New Whey Protein Bullet Question - ThinnerTimes

Angel~in~KY · 05-04-2008, 01:30 PM

I was told by my nut that those 'New Whey' protein vials aren't optimal for post-RNY patients. I seem to remember something about the type of whey not being the best as far as absorption.

Anyone else been told anything like that, or know something more specific? (I'm not saying these are bad, just trying to get more info... they seem so handy!)

Here's the ingredient list:
Ingredients: 67.4% Pure deionized water, 31.5% Actinase* [patent pending blend of enzymatically hydrolyzed (predigested) collagenic protein isolate, less (ascorbic acid (c), niacin (B3), partothenic acid (B5), pyridoxine (B6), riboflavin (B2), thiamin (B1), folic acid, biotin and cobalamin (B12)], natural flavors, acesulfame-potassium, sucralose, blue 1 and red 40.

MiladyB · 05-04-2008, 02:08 PM

What the nutritionist has told me is that the whey isolate is the more absorbable protein for us. I'm not sure if the 'protein isolate' in those bullets is whey or not. It doesn't really say.

For myself I never used them. I got really creative with adding protein where I could plus used a bariatric product that gave me 15 grams of protein per serving. As long as I got 4 of those in during the day I was good to go. Usually it wasn't too hard to do. I was lucky because I could purchase the product from my surgeon's office at a discounted cost and I knew that it was made specifically for the bariatric patient.

Angel~in~KY · 05-04-2008, 03:04 PM

Thanks for the reply Beth =)

I think I'm going to attempt to stick with the unjury unflavored powder laced into pretty much everything but as of now the unflavored even has a flavor (or more of a consistency) that I find very unappealing.

I've still got some time to try to figure it all out before surgery... but hopefully not much! Things are seeming to start moving along for approval again after I got my Doc's office moving again (silly insurance person forgot to make any note about our last call and hadn't done ANYTHING for 2 weeks, probably wouldn't have done anything if I hadn't called).

I'm still hoping for late this month or early next month, cross fingers for me!

MiladyB · 05-04-2008, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Angel~in~KY

Thanks for the reply Beth =)

I think I'm going to attempt to stick with the unjury unflavored powder laced into pretty much everything but as of now the unflavored even has a flavor (or more of a consistency) that I find very unappealing.

I've still got some time to try to figure it all out before surgery... but hopefully not much! Things are seeming to start moving along for approval again after I got my Doc's office moving again (silly insurance person forgot to make any note about our last call and hadn't done ANYTHING for 2 weeks, probably wouldn't have done anything if I hadn't called).

I'm still hoping for late this month or early next month, cross fingers for me!

I know the Unjury is recommended by my nutritionist. I never used it postop but have tasted it since then. I had some pudding made from it that really wasn't too bad but yes, most protein powders even the unflavored seem to have some kind of gritty consistency or a protein flavor. I wasn't a big one for adding in protein powder to stuff.

The product I used can be purchased online though it is pretty pricey. You can find it here.

Bariatric Diets and Nutrition - SmartForme

They do have some sample packs you can try out. If anyone wants to purchase off the site you can use my practitioners code which is LVPMI

The liquid drinks that I liked the best were the fruit ones. The were a great change from the thick protein drinks. I also liked the pear/chocolate pudding which I was allowed to have the first week postop. The more solid things were added in later. I still eat the bars, soy crunchies and drink the fruit drinks even at 2 years postop.

Its a good product but like I said, its rather pricey. I'm just glad I can buy it pretty much at cost from my surgeon's office.

JumboJulie · 05-04-2008, 03:31 PM

Just be careful about how much you buy before surgery. I have heard it is very common for people's tastes to change after surgery. Mine changed drastically. After I got home from the hospital I couldn't drink the shakes I was used to ... the taste and texture made me nauseous. I tried the vials you're talking about. They taste absolutley terrible ... but since they are only 3 ounces, that was the best I could do and had to force myself to drink them.
I have finally found something that works for me. But that's after driving all over town buying and returning many brands and flavors.
Just keep in mind that what you like now, you might hate after surgery.

MiladyB · 05-04-2008, 03:48 PM

Julie makes a good point and it is something many people have found out the hard way. The protein supplements really are so extremely pricey so I would hate you to waste your money on something you may not tolerate after surgery. One little tidbit of info that I discovered that does help that situation a bit is that GNC allows returns of opened product. If it doesn't work you have 30 days to return a product, no questions asked. Also the last time I was in there I did notice that they carried the protein bullets. Still really pricey but at least if they didn't work out they could be returned.

I know a lot of people swear by them. Me? Well for me I wanted to stay away from them. I wanted to be able to discover ways to get enough protein in me without alot of supplements. I didn't want the 'crutch' of needing to have the protein supplements. I wanted to feel as 'normal' as possible so I wanted to eat as 'normal' as possible. The last thing I wanted was to feel even more 'different' than I already did. So I just got really creative with things I could buy right in my grocery store and relied upon my own creativity to make it work. Yes, I still used my surgeon's product...I had to for the first 2 weeks, but after that I tried to get away from using it as much as possible. If I was running low on my protein towards the end of the day with using regular foods...well then I would do a protein drink...if not...hey, I saved myself some extra money.

I most certainly am not saying this is the best way to handle the protein situation. We all have to find out what works for you as an individual. For me, this worked and pretty much from day one I got in my required protein.

JumboJulie · 05-04-2008, 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MiladyB

I most certainly am not saying this is the best way to handle the protein situation. We all have to find out what works for you as an individual. For me, this worked and pretty much from day one I got in my required protein.

I like the way you think! Every single thing that goes into my mouth MUST have a good amount of protein in it, or I just won't eat it. I try my best to get it with regular foods, and suppliment as little as possible. For now I am still very dependant on making my protein shake every day. But I am hoping to cut way back on it by 6 months out.
Those vials taste absolutely terrible. But for me, at the time, I just had no other choice. It was either that or nothing.
But now I use powder with milk and yogurt once a day for a great protein/nutrition boost.

AToM · 05-04-2008, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Angel~in~KY

I was told by my nut that those 'New Whey' protein vials aren't optimal for post-RNY patients. I seem to remember something about the type of whey not being the best as far as absorption.

.

I was told the same thing by my Dr's Nut. She took about 5 minutes to give us a lesson in amino acids - but I don't remember exactly why we were to avoid them.

Angel~in~KY · 05-04-2008, 08:12 PM

I haven't rushed out and purchased a bunch of stuff, I do realize that it is common for tastes to change so I'm working more on trying to find a handful of ways that are all so drastically different from each other that I have a great chance of at least ONE of them being semi-tolerable when supplements are just not optional.

Like Beth was saying about trying hard to get the protein from 'real food' I am all over that idea as soon as it's doable. Unless I lose my desire for yogurt, cottage cheese, string cheese and etc I think I'll be doing fine once I get my diet progressed at my 4 week visit.

So far my most tolerable medium for having protein supplement is to mix unflavored unjury with yogurt. I found a greek yogurt in my organics aisle that packs 15g of protein in one container (one container would probably be 2 servings post op).

I'm also tolerant of the chocolate unjury made like chocolate milk (when I can get the lumps out that is).

I'm definately going to pick up some powdered milk and try out a few permutations of those recipes to see if I can figure out a way to make a high protein coffee that doesn't taste horrible.

Everytime I've tried to do a combination of unjury powder with milk and ice I get a frothy mess that makes me want to hurl. Maybe what I need is some advice on how to make a good shake in a blender that doesn't have 4 inches of nasty FOAM on top. Any ideas?

MiladyB · 05-04-2008, 09:35 PM

Angel I suspect the Greek yogurt you found is the Fage 0% or something really close to that. I swear by that stuff! Yeah, early out it would be hard to eat an entire container but it is frequently my morning breakfast now. Something I do with that is make a smoothie with a container of the 2% Fage (17 g prot), 1 on-the-go orange crystal light, 1 c ff milk (8 g protein), 1 envelope sf vanilla carnation inst. breakfast (5 g protein), a little vanilla extract and Splenda to taste. That gives you 30 grams of protein. You could even throw in some powdered milk to increase it more or a second envelope of the carnation inst breakfast. It makes a pretty big glass so you probably would have to break it up into 2 servings early out but just 2 of those a day would give you your 60 grams of protein. Basicly what I did was plan on eating 4 'meals' and I tried to make sure that each 'meal' gave me 15 grams of protein.

I have noticed that some of the protein powders can be pretty lumpy. I've found that is I first add just a bit of milk to make a paste first and then slowly add the rest it helps.

The frothy drinks? I always found it best to make my protein drinks in a shaker to avoid that frothiness. Maybe if you would crush the ice first and then just pour in the protein shake over it, it would work better? I never tried it that way but it might be worth a try.

Let's see, I have a recipe somewhere around the house for the unjury and making it into a pudding. That really wasn't bad at all. I've also had in in like finger jello consistency that was passable but it was kind of a funny texture. I can't seem to find it right now but if I do I'll get it to you.

You've got the right attitude! There is a huge learning curve after surgery and you have to be patient but you will find what will work for you.

Add: I didn't find my recipes at home but I found the same recipes on-line. Here is the link for them. Gives some great ideas for the unjury!

Recipes

hmmm...ok, now you got me hunting. *L* Found one other interesting sounding one.

Bariatric Friendly Orange Frosty

1 12 oz can of Tropicana® Sugar Free OrangeAde
1 scoop of Unjury® Vanilla Protein*
Ice

Blend all ingredients together in a mini blender until pureed smooth. Pour into serving glass and sip.

*If you do not have Unjury Vanilla Protein, you may substitute one scoop of unflavored Unjury, and add 2-3 drops of Vanilla extract. You may also use your favorite brand of powdered protein, however, we have found that Unjury is consistently the best, most mild, does not taste like a protein additive, is easy to digest, and is our preference whenever we wish to boost protein in a recipe.

Nutritional Analysis: Calories, 85 (OrangeAde = 5, Unjury = 80). Protein, 20 grams. Fat, 0. Carbs, 0. Vitamin C, 150% of RDA, Calcium, 5% of RDA, Phosphorus, 4% of RDA, Potassium, 3% of RDA.