Gastric bypass surgery is a type of weight loss surgery designed to limit the amount of food you eat by reducing the size of your stomach. It is often recommended once you have tried and failed to lose weight through diet and exercise. According to the Consumer Guide to Bariatric Surgery, this surgery increases your mobility and reduces your risk of developing diabetes and heart and circulation problems. Treatment typically includes a healthy diet, therapy, regular exercise and vitamin supplementation. Vitamins are needed following surgery so that your body can receive nutrients no longer absorbed through food intake.
Thiamine
Taking thiamine following gastric bypass surgery can help you avoid some of the unpleasant side effects associated with gastric bypass surgery. In a report published in "The Lancet" in October 2008, Dr. Rachel Batterham and Dr. Alberic Fiennes, of the Department of Medicine at the University College London, U.K., studied a woman who was experiencing vomiting, loss of appetite, rapid heartbeat, dehydration and dizziness approximately two months after having gastric bypass surgery. A series of tests indicated that the woman had a thiamine, or vitamin B1, deficiency. Once she was intravenously administered thiamine, she made a full recovery. According to Batterham and Fiennes, the woman developed the deficiency from not taking the multivitamin that she was prescribed following the surgery. A thiamine deficiency can lead to cardiovascular problems, nervous system problems or eye movement problems.
Calcium and Vitamin D
It is essential that you take vitamin D following gastric bypass surgery because it helps your body absorb calcium. In a report published in the "Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism" in July 2008, Dr. Shonni J. Silverberg, an endocrinologist at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, evaluated a group of 23 morbidly obese women and men who had gastric bypass surgery and developed significant decreases in hip bone density approximately one year after the surgery. Silverberg emphasizes the importance of increasing the amount of calcium and vitamin D that you take following gastric bypass surgery. Calcium helps build and maintain healthy bones, and vitamin D helps your body more efficiently absorb the calcium. Silverberg further notes that gastric bypass patients need more than the usual amount of calcium and vitamin D to counter malabsorption, or the decreased absorption of food, caused by the surgery. As of 2010, the exact amount of calcium and vitamin D needed to prevent malabsorption is unknown.
Vitamin B12
An important vitamin to take following gastric bypass surgery is vitamin B12. According to The Western Pennsylvania Hospital, you will no longer be able to digest and absorb an adequate amount of vitamin B12 from your digestive tract following the surgery, so the alternative is to provide the vitamin directly into your bloodstream by administering it through a monthly injection or placing a dissolvable B12 tablet directly under your tongue.
Iron
It is important to receive an adequate amount of iron following gastric bypass surgery. You should take extra iron along with a multivitamin that contains iron on a daily basis once you are able to start eating solid foods. Iron often comes in a small tablet, but most of the time the tablet is small enough for you to swallow without problems. According to The Western Pennsylvania Hospital, you may experience nausea and constipation when supplementing with iron, so it is best that you take an ultra-absorbable type of iron, such as ferrous fumarate or ferrous gluconate. These types can readily be found over the counter at most stores.
Member Comments