Giving blood is good for health?

[shera]

So today was my first time giving blood. Normally I'd be opposed to it but for reasons I'm not going to bother to explain, I decided to go ahead with the donation. Coincidentally, I came across an article explaining that since us guys accumulate iron in our bodies, especially for those of us who take multivitamins with iron, giving blood is a good way to reduce excess iron in the body.

Excerpt:

Each time you give blood, you remove some of the iron it contains. High blood iron levels, Sullivan believes, can increase the risk of heart disease. Iron has been shown to speed the oxidation of cholesterol, a process thought to increase the damage to arteries that ultimately leads to cardiovascular disease.

Sullivan has long suspected that blood iron levels help explain why a man's risk of heart disease begins earlier than a woman's. Women lose blood -- and lower their iron levels -- each time they menstruate. Men, on the other hand, begin storing iron in body tissues starting in their twenties, which is just about the time their heart attack danger begins to climb.

According to Victor Herbert, M.D., a hematologist at the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, there are normally about 1,000 milligrams of iron "stored" in the average adult man's body but only about 300 milligrams in a premenopausal woman's. Once women stop menstruating, however, their iron levels -- and their heart disease risk -- begin to climb, eventually matching that of men.

Source: http://archives.cnn.com/2000/HEALTH/04/26/give.blood.wmd/

Do any fellow sherdoggers here donate blood, not because of some hippie liberal caring baloney, but for the supposed health benefits?

 

[turbozed]

Do any fellow sherdoggers here donate blood, not because of some hippie liberal caring baloney, but for the supposed health benefits?

Can't it be both?

Good find, and it sounds reasonable. Bleeding in general should reduce our iron. This is the case with chicks when they're on the rag. Giving blood is basically the same concept.

 

[Boozerguyzer]

I just stick to leaches

 

[Stormbringer]

Yeah I give blood every 2-3 months, and have for the past few years now. A former nurse I work with was telling me once that another reason it's good is because it 'removes free radicals from your blood'. Seemed logical, but I've never looked it up or anything. The iron part that you mentioned, that seems logical too. The thing is though, you can't donate on a day you plan to lift heavy. But at the same time, I've often wondered what impact it has on muscle recovery. I'd think it would have to have a somewhat negative effect. Say you lift heavy at 9pm, then give blood at ~9am the next day....I've wondered how that would affect blood glucose, and therefore insulin and therefore protein synthesis. Anyone care to field a guess on that one?

 

[JinKazama]

i need to give blood more

 

[DarkneT]

Ive never given blood but i intend on doing so when i have the time.

 

[MikeMartial]

But at the same time, I've often wondered what impact it has on muscle recovery. I'd think it would have to have a somewhat negative effect. Say you lift heavy at 9pm, then give blood at ~9am the next day....I've wondered how that would affect blood glucose, and therefore insulin and therefore protein synthesis. Anyone care to field a guess on that one?

Eades covers a whole chapter on this (iron accumulation) in Protein Power. I'll slap down a few comments later.

 

[Pro Killer]

Eades covers a whole chapter on this (iron accumulation) in Protein Power. I'll slap down a few comments later.

Ill look forward to reading that, thank you

 

[MikeMartial]

Ill look forward to reading that, thank you

I'd actually recommend picking up a copy of the book; it's a good read, and there's a review in the FAQ here.

The short-hand version of the chapter goes like this: Iron accumulates in your body over the course of a lifetime, and it's never excreted or lowered, except during trauma or specific disease processes. Well documented by anthropologists is the fact all early human cultures, from far northern climates to southern, had a common problem: parasites. Intestinal parasites caused low level chronic bleeding, and in reaction to this, we developed the ability to effectively store iron.

In modern society, this presents an issue; as we age, our stores increase, and excess serum ferrtin causes damage to internal organs. This isn't obviously rampant in society, but is clearly displayed by those with hereditary hemochromatosis (a genetic disease of increased iron storage). Eades recommends getting a serum ferritin blood value done, and based on that, donating blood to reach a specific value, therefore, negating any potential long term damage.

It's an interesting, thought provoking chapter in his book. I'm not sure I completely buy it, but there may be some merit to it.

 

[jkuhlmann]

i'm not allowed to give blood. I used to have lymphoma, and as a result i might carry some virus that they don't test for. I offered, they wouldn't take it.

At my last job they used to do blood drives. I ask this dumbshit guy whether he's going to give or not, and he replies (spanish accent) "nah man, i don't want to get fat". i'm thinking theres some language barrier so i ask him to explain.....according to him, when you give blood your body forever makes too much blood, thusly causing you to get fat.

 

[LyotoM]

Id rather just get bloodworks done. Feels good to know my cholesterol/triglycerides are ok.

 

[Sohryu]

Too bad I use roids and no one wants my blood.

Guess I'll just cut my wrists a little.

 

[Stormbringer]

In modern society, this presents an issue; as we age, our stores increase, and excess serum ferrtin causes damage to internal organs. This isn't obviously rampant in society, but is clearly displayed by those with hereditary hemochromatosis (a genetic disease of increased iron storage). Eades recommends getting a serum ferritin blood value done, and based on that, donating blood to reach a specific value, therefore, negating any potential long term damage.

It's an interesting, thought provoking chapter in his book. I'm not sure I completely buy it, but there may be some merit to it.

Huh, that's an interesting take on things. I don't recall my iron values from previous tests, but they were typically on the higher side of normal. ....I'm going to keep donating at the normal rate (~3 months).

Thanks for the summation!

 

[Michael Wanaka]

I don't have iron in my multi. Plus, when I was in high school, it seemed they always wanted us to donate blood on days where I had a sports event, so I never did.