Long Termers-Vitamin Defiency

[emma-louise]

I had my bloods taken last week along with my 3mth B12 injection.
I'm waiting the results of them,as the last time my bloods was taken I was low on certain levels..
So all my meds was increased,my question is if anyone knows..is it hard to correct again ?

 

[CCPM]

It must be worrying for you Emma. Your GP should be fine to prescribe tablets or an injection (B12) that deal with most of these. Our own patients who have these problems, not always because of wls, can seem to take a while to get back in balance (I often deal with their tests and prescription requests as they need various information collected the reception staff don't have the time or knowledge to always deal with) and some of them never seem to but don't have major problems. If your GP doesn't seem to be getting you there Emma you may need a referral to the hospital to an endrocrinologist or haematologist who specialise in this type of thing.

Post bypass it is so essential to take good quality vitamins owing to the malabsorption we suffer and to ensure you get the right calcium tablets.

I hope the levels soon improve

M

 

[Yvessa]

One thing that annoys me is the fact that some hospitals seem to try and preempt these issues and some don't. I was told b12 every three months, calcium and iron every day. Also, in the US they are only prescribed calcium citrate. Why aren't we?

 

[CCPM]

Do you know Yve the true answer is that most GPs don't know much if anything about wls and what goes on afterwards and as to the variation between surgical teams don't get me started. If they can't agree on a common pathway what hope do we have?

I have read papers that suggest we should take much more than standard doses of everything as we malabsorb, some say B12 some never, some iron, some not bothered, calcium is almost always the wrong formulation. You would hope that your team would have this information decided on. When I asked about calcium citrate they said rubbish. I referred him to a you tube discussion by a surgeon who my own surgeon quoted to me as his US mentor which was strongly criticising US docs that failed to prescribe the right form of calcium and why. My surgeon's comment 'I must have missed that' ...hmnn very reassuring. I buy it now as its not easy to get on script most prescribable calcium is calcium carbonate cost less than a script charge £6.95

US forums are perhaps not interesting to some but they have people 10-15 years out. They do suffer from a lack of long term posters like we do but some stick it out and many have come back as they have problems. It is them I heed and take note of. No I am not expecting to suffer problems but I am of the forewarned is forearmed brigade. Whilst not wishing to be a hypochondriac I worry what my rearranged tum that is not being monitored by anyone will mean for me as I get further out. I was lucky enough to have read about a US lady suffering copper deficiency and the problems she had. I asked if I could arrange a private blood test for this at work out of interest (£28) and came back very low and so I was given the tabs to up it again. She suffered with terrible problems for many months until it was picked up I benefited from her experience and suffered none as it was dealt with in good time.

Learning from each other helps us be informed patients ...not sure how our GPs will view us ...probably as stroppy gits but better be stroppy than ill I say

M

 

[Yvessa]

I totally agree. I do think gps don't know enough and I am lucky that mind will do whatever I ask. I will ask about calcium citrate next time I see him.

 

[emma-louise]

I've just looked at my calcium and they are

Calcium forte ones(chewable lemon ones)
What's the difference between them both ?
Is it price,strength ?

 

[emma-louise]

Do you know Yve the true answer is that most GPs don't know much if anything about wls and what goes on afterwards and as to the variation between surgical teams don't get me started. If they can't agree on a common pathway what hope do we have?

I have read papers that suggest we should take much more than standard doses of everything as we malabsorb, some say B12 some never, some iron, some not bothered, calcium is almost always the wrong formulation. You would hope that your team would have this information decided on. When I asked about calcium citrate they said rubbish. I referred him to a you tube discussion by a surgeon who my own surgeon quoted to me as his US mentor which was strongly criticising US docs that failed to prescribe the right form of calcium and why. My surgeon's comment 'I must have missed that' ...hmnn very reassuring. I buy it now as its not easy to get on script most prescribable calcium is calcium carbonate cost less than a script charge £6.95

US forums are perhaps not interesting to some but they have people 10-15 years out. They do suffer from a lack of long term posters like we do but some stick it out and many have come back as they have problems. It is them I heed and take note of. No I am not expecting to suffer problems but I am of the forewarned is forearmed brigade. Whilst not wishing to be a hypochondriac I worry what my rearranged tum that is not being monitored by anyone will mean for me as I get further out. I was lucky enough to have read about a US lady suffering copper deficiency and the problems she had. I asked if I could arrange a private blood test for this at work out of interest (£28) and came back very low and so I was given the tabs to up it again. She suffered with terrible problems for many months until it was picked up I benefited from her experience and suffered none as it was dealt with in good time.

Learning from each other helps us be informed patients ...not sure how our GPs will view us ...probably as stroppy gits but better be stroppy than ill I say

M

What's is the signs of a copper defiency?
As this Was a level I was down on?
I've looked on the Internet,and it mentions you could have leg pains due to this..is this correct?

 

[Yvessa]

I don't know about copper but apparently we don't absorb calcium carbonate very well and absorb calcium citrate much better so we should be on calcium citrate.

 

[girlygirl1]

Hear, hear, CCPM! If healthcare professionals choose to see pro-active, informed WLS patients as stroppy and a pain in the butt, fine! It's best to find out everything you can about all aspects of bariatric surgery, and to research the personal experiences of others. As you say, even when things are going just fine it pays to be aware of what could at some point cause problems.

Make a noise, people! Be heard. If you are worried or have a troublesome complication don't hesitate to report it nor to make it clear that you won't be fobbed-off. Whether NHS funded or privately, the providers are being paid a small fortune and they have a duty to do right by patients at all times.

 

[emma-louise]

Hear, hear, CCPM! If healthcare professionals choose to see pro-active, informed WLS patients as stroppy and a pain in the butt, fine! It's best to find out everything you can about all aspects of bariatric surgery, and to research the personal experiences of others. As you say, even when things are going just fine it pays to be aware of what could at some point cause problems.

Make a noise, people! Be heard. If you are worried or have a troublesome complication don't hesitate to report it nor to make it clear that you won't be fobbed-off. Whether NHS funded or privately, the providers are being paid a small fortune and they have a duty to do right by patients at all times.

Mmm I agree with this,
As in my previous posts I've been suffering with stomach aches/wind and bloating every day.
And I do feel a bit pissed that this wasn't something mentioned as a potential side effect of gastric surgery.
Why can't consultants tell you everything?
After all we have got to live with this.