5 Critical Things to Check Before You Donate Blood
Whether you’re considering donating blood or you’re a regular, blood donation is a noble gesture that saves the lives of a lot of people. However, it also has surprising benefits. Apart from the altruistic satisfaction of saving lives, donating blood also lowers the risk of heart attack, which is more significant in men as they don’t go through the menstrual cycle.
Also, people with excessive amounts of iron can benefit from blood donation. Are you aware that your body burns 500 calories to replace the blood that was removed? So you burn calories without effort by donating blood! (This doesn’t include making blood donation a weight loss strategy to consider.)
However, before you visit the hospital to donate blood, there are some critical things to check, which are:
- Your health status: This doesn’t mean how healthy you look, but how healthy you actually are. People who are diabetic, have HIV/AIDS, coronary artery disease, asthma, blood or bleeding disorders, cancer, etc. shouldn’t be allowed to donate blood. Even if you’re recovering from these conditions, inform the health professional firsthand.
- Prescription drugs you’re taking: If you’re on blood pressure medications, blood thinners, prostate and hair loss medications, or any other drug taken consistently, you might not be eligible to donate blood.
- Your job matters: Blood donation is not something you do, and you go about your business as usual. If your job involves strenuous activity, heavy lifting, or long hours of standing, then you should consider taking the day off after donating blood. This is because you need appropriate rest and nourishment after blood donation, which shouldn’t overlooked.
- Your diet: You need to eat well before donating blood. Consume iron-rich foods and take an iron supplement like NATURE’SFIELD FOLYBIN is recommended especially for teenagers and adults.
- Mental preparedness: The last but not the least of the five things to check before you donate blood is your Physical readiness. Physical readiness is important, but you should also consider your mental state. This is to avoid an adverse reaction to blood donation called a vasovagal reaction. Hence, there is an age limitation; caffeine intake, sleep duration, and an appropriate psychological state required before blood donation.
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What to Do After Donating Blood
You must rest, take more fluids, avoid intense exercise, and avoid beverages and carbonated drinks, no matter how tempting they seem. Also, don’t have a hot bath on the day you donate blood.
This World Blood Donor Day, we appreciate blood donors globally. However, for first-timers, the above critical checks are vital for you to know to have a seamless process. Therefore, following the above checks and including NATURE’SFIELD FOLYBIN will make the entire procedure safe and give you a sense of significance in impacting people’s lives.