Re: Vitamin B and antacids and malabsorption

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 12/14/01 5:49:43 PM, duodenalswitch writes:

<< Do you thin it would be warranted to ask for you labs to be drawn

more often than annually after your first year?

How many times a year?

Is anyone as paranoid as I am about malabsorption of vitamins and

calcium as I am?

Do you feel getting a low result from an annual report could severly

endager your health?

>>

Theresa: I plan on doing the labs AT LEAST twice a year (every 6 months).

My PCP even agreed to do it every 3 months, so what the hell? I was going to

do it at 9 months but I was away in Michigan... so I decided to just do it at

the 12 month mark (next month). It will have been about 6 months since my

last labs....

I think it depends on how low the annual level is and what mineral/vitamin,

etc. A lot can happen in a year. Also, rates could be steadily (but not

rapidly) decreasing and this could be caught with more regular labwork.

I just arranged with my pcp to write out the labs every 3 months... He seemed

totally ok with that. I think every 6 months would be fine, too and then any

deficiency could be caught before it really got low... Also, it would give

the PCP something to compare to that is more accurate than the last year's

report...

all the best,

lap ds with gallbladder removal

January 25, 2001

Dr. Gagner/Mt. Sinai/NYC

10 months post-op and still feelin' fabu

preop: 307 lbs/bmi 45

now: 198 lbs/bmi 28/size sweet 16 by squeezin' into a 14! LOL

[Guest guest]

Theresa- I was told to have my bloodwork done every 3 months the first year.

I was low on D and the PTH so calcium was coming from my bones. I have done

it every 3 months and the nutritionists work along with me to adjust. I am

going next week and if everything is OK I will wait 6 months and do it again.

Ellen(Pam

[Guest guest]

Great question, Theresa! Ive been bothered by heartburn more now than I

ever did pre opt! Dr Welker said it was common but I havent heard of anyone

having a problem with it, have you? What kind of B vitmains will take care

of this problem, do you know?

Instead of taking tums Ive been taking Zantac which works well for me. I

just wondered why Im getting it now and didnt have it before....its only

been in the last couple months Ive had it! (not all the time but more than

usual)

Judie

[Guest guest]

Judie,

I know that I never had heartburn prior to DS surgery so when I did

get it, I really didn't know what it was! Thank goodness, my guardian

angel here told me what that pain was in her best guess, and the

prevacid cleared it up at first. Now I am on prescription

medication. I don't know why sometimes we have it, sometimes we

don't and some never get it all. However, it does seem from this

article that if you do use antacids, you should supplement with a

complex B vitamin...(6 12 etc) in addition to your multi vitamin, as

you should if you are older, or in our case, it almost seems all of

us should. If labs are coming back normal, on the other hand, then it

probably would just be overkill.

I have purchased a multi vitamin called vitamist. Its absorbed

sublingually and they claim that because the vitamins do not go

through the intestinal track, you should have 100% absorption. I

ordered two months worth, and since they screwed up my order, they

sent me an additional months worth. (There are $29 for one little

spray thing that lasts a month) Since then, they sent me another 3

months worth! I assume that was another screw up! But at least I

will have enough to get through my first labs and be able to see if

they are doing the job. At that time, if my labs all come out good,

I will pass on the information to everyone. I don't want to push it

till i finish using myself as a guinea pig since they are expensive

and I wouldn't want to steer anyone wrong!

Do ask you PCP or Dr. Welker about the increased acid, though. Maybe

you are adding more to your daily diet than before and this is a

totally normal reaction for you body, but I would still ask!

Huge hugs,

Theresa

Surgery date: DS Nov. 19, 2001

Dr. Gregg Jossart

Highest weight: 293

Surgery weight: 251

Current weight: 224

Height: 5' 7.5 "

> Great question, Theresa! Ive been bothered by heartburn more now

than I

> ever did pre opt! Dr Welker said it was common but I havent heard

of anyone

> having a problem with it, have you? What kind of B vitmains will

take care

> of this problem, do you know?

> Instead of taking tums Ive been taking Zantac which works well for

me. I

> just wondered why Im getting it now and didnt have it before....its

only

> been in the last couple months Ive had it! (not all the time but

more than

> usual)

>

> Judie

[Guest guest]

,

Thanks for the feedback. I also would like my labs drawn every 3

months. I think by the time you get an annual lab that shows

problems, you have gone potentially a year with calcium being leached

from your bones, or any physical manifistations or damage a years

worth of deficiency could cause.

I know both my surgeon and my pcp would agree to at least biannual

labs automatically, I just don't get why most bariatric surgeons

would be willing to wait a year! I also read some reports from a gal

on another list stating that low acceptable values could cause some

serious damage and that low for a " normal " patient is not the same as

low in a post op WLS patient. I just think that we all should be

responsible for getting a copy of our tests in writing, and become

acquainted with what all those results mean!

Thanks for your feedback,

I have been doing some reading about supplements and read an

interesting article in health magazine regarding Vitamin B and

antacids. It explained that folks who use a lot of antacids...(DSers

as well as the general population) can often be low or depleted in

Vitamin B as it takes stomach acids to break down and absorb Vitamin

B. Mostly, we have been told that RNYers have the most problem

needing Vitamin B and I am wondering for all of you post ops who have

had labs done, if anyone has had a low result in their Vitamin B

levels and if anyone is taking additonal supplements over their daily

vitamin?

Also, they say as you age, you produce less and less stomach acids...

(they consider 50 and older, aging...hurumph) which means we " older "

DSers would produce even less acids then younger preops and so even

if we got great labs all along, we could then be lacking in

absorption as we get older. Ok..end of story, but would love

feedback and impressions from you post op veterans out there.

Do you thin it would be warranted to ask for you labs to be drawn

more often than annually after your first year?

How many times a year?

Is anyone as paranoid as I am about malabsorption of vitamins and

calcium as I am?

Do you feel getting a low result from an annual report could severly

endager your health?

Thanks for you help on this,

Theresa

Surgery date: DS Nov. 19, 2001

Dr. Gregg Jossart

Highest weight: 293

Surgery weight: 251

Current weight: 224

Height: 5' 7.5 "

>

> In a message dated 12/14/01 5:49:43 PM, duodenalswitch@y... writes:

>

> << Do you thin it would be warranted to ask for you labs to be

drawn

>

> more often than annually after your first year?

>

> How many times a year?

>

> Is anyone as paranoid as I am about malabsorption of vitamins and

>

> calcium as I am?

>

> Do you feel getting a low result from an annual report could

severly

>

> endager your health?

>

> >>

>

> Theresa: I plan on doing the labs AT LEAST twice a year (every 6

months).

> My PCP even agreed to do it every 3 months, so what the hell? I

was going to

> do it at 9 months but I was away in Michigan... so I decided to

just do it at

> the 12 month mark (next month). It will have been about 6 months

since my

> last labs....

>

> I think it depends on how low the annual level is and what

mineral/vitamin,

> etc. A lot can happen in a year. Also, rates could be steadily

(but not

> rapidly) decreasing and this could be caught with more regular

labwork.

>

> I just arranged with my pcp to write out the labs every 3 months...

He seemed

> totally ok with that. I think every 6 months would be fine, too

and then any

> deficiency could be caught before it really got low... Also, it

would give

> the PCP something to compare to that is more accurate than the last

year's

> report...

>

> all the best,

>

> lap ds with gallbladder removal

> January 25, 2001

> Dr. Gagner/Mt. Sinai/NYC

>

> 10 months post-op and still feelin' fabu

>

> preop: 307 lbs/bmi 45

> now: 198 lbs/bmi 28/size sweet 16 by squeezin' into a 14! LOL

[Guest guest]

Theresa,

i believe the culprit for RnYers is that the lower stomach close to

the pylorus (antrum?) produces " intrinsic factor " which is involved

in the absorption of Vitamin B12. --Steve

At 12:09 AM +0000 12/15/01, timarie55 wrote:

>...(DSers

>as well as the general population) can often be low or depleted in

>Vitamin B as it takes stomach acids to break down and absorb Vitamin

>B. Mostly, we have been told that RNYers have the most problem

>needing Vitamin B and I am wondering for all of you post ops who have

>had labs done,

--

[Guest guest]

Ellen,

HIGH, not low PTH means that youdo not have cnough circulating

calcium, so the PTH (Patathyroid hormone) causes the bones to release

more calcium into the bloodstream. Not enough serum calcium -> more

PTH.

--Steve

At 7:06 PM -0500 12/14/01, Beauby1022050943@... wrote:

>Theresa- I was told to have my bloodwork done every 3 months the first year.

> I was low on D and the PTH so calcium was coming from my bones.

--