Hey bandsters have a couple of questions

[gabby 0]

Thank you for answering;

!.) Do you take Vitamins? If so what kind? Can you take large pills? What about an advil? Anyone taking or needing Fiber laxaives? (aka metamucil) Seems to me if ya have to chew to consistency of baby food that pills could get stuck.

2.) What about salads and raw veggies any problem there?

[donali 57]

Hi Gabby -

I have had four fills, and am pretty restricted. I cannot guzzle Water anymore, and even got slimed yesterday on a swallow of ice Water (nice surprise - not! :sick lol)

Also, I am very hit and miss with my supplements. However, when I DO take them, I get out my little mortar and pestle and grind them into a powder. Then I either pour that onto the back of my tongue and wash down with water, or I put into a Protein powder mix and blend that up with some water and drink it down. Nothing gets stuck this way, but I have to admit it's not the most pleasant taste. (perhaps that's why I'm hit and miss? lol Actually, I was always hit and miss, so that's not it.) It's over quickly.

There are liquid and chewable Vitamins available - I'm cheap, so I buy the bulk tablets and grind them up.

Before you have much restriction you may be able to get away with whole tabs, or just cutting them in half. I just prefer not having any surprises. Plus, if they don't go through right away, even if they don't give you a stuck feeling, they're not sitting in liquid, so there's nothing really to help them dissolve. Even before I was banded I ground my Vitamins up for that very reason - I heard too many stories about pumped septic tanks and all the pills found there at the bottom. I know, gross, and TMI, but that's why I'm scarred for life on this matter and always grind up my tabs.

Now, very, very important - you must NOT crush or break anything that is "time-released", as that counteracts the time-release effect and you will get too much of the med at one time. Always best to check with your doc before crushing or breaking any prescription meds, or anything you're unsure of.

Onto fiber... If you're anything like me, you will definitely want something to help in this area. Before I was so tight, I messed around a little bit with psyllium husk type powders (like Metamucil sugar-free). I was SO nervous about that stuff gel-ing up in my pouch, however, that I never felt as though it was a safe thing to do. One time I got distracted for about 15 minutes, and when I went back to drink my Fiber it was a solid mass in my cup, and I'd only used a teaspoon. So, if you want to go this route, I would recommend using extreme caution, only a teeny-tiny bit at a time, and flush, flush, flush with water right after to make sure it all gets through before it gels up.

Now, I know what you're thinking... hmmm, if I have a pouch full of gel, I'll feel full, but won't have ingested any calories. Okay, well maybe you're too smart to think like that, but that was what I was thinking. Trust me, you don't need that kind of help, and if it goes bad... well, I don't even like to think about it.

So, I turned to my good friend prune juice. (I heard all those snickers out there!) Seriously, 6 oz of that in the morning, and I was good to go. Literally.:guess

True, prune juice is liquid calories, but in the scheme of things a miniscule factor in my daily intake. Something I've found to work just as well (GASP! ) is 2 cups of salad at lunch and 2 cups of salad at dinner. (Can you tell consuming veggies has never been my strong point? lol)

Now, some people have problems with lettuce. I was told by my doc's assistant that I wouldn't be able to eat lettuce - it would make me feel bloated. For me that's just not true. Even at this great restriction, 2 cups of salad slathered in bleu cheese dressing goes down fab. I do chew, chew, chew - and I do make sure it's lubed up with dressing. Salad has never given me problems.

Same with veggies, although I've heard cautions about fibrous veggies. Celery, for example, I eat - but I chew very, very well, and the fibers that get matted up I spit out - same with meat gristle. Obstruction is nothing I want to play with!

As you will find, however, each person's band is individually finicky, so what does or doesn't work for one person may not have anything to do with what works for you.

:cool:

[Alexandra 55]

Hi Gabby,

I don't have as much restriction as Donali, and am able to take normal-sized Vitamins with ease. Right after my fill I broke the larger ones in half, but after a while that proved unnecessary. I'm really fearful of getting a pill stuck, though, so after my next fill I'll definitely by splitting them again. But now that I've read all of her post I might be going for liquid vitamins too. (Yuck--I'm glad I don't have a septic tank that needs cleaning!)

I've always taken Vitamins even way before banding, so it's not because I'm banded that I do it. I haven't changed my variety--one multi, with extra C and E for good measure--at all since surgery.

Regarding fiber I too have recently discovered a need for help. My fiber of choice is Benefiber, about one tablespoon added to my morning coffee. It's non-thickening so I don't have to worry about the gel effect (yikes, Donali, that paints an awful picture!), and it completely disappears in hot liquids. I highly recommend it! (I also give it to my 5-year-old daughter, since she lives on chicken nuggets and gets constipated a lot.)

Prune juice would be the ideal solution, if just thinking about it didn't repulse me with the force of a thousand jet engines!

[BEBBLY 1]

I use 2 Flinstones chewables, 2 Calcium chewable and 1 sub-lingual B-12. I have taken advil without a problem but interestingly enough I use to take at least 7-10 advils a month before getting banded. I used to get terrible headaches- the kind that made you wish you could cut it off! But since being banded (8-7-03) I have had the need to take it only 2x! Go figure!

As for the prune juice... oh my God we buy it by the case load in my family because everyone seems to have that problem! When I feel the need I just make myself a small salad and a nice helping of olive oil & lemon juice. It tastes great and does the job well.

Mary

[leo 4]

I take flintstones chewables and fiber fortified soymilk for Protein and fiber.

Whats the B12 needed for Bebbly??

[shellyj 5]

hair loss Leo!!! it makes you hair and nails GROW!

I take one a day chewable with Iron added or 2 Flinstones Vitamins.

on fiber right now its not an issue i do have some correctal gel tabs (didnt work when i did take them just made me have GAS) and ex-lax for extreme cases. i just love my veggies though and can usually tell when i need more broccoli! or salad! i also love spinach dip but i think;) the cheese would offset the fiberous value from the spinach. he he

no problems YET with any veggies i have tried. most problems come from chicken breast. i have to eat it either with sauce of some sort or have to cook it on the bone to retain miosture. i am opting more and more to just go straight for the dark meat.

good luck gabby!

Michelle

[donali 57]

Alexandra, I'll have to give the Benefiber another try. I did buy some once, but don't recall why I stopped using it.

[claraluz 2]

I have what I consider to be ideal restriction, though I am not as tight as Donali, but maybe close. I take four medicines daily including one which is a large pill that has a smooth coating. I take another large pill that is an aspirin-type texture and that one I cut into three peices and cross my fingers. But so far, I haven't had a problem.

Just after surgery when I was on liquid and mush, I crushed my pills. I would put the crushed pill into a tablespoon of nonfat yogurt with a sweet drink standing close by. The yogurt washed down with a small sip of drink made the pill wash down without my being able to taste it.

I take chewable Vitamins.

Nancy

[leo 4]

Originally posted by shellyj

hair loss Leo!!! it makes you hair and nails GROW!

Michelle

LoLs, no wonder I was loosing hair! I guess I will have to add B12 !

Thank god the hairloss of mine has stopped. Its getting mighty thin up there!

[mezazea 0]

You all may want to consider your Iron intake as well. I recently had blood work done and was found to be somewhat anaemic. I am taking a dose of Floradix twice a day now. It is a vegetable based iron supplement and doesn't taste half bad. I also take a Centrum Forte (seniors) chewable Vitamin, 2 Viactic chewable Calcium. I haven't had any Hair loss at all.

[Leannie 0]

Gabby:

I haven't gotten my band yet, but have done a lot of thinking about the supplement and pill subject. I take a lot of Vitamins and supplements and was told that yes, the liquid Vitamins are more expensive, but they have a 90% absorbancy rate, whereas the pills are very low. I can't remember, but I thought it was like 20% or less. So I guess the liquid ones would be worth the money.

[Penni60 45]

what liquid vitamins are out there? which ones have the highest concentration of Vitamins and minerals? I am crushing my vitamins right now and boy it is not only a pain but they really really taste bad. YUK!!!

[donali 57]

Supposedly costco has a liquid Vitamin called... uh.... I wanna say "Glacier Milk" or something or other. I have never been able to find it, but I have been told by this person that they get it all the time.

I saw liquid Adult Centrum at Longs the other day. It was about $9 for I believe a 20 day supply. They also had an adult chewable.< /p>

I mix my crushed Vitamins with so much other stuff you can't taste them. I use that Super Green powder and Alfalfa Powder, chocolate soy milk, a banana, two packets of SweetnLow, 3 scoops of soy Protein powder, some flax oil, the ground up Vitamins and a bunch of crushed ice run through the blender for a couple of minutes. It looks really repulsive, but doesn't taste that bad. Maybe my taste buds are dead, though... lol

[New Hope 37]

My gastrologist also recommended Benefiber. He said Metamucil just expands in your stomach. (I take it because of colon polyps and as a laxative.) You can add it to about anything.

I have been dissolving my prescription meds. in a tablespoon of Water before taking them. I don't want anything getting hung up. So far, so good.

[loisbase 0]

From the pharmacist (that's me!) There is liquid children's Advil. I take a lot of Advil every day! It is 100mg/5 ml so you may be talking about taking 2 to 4 teaspoonsfull at a time. Also, Donali makes a VERY important point, time-release meds cannot be crushed. Some of the capsules with "pellets" in them can be opened and sprinkled on food e.g. Prevacid used for reflux, but others can't. Any local pharmacist can tell you which can and cannot and can recommend alternatives for you to suggest to your MD. Be suspicious of all coated talets until you know better. Often they have names that end in "CR", "SR" or "TR".