If you have had or are considering gastric bypass surgery, you should be aware that good nutrition is important to maintain good health. Since it may be difficult to meet nutritional needs from diet alone after gastric bypass, nutritional supplementation becomes important for two important reasons:
1) Gastric bypass surgery can affect the absorption of some critical nutrients.
2) Dietary restrictions and reduced food portions after bypass surgery allow fewer nutrients to be consumed.
Choosing quality nutritional supplements can help meet your individual nutrition needs to promote lifelong health following bypass surgery. It is important to keep in mind that taking vitamins after your surgery is a habit, just like the new dietary habits that you need to develop. Therefore, you should treat your vitamin/supplement regimen as part of your daily routine.
Here are some nutritional supplement recommendations after gastric bypass surgery. Of course, any nutritional program must first be discussed with your physician after gastric bypass to make sure your individual needs are being met. Also, be sure to work with your doctor to check your nutritional levels every three months.
Multivitamin/mineral supplement A high quality multivitamin/mineral supplement will help ensure you are meeting your basic nutrition needs on a daily basis. With certain food restrictions, it may be difficult to meet the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for key vitamins and minerals every day through diet alone. A multivitamin supplement can help fill in the “gaps.” If swallowing a whole pill is difficult post-surgery you can crush most multivitamins to mix in your food.
Iron Iron can become deficient when part of the intestine (duodenum) is bypassed. While it is best to get iron from iron-rich foods in the diet (e.g. dark vegetables, legumes and red meats), supplemental iron can be beneficial when an iron deficiency is present. To prevent or treat an iron deficiency in the early stages, it is important to talk to your physician about getting blood work done regularly.
Super B-complex Certain B vitamins, particularly vitamin B1 (thiamine) and vitamin B12 (cobalamin) may become deficient with gastric bypass. Vitamin B12 deficiency can occur as a result of the alteration in stomach size and function, which may affect the production of intrinsic factor in the stomach. Anyone undergoing gastric bypass surgery should supplement with vitamin B12 to prevent deficiency and avoid pernicious anemia. These individuals would be under the routine care of a physician, who would periodically evaluate vitamin B12 status and recommend appropriate treatment. Vitamin B12 deficiency is also very common among vegetarians. If you are vegetarian and undergoing bypass surgery, vitamin B12 supplementation is essential. A Super B-complex supplement can provide higher amounts of these key B vitamins. Also, extra biotin may help in preventing hair loss.
Calcium Calcium is also an important mineral, and supplementation over the long term after a gastric bypass, may be necessary to help prevent osteoporosis. Calcium may be inadequate in the diet and absorption of calcium from foods may be impaired. Because the acidic environment in the stomach may be reduced from bypass surgery, the form of supplemental calcium is key. Calcium citrate that can be taken on an empty stomach without the presence of food and may be the best choice.
It is important to re-emphasize that individuals undergoing gastric bypass surgery, first talk with their physician before starting a nutritional supplement regimen--especially since after the surgery it will be critical to maintain a vitamin regimen for the rest of your life. This helps to prevent potential interactions with prescription medications following surgery. Furthermore, communicating with your health care provider while following a supplement regimen is necessary, since it is still possible to develop nutrient deficiencies. A regular physical check-up with your doctor and routine blood work is recommended to help evaluate nutritional status.
