I have been low carbing since late June '03 and have never used Ketostix,
never had bad breath or a bad taste in my mouth but have lost steadily.  Not
fast since the first two months, but about 3 pounds a month with no effort
except to limit my carbs, no exercise, either.  I figure if it's working I
don't need test strips.

If you belong to Sam's Club or Costco they have good cheap imitations of
Centrum Silver which is a good balanced vitamin without iron.  The reason
for no iron is that the low carb diet ends up being a pretty iron-rich diet
and you don't want to get too much iron.  There are a lot of opinions on the
other things you mention, the multivitamin will have D in it so you probably
don't need more.  Fish oil is good for you but not necessary.  I don't think
any vitamins affect the appetite much, the low carb eating does that,
particularly the consumption of enough fat to keep you feeling full.

In news:c0ae5d92.0401180944.9dcf1cf@posting.google.com,
Jetman5467 <jetman5467@aol.com> stated

Here is a list of my daily supplement intake and reference material as to
why I take them. .

Atkins Basic 3 - multi-vitamins - 3 tablets (1 - morning, 1 - noon, 1 -
afternoon) - daily cost is 48 cents - % daily value Vitamin A 20%. C 500%, D
50%, E 500%, Thiamin 1,667%, Riboflavin 1,475%, Niacin 10%, Vitamin B6
1,250%, Folate 100%, Vitamin B12 41%, Biotin 100%, Panthothenic Acid 600%,
Calcium 25%, Phosphorus 19%, magnesium 31%, Zinc 100%, Selenium 100%, Copper
100% - Source:
http://vitacost.com/Store/Products/ProductDescription.cfm?SKUNumber=637480205580
&searchby=PN&SearchText=basic%203

Atkins Essential Oils - Essential Fatty Acids - 2 capsules (2 - noon) -
daily cost is 40 cents - your body does not produce these essential fatty
acids and it is very important that you take this supplement while on the
low-carb induction phase - % daily value Vitamin E 67%, Alpha Linolenic Acid
from flaxseed oil 440mg, Docosahexaenoic Acid from fish oil 160mg,
Eicosaphentanoic Acid from fish oil 240mg, Gamma Linolenic Acid (GLA) from
borage seed oil 192mg, Linolec Acid from borage, flaxseed and fish oils
405mg - Source:
http://vitacost.com/Store/Products/ProductDescription.cfm?SKUNumber=637480224161
&searchby=PN&SearchText=essential%20oils

Potassium - 5 tablets (5 - noon) - daily cost 15 cents - % daily value
Potassium 15% - I began getting severe leg cramps at night while sleeping
and found out that it was due to potassium defeciency as a result of the
low-carb induction phase so I began taking potassium supplements and also
started eating 1/2 of a medium sized banana each day even though a half a
banana contains 14g of carbs! - Source:
http://vitacost.com/store/products/productdescription.cfm?SKUNumber=027434010344
&searchby=PN&SearchText=potassium

Calcium Magnesium Zinc - 3 tablets (1 - morning, 1 - noon, 1 - afternoon) -
daily cost is 16 cents - % daily value Calcium 100%, Magnesium 100%, Zinc
100% - Source:
http://vitacost.com/store/products/productdescription.cfm?SKUNumber=015794024903
&searchby=PN&SearchText=calcium%20magnesium%20zinc

Folic Acid - 1 tablet (1 - morning) - daily cost is 3 cents - % daily value
Floic Acid 100% - Source:
http://vitacost.com/store/products/productdescription.cfm?SKUNumber=015794065210
&searchby=PN&SearchText=folic%20acid

Vitamin E - 1 capsule - (1 - afternoon) - daily cost 9 cents - % daily value
Vitamin E 1,333% - Source:
http://vitacost.com/store/products/productdescription.cfm?SKUNumber=015794075431
&searchby=PN&SearchText=vitamin%20e

Selenium - 1 tablet - (1-morning) - daily cost is 4 cents - % daily value
Selenium 285% - Source:
http://vitacost.com/store/products/productdescription.cfm?SKUNumber=033674410813
&searchby=PN&SearchText=selenium

Vitamin E and Selenium when taken daily for three years have been proven to
seek out any type of cancer cell (including prostate cancer) and send those
sells self destruct messages, in effect causing any cancer in your body to
commit suicide. If you take take Vitamin E and Selenium on a daily basis
your risk of getting cancer is almost completely eradicated - source of
information: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2001/07/010724081702.htm

Asprin - 1 tablet (81mg) - (1-morning) - for prevention of heart disease -
daily cost is 3 cents - source: http://www.health-marketplace.com/Asprin.htm

Fiber Laxative - 8 tablets - (2-morning, 2-noon, 2-afternoon, 2-evening) -
since a low-carb diet is low in fiber, the diet causes constipation and
difficulty in bowel movements. The fiber tablets when taken 2 at a time, 4
times a day, causes regular movements in the morning and in the evening,
eliminating one of the troublesome problems of the low-carb diet - the
tablets work much better then the tablespoon in water metamucil type. daily
cost is $1.60 if you buy the expensive fiber con tablets - generic tablets
are about half the cost - source:
http://www.manekineko.us/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=800&language=en

Best Regards,

PlacidBull
203/151/149 03/03

Since you are on limited funds I'd skip the Keto strips. As long as you are
following your plan and losing you should be fine. I'd concentrate on a good
quality multi vitamin. After that you could get a mixed oil product.
Nature's Bounty has one that contains fish, flax and borage. For me its
helped my skin and hair which tend to be dry even when I'm not dieting.

For the potassium, purchase a lite salt which contains potassium chloride.
If you are eating plenty of vegetables and some dairy you are probably all
right on the calcium. Still you might want to purchase some antacid tablets.
My local pharmacy stocks a generic equivalent of Tums with 150 tablets for
$3.50. When I started into menopause, my doctor suggested this as a cheap
calcium supplement.

Good luck