Warning: all bariatric supplement vitamins are not created equally! Unless you want to run a high risk of malnutrition, you should invest in a safe nutritional supplement to be part of your gastric bypass surgery diet. But you have to use caution to select the right ones. Why? Because the vast majority of multi-vitamins, individual supplements, and protein products are anywhere from 25% to 50% filler! Whether they come in capsule, tablet, chewable, liquid or powder form, most contain an astounding (and astoundingly unhealthy) amount of filler. This filler can pose risks to your health due to poor absorption and the potential for allergic reaction. The following article will tell you what filler is, why it is unhealthy, and what you can do about it.
What is Filler and Why is it Unhealthy?
Vitamin A Liquid
Filler is a chemical product commonly put into vitamin supplements in order to hold them together. It is also used to flavor, enlarge, or improve the appearance of pills, capsules, and chewables. Fillers can severely restrict the absorption of vitamins into your bloodstream. This is inconvenient in normal pro-vitamins and nutritional supplements. Bariatric vitamins must be able to disperse easily in your system for you to get the nutrition you need, therefore; anything that prevents quick and efficient absorption can pose a serious risk to your health.
Fillers in Chewable, Tablet, Capsule and Liquid Forms of Bariatric Vitamins
Advertising for vitamins and supplements often flaunt the fact that the product "tastes great". The reason one is able to consume them is due to the added filler, which allows it to be palatable. If chewable vitamins contained no filler, the flavor would be highly unpalatable.
A common misconception about chewable and liquid form vitamins is that they will be quickly absorbed into the blood stream. In all actuality the filler hinders absorption of the product. What is perceived to be an easy way to ingest vitamins is actually a barrier. The same holds true for bariatric vitamins in tablet form. If it is in a tablet the chances are very high that some type of filler has been used in the product. Fillers or binders are needed to give cohesive qualities to powdered materials. To put it simply, the fillers or binders are used to hold the ingredients together.
The formation of capsules may also include toxic agents such as binders and fillers. As these are consumed over time, the toxic agents can accumulate and cause significant toxicity and absorption problems. The best and safest capsules contain no fillers, colors, sugars, flavors, lactose, gluten, or wheat.
Picture an orange - the inside consists of the vitamins which aid you, while the skin is the filler. Even though you need the peel to keep the orange intact so you don't leak juice all over your groceries, you can not very well get your vitamin C till you've peeled or cut the orange peel! The same holds true for fillers. The filler binds to the vitamins and minerals, often keeping your digestive system from utilizing them.
Fillers may be Harmful to Your System and Your Gastric Bypass Diet
Vitamin filler can also have some potentially disastrous effects. Some bariatric patients may be at risk for allergies related to the ingredients of the filler. These allergic reactions can include neurological effects. Symptoms include (but are not limited to) fatigue, memory loss, depression, anxiety, hallucinations, and insomnia.
Bariatric patients may find that the exact thing they thought was keeping them healthy, is actually doing just the opposite. It's important to make sure your gastric bypass vitamins contain no fillers or binders. Take a little extra time to look at the ingredients of your nutritional supplements--you will be extra glad you did.