Bariatric Advantage Calcium Citrate Chewy Bite Chocolate Flavored

 

If you are a skimmer, and do not read:  Here is the man review.  I handed Mr. MM one of these chewy bites yesterday and would not divulge what they were.  I said,

"Eat this, give me your immediate reaction and review." 

"I'm not touching this unless you tell me what it is, you're poisoning me aren't you?"

"Trust me."  *giggle*

"I know, I know!  I know EXACTLY what it tastes like!"  He stops, looking at the ceiling and taking entirely too long with the chew.

"You know the edge of a pan of brownies?  JUST. LIKE. THAT.  Then, a little bit of crumbly stuff left in your mouth, not a lot, just enough for me to notice.  Now, WHAT am I eating?"

"Wait, would you be willing to eat these everyday for a supplement?  You think you could follow through with them?"

"Yeah, they're good."  He cracks a joke about him + brownies.

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My review is very similar, just more wordy.

First, the nutrition:  the bites contain 250 mgs of calcium citrate and 125 mgs of Vitamin D, each.   They are sweetened with a non-nutritive sweetener, polyglycitol, and also sucralose (Splenda):

"Polyglycitol syrups are a specialty category of hydrogenated starch hydrolysates. These syrups are based on sorbitol and maltitol, both of which are present in levels less than 50%. They contain lesser amounts of hydrogenated oligo- and polysaccharides and maltotriitol. Syrup is its typical form, but it can also be dried and supplied as a solid product."

Ingredients:  Polyglycitol syrup, Calcium Citrate, Cocoa Powder, Palm Oil, Natural Flavor, Mono + Diglycerides, Soy Lecithin, Salt, Sucralose, Vitamin D3.

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The Bariatric Advantage® Calcium Citrate Chewy Bites have been designed
with the weight loss surgery patient in mind.  They are sugar-free and only
have 15 calories per chew, far below the levels previously found in early
products.  The initial flavor is chocolate and will be followed next by
lemon cream.

Calcium Citrate that tastes like dessert – Wow! After weight loss surgery, many people are required to take a lot of calcium. At Bariatric Advantage, we recognize that providing different flavors and forms of this important nutrient helps assure compliance and makes taking large amounts of calcium much easier. Our Calcium Citrate Chewy Bites deliver 250 mg of elemental calcium as calcium citrate in a delicious chew. They also contain 125 IU of vitamin D3 for healthy absorption. These chews are sugar-free as well, so you don’t have to worry about getting extra carbs while you get the calcium you need. Each chew is individually wrapped so you can take them with you wherever you go.

The bites come in a bag.  Which seems like a good thing, less packaging waste.  Individually wrapped.  They are about the same size as a chewy omega, maybe slightly bigger.  My inital reaction was, "I hope this does not taste like a Tootsie Roll."  I think I expected something that looked like a chocolate dipped bite, like a protein bar, almost.  These are instead, just squares, plain.

The taste - OMG.  He didn't lie to me.  The bites taste like overcooked brownie batter, maybe like it was missing eggs and oil, just batter, cooked. 

To be honest, chewing it, I kinda delayed the process because it tasted good.  The texture looks like it should be Tootsie-Rollish, but it's not, it breaks down into a nice somewhat grainy feel.  I bet some will flip out and say it's gritty, however since I started with the whole OMGITZABROWNIE taste, to me, it was like sliiiiiightly granulated sugar.  There is no distinct after taste.  I am licking my teeth, nothing is left behind, nothing too sticky, in fact, they're not sticky like other chews.

As for the calorie impact of these chews - I have already seen people wigging out because it's OMG! 15 calories!  15 x's 5 even = 75 calories!  The horror!  Maybe I would have freaked as a baby post op, only taking in 500 calories.  How-ever.  I am a grandma post-op now, and 75-100 calories is equivalent to a slice of cheese over the course of one day.  /rant

Also, the price, "aren't these expensive?"  Thanks to Ms. Shari - did this - lol:

• 7 a day x 15 calories= 105 cals (but you don't have to eat 'em all-- could take tablets too)
  7 a day x 3 carbs= 21 carbs
  13 cents a piece (in lg quantities)
  91 cents a day for all your calcium needs
  $27.45 a month if this is your only calcium supplementation.

I have now had four in all.  Same experience every time.  Yum.

• Product - BA Chewy Bites
• Via - Bariatric Advantage
• Price -$29.96 for 240.
• Pros - Little chews of brownie love!  Taking calcium, especially if you've been tainted by yucky calcium of horse pills - can be a pleasure.
• Cons - I would have to take five a day, but I haven't decided if that's a pro or con.  We shall see if I am effected by the polyglycitols.  But, TMI, I never get in enough anyway - even with the calcium I already have and love.   (My thing is,  I really, really want to be able to take my supplements all in one shot. If I have to space it - I forget.)
• Rating - Pouchworthy, ^MM.  I would suggest these to non-WLS girls also, who need additional calcium, and are diabetic or would rather not have sugary calcium chews.

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