Reddit mentions of Vitron-C High Potency Iron Supplement with Vitamin C, Boosts Energy, 60 Count

Pharmacist here.

“Unmarked,” film-coated tablet that appears decently sized. My best guess would be something like this combo supplement of Iron and Vitamin C.

I'm sorry you're having such a tough time! Learning about eating well can be really overwhelming. I've struggled with gaining weight at times too, so I can relate. I agree with some of the recommendations that have been posted so far (more frequent small meals, grains, bars, multivitamins).

My suggestions:

• Try to consume high-calorie foods. IMO, the most convenient sources of calories are foods like bananas (a fast way to get 100 kcal), avocados (if you can afford them, lol), dried fruit, dark chocolate - 250 kcal per serving, 225 kcal per serving, granola, rice, quinoa, potatoes, and sweet potatoes. If you can find a trail mix with nuts, dried fruit, and dark chocolate, that’s a great way to get in some calories!
  
  
• Eat healthy fats! Good sources of calories include nuts (especially almonds, macadamia nuts, and walnuts), nut butters (peanut butter, almond butter, etc.), and oils (olive oil, coconut oil). Honestly, one thing I've done before is to buy some coconut oil and eat a spoonful at a time (15ml has 123 kcal!). It doesn't taste like anything, so it's easy to eat, and it's a super-fast way to get calories.
  
  
• You mentioned trying but not being able to tolerate Ensure. I highly recommend other forms of liquid calories, such as protein shakes or pre-made smoothies. These are some I like:
  
  • Naked Juice smoothies - these contain good-for-you ingredients, and some of them are good sources of protein, too. They're high in sugar, but all of the sugar comes from the fruit (plus it sounds like you need sugar).
    
  • Innocent smoothies
    
  • Orgain protein shakes: These are pre-made (ready to drink) and have 140 kcal + 20g of protein. You can also get Orgain in powder form, which is probably more cost-effective, but less convenient.
    
  • Sunwarrior rice protein powder is dairy-free and vegan. It has less calories than the Orgain (80 kcal + 16g of protein per serving), but it's less expensive.
    
  • If you decide to try a protein powder, I recommend getting a shaker bottle like this one - they make it so much easier to mix up protein shakes.
    
    
• Definitely try some protein/snack bars, as /u/allycat-alison mentioned. I like Larabars, Luna/Clif bars, and Kind bars.
  
  
• Your energy is probably low for many reasons (not sleeping because of stress, feeling depressed, not eating enough/low blood sugar) - another reason may be having low iron. You could try an iron supplement and see if that helps. Another potential source of low energy is depleted B vitamins, so a B-complex supplement could also be beneficial. This is a multivitamin I found that’s a good source of B vitamins, vitamin D (also related to energy), AND iron. It also contains vitamin C, which helps your body absorb the iron.
  
  
• I know you said you didn’t want your family to find out (and unfortunately, keeping all of this to yourself is even more stressful!). I'm not going to advise you to talk to them, because I don’t know your situation. BUT, your family shouldn't get suspicious if they were to find out you had a physical - a physical is a standard thing that everyone should have regularly, IMO. I think it would be really helpful for you to have one, because your doctor can order bloodwork (again, totally standard/understandable/nothing that should raise eyebrows) and find out if there's anything contributing to your situation, like anemia or low thyroid function.
  
  
• Does your uni have a student health center/offer counseling? I'm in the U.S., and many here do. It's usually included in your tuition, and it's anonymous, so no one would have to know. I would go by your health center and see if they have any nutrition and/or counseling services, because it sounds like you don’t have anyone to talk to, and you should!!
  
  
• Lastly, remember that tobacco is proven to reduce appetite, so if you can, please try to take your friends' help with quitting tobacco. You could also try cessation products like nicotine gum, lozenges, or the patch. Did marijuana not help your appetite? I almost always get the munchies!

These are my holy grail. They're higher in iron than most supplements, and they contain vitamin C which helps with absorption and helps prevent stomach aches and constipation. I'm chronically anemic (have been for years), and these have helped far better than any other I've tried. And it's $12 for 60 days.

I take this multivitamin because it seems to be the most complete but not outrageously expensive. The full dose is 3 pills and so I spread them out throughout the day. It's higher in zinc and selenium then any other multi I found, which I'm also usually deficient in. They have a gummy version, but it doesn't have as many micronutrients as this one.


And this iron it's a really high dose so I only take it every other day. I take it first thing in the morning with a glass of water and don't eat/drink anything for an hour or two because supposedly it's best absorbed on an empty stomach