too late that you may be aware with teeth, bone and other body issues.

good point...should add that yearly labs should include bone density scans. be sure to remind your doc (if they didn't already order it) for a baseline bone density scan BEFORE your surgery.

Edited May 1, 20242 yr by ms.sss

2 hours ago, ms.sss said:

now i am in no way endorsing the following (without talking to your doc first), but full disclosure, i stopped taking any/all vitamins/supplements around the 1.5 year mark. my doc/team knew this and had no concerns because my labs always came back satisfactorily....and continued to do so until my last followup with my surgeon at the 5 year mark last fall. going forward i suppose this will need to be monitored at my annuals with my primary care doc.

oh, i should mention i'm also a sleeve....

yes - some sleeve people can do this - but very few with the malabsorption surgeries (RNY, DS, SADI) can. The consequences of not taking supplements are much worse for us.

I take all my other vitamins and supplements, just not calcium. I get so much from the almond milk, cheese, sour cream, and other foods that I have everyday that I haven't needed to take it. And my blood work always comes back good. Almond milk has a lot more calcium than cow's milk, so maybe that's why.

1 hour ago, SleeveToBypass2023 said:

I take all my other Vitamins and supplements, just not Calcium. I get so much from the almond milk, cheese, sour cream, and other foods that I have everyday that I haven't needed to take it. And my blood work always comes back good. Almond milk has a lot more calcium than cow's milk, so maybe that's why.

Someone posted on here that it’s leeches from you bones for a while so you don’t really know it that your actually low from labs until it’s too late unless you are getting regular bone density scans?? @catwoman7 mentioned it on this thread. I plan to talk to my dr about that and ask if I can get a bone density scan ant my age as @ms.sss suggested. I also use almond milk and eat alot of cheese but idk how much of that I will malabsorb post bypass. Hopefully I do get enough from diet though. Would be nice to need less vitamins.

Edited May 3, 20242 yr by ShoppGirl

I used to struggle big time with the timing of my supplements, especially Calcium and my multivitamin with Iron. I tried different combos but always felt off, either nauseous or I’d just forget to take something. What’s worked lately is spacing them like Calcium with lunch and dinner, then the multivitamin with a small snack later at night. I learned the hard way that taking Iron too close to Calcium blocks the absorption, so I don’t mess with that anymore. And Greek yogurt has helped me too. It's gentle on the stomach for taking pills, especially early in the day.

I’ve also been using this app called Menalam that figures out when and what to take based on your diet and habits. It gives personalized supplement recs, and I only adjust when my schedule changes or new lab results come in.

Edited May 7, 20251 yr by c945105