Are you sure you're getting all the calcium you think you are? - Page 2 - ThinnerTimes - Gastric Bypass Forum, Lap Band Forum, and Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy Forum

myaimistrue · 08-19-2008, 02:00 PM

Calcium Question, figured I'd put it here.

My protein shake says that it gives 100% of daily calcium in each 11oz serving. Does anyone else factor in their shakes into their calcium totals for the day? I'm still struggling to find the calcium for me, but if i'm drinking 2 shakes a day that say they give me 100% each, how much more calcium should I be taking?

Thought?

Corrine · 08-19-2008, 02:16 PM

I don't factor in any of the calcium I get in from food etc. I drink at least 24oz of milk plus cheese plus yogurt.

The normal additional requirement is between 1,500 and 2,000mg of calcium citrate per day.

myaimistrue · 08-19-2008, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Corrine

I don't factor in any of the calcium I get in from food etc. I drink at least 24oz of milk plus cheese plus yogurt.

The normal additional requirement is between 1,500 and 2,000mg of calcium citrate per day.

May I ask why you don't factor these things in? I know that as a post-op patient, we need more than the average person, but do we really need upwards of 350% of the daily requirement?

Duckie · 08-19-2008, 03:16 PM

If we got our calcium from our food we wouldn't have to take extra vitamins. Our bodies don't absorb it due to our "re-routing" therefore we need the supplements.

watfam4 · 01-12-2009, 08:46 AM

Just an FYI - You can take as much Calcium as you want as your body will not absorb more than it needs (water based). However, vitamin D is oil based and you can overdose on this. I did.

Corrine · 01-12-2009, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by watfam4

Just an FYI - You can take as much Calcium as you want as your body will not absorb more than it needs (water based). However, vitamin D is oil based and you can overdose on this. I did.

Although there is no clear information as to how much a WLS patient malabsorbs, there is clear evidence that you can overdose on calcium supplements:

Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Calcium

Quote:

While low intakes of calcium can result in deficiency and undesirable health conditions, excessively high intakes of calcium can also have adverse effects. Adverse conditions associated with high calcium intakes are hypercalcemia (elevated levels of calcium in the blood), impaired kidney function and decreased absorption of other minerals ... (high calcium intakes is the potential for calcium to interfere with the absorption of other minerals, iron, zinc, magnesium, and phosphorus)....

Additionally, men who ingested more than 2,000mg of calcium/day were nearly double at risk of developing protate cancer (but this was a study done by the American Asociation for Cancer Research on non-WLS patients). Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University

watfam4 · 01-12-2009, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Corrine

Although there is no clear information as to how much a WLS patient malabsorbs, there is clear evidence that you can overdose on calcium supplements:

Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Calcium

Additionally, men who ingested more than 2,000mg of calcium/day were nearly double at risk of developing protate cancer (but this was a study done by the American Asociation for Cancer Research on non-WLS patients). Linus Pauling Institute at Oregon State University

I can only attest to my own experience with not regulating my vitamins properly. But at one point I was passing kidney stones on average of 1 or 2 a month (I wish that was an exaggeration). I also had what is called Ossification of a Mid-line Incision. Basically, I had a bony mass that was growing along my RNY scar just below my sternum. By the time it was removed (when I had my hernia repair) the mass had grown to the size of a lemon.

To be fair, I did have kidney stones pre-op at a rate of about 1 a year. Since getting on my current vitamin regiment I have not had serious (take me to the ER) kidney stone in over a year now.

One other note - The vitamin D overdose is cumulative. I am guessing that I was overdosing at least a year before something showed up in my blood work (alkaline phosphatase levels out of normal range).

Corrine · 01-12-2009, 03:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by watfam4

I can only attest to my own experience with not regulating my vitamins properly. But at one point I was passing kidney stones on average of 1 or 2 a month (I wish that was an exaggeration). I also had what is called Ossification of a Mid-line Incision. Basically, I had a bony mass that was growing along my RNY scar just below my sternum. By the time it was removed (when I had my hernia repair) the mass had grown to the size of a lemon.

To be fair, I did have kidney stones pre-op at a rate of about 1 a year. Since getting on my current vitamin regiment I have not had serious (take me to the ER) kidney stone in over a year now.

One other note - The vitamin D overdose is cumulative. I am guessing that I was overdosing at least a year before something showed up in my blood work (alkaline phosphatase levels out of normal range).

In fairness, I should ask exactly how much calcium you take on a daily basis.

The currently recommendation is between 1,500 and 2,000mg/day broken into 500mg doses.

For anyone else, before you decide to increase the WLS recommended doses of vitamins or supplements, run it by your doc/surgeon/NUT first.

watfam4 · 01-13-2009, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Corrine

In fairness, I should ask exactly how much calcium you take on a daily basis.

The currently recommendation is between 1,500 and 2,000mg/day broken into 500mg doses.

For anyone else, before you decide to increase the WLS recommended doses of vitamins or supplements, run it by your doc/surgeon/NUT first.

I am taking 1500 mg daily. The problem (as I see it) was that this included 3x of the RDA of vitamin D, and I am already getting 2x with my multivitamin. I am guessing that I had been dosing 5x the RDA of vitamin D every day for over a year. And this is not accounting for the vitamin D I get from sunlight (and I live in Florida). Anyway, I'm not sure if we have any malabsorptive issues for vitamin D, but as my blood work indicated that I was getting more than I needed, I've cut out the "Plus D" vitamins.

Corrine · 01-13-2009, 02:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by watfam4

I am taking 1500 mg daily. The problem (as I see it) was that this included 3x of the RDA of vitamin D, and I am already getting 2x with my multivitamin. I am guessing that I had been dosing 5x the RDA of vitamin D every day for over a year. And this is not accounting for the vitamin D I get from sunlight (and I live in Florida). Anyway, I'm not sure if we have any malabsorptive issues for vitamin D, but as my blood work indicated that I was getting more than I needed, I've cut out the "Plus D" vitamins.

Having read your posts again, I think your message relates more to the matter of vitamin D rather than calcium. And is probably worthy of an entirely new thread.

But to get back to calcium.

The current RDA for calcium (elemental) is 1,000mg/day (19-50yrs) and 1,200mg/day (51yrs and over).

The Upper Intake Level is 2,500mg/day.

But that is for people with intact stomachs.

The latest recommendation for WLS patients (ABMBS Guidelines released March 2008) is: http://www.asbs.org/Newsite07/resources/bgs_final.pdf

RNY: 1,500-2,000mg/day elemental calcium
BPD/DS: 1,800-2,400mg/day elemental calcium

Your 1,500mg/day is well within those guidelines.

But again, to bring this thread back on track, I'll repost the original message because it is important:

Quote:

We all know that we should be taking calcium citrate and not carbonate, right?

This has probably been posted before but with all the newbies, it's definately worth mentioning again.

Did you know that the amount of calcium citrate shown on the label isn't necessarily the amount of elemental calcium you think you're getting. And more to the point, it isn't the amount you need for bone health.

If the label says (and I use 500mg as an example):

Quote:

"500mg calcium as calcium citrate" - you get 500mg elemental calcium.

"500mg calcium from calcium citrate" - you get 500 mg elemental calcium.

"500mg calcium (calcium citrate)" - you get 500mg elemental calcium.

"500mg calcium citrate" - you get about 125 elemental calcium.

"500mg calcium" - who knows! Chuck it away.

Please start a new thread about your experiences with vitamin D. Overdoing any vitamin/mineral has consequences which is important to share.