Donating Blood 101
Thinking about giving blood?
Good.
It’s the right thing to do.
For a little less than an hour of your time, you can stay healthy
Benefits of Donating
Anti-aging effects. The theory is forcing your body to produce new blood cells feeds your body healthy cells to prolong a youthful appearance.
If you have Hemochromatosis, donating is a natural way of lowering your body excess iron levels.
Better blood flow. It makes your blood less thick and less prone to clot or arterial blockage. Electronic fields, radio waves, stress and anxiety are contributing factors to your blood being hypercoagulable.
Being O- means anyone can accept your blood. But only O- can accept other O-. We’re special :o)
If you are CMV-, that means you have these special antibodies that babies can accept.
Physiological Reactions
You can loose up to 250mg of iron.
Up to 6% depletion of your body’s ability to store oxygen in the cells (aka your v02 max) for up to 3–4 weeks. That means don’t be signing up for any crazy obstacle courses or competitions.
If you keep donating from the same location, you can develop scar tissue. That makes it harder to get to that vein.
Recovery tips
Expect to need 1–2 weeks of recovery.
From personal experience, don’t try to go for a run in the woods hours after donating. You’ll pass out and no one will be able to find you and they’ll think you’re dead somewhere.
Ben Greenfield suggests utilizing the following supplements for 10–14 days post donation:
· Floradix
· Coconut water (electrolytes)
The Red Cross is an excellent source of more information.
