Reason #9. “They’ll Take Too Much Blood and I’ll Feel Weak.”
The cookies and juice you enjoy in the canteen area after your life-saving blood donation aren’t meant to sabotage your diet — having a snack after your donation will help replenish the sugar and liquids you lost when you gave blood. However, you may still feel a bit tired until the next day.
While the minor loss in stamina caused by blood donation shouldn’t disrupt your normal, day-to-day activity, you should still avoid strenuous activity. For instance, we discourage from trying to do an intense cardio workout or to set a new record for how much you can bench press as soon as you leave the blood center. It’s best to wait anywhere from several hours to the next day for that type of activity.
In addition to drinking water and other refreshments, it’s a good idea to eat a meal high in protein before your appointment to help prevent feeling weak after giving blood. Eating well, drinking lots of water and taking it easy after donating should help you get back to normal in no time!
While your blood volume is replaced in only a few hours, your plasma isn’t replaced until after you’ve eaten a meal – which is why it’s so important to eat again after donating. If you bring your friends with you to donate, you’ll have the perfect excuse to go to your favorite restaurant afterwards and to celebrate each of you saving as many as three lives. And what’s not to love about that?!
Since it takes a few weeks for your red blood cells to be completely replaced after blood donation, you’ll need to wait for 56 days before you can donate again. The wait period ensures that you will always have enough blood to stay healthy and strong, even if you donate as often as you are eligible. Blood donations are vital to the health and welfare of our community, so don’t forget to schedule your next appointment before you leave the blood center; we look forward to seeing you again when your time is up!
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