Blood loss and passing out

A person can lose a significant amount of blood without experiencing any side effects or dying. The exact amount of blood loss depends on your size, age, and all-around general health. Adult men, on average, have more blood than most adult women. This means that men can lose a little more before experiencing the passing out stage. Children, on the other hand, have less blood than the average adult, so even small blood losses could be bad for children.

Being a blood donor is a very good thing

The day before you go to the local Colorado Springs Blood Donor Center, you need to be drinking plenty of water and keep hydrated. You need to eat a good solid meal the night before your donation and get plenty of rest. Eat another good meal one to two hours before you donate blood and remember to drink water throughout the day and limit caffeine drinks like tea and cokes. If you are donating platelets, do not take aspirin or anything containing aspirin for 48 hours prior to donation. Please consult your doctor before stopping any of your medications.

Diseases and conditions that cause your body to produce fewer red blood cells:

• Aplastic anemia
• Cancer
• Certain medications
• Chronic kidney disease
• Cirrhosis
• Hodgkin’s lymphoma
• Hypothyroidism
• Inflammatory bowel disease
• Iron deficiency anemia
• Lead poisoning
• Leukemia
• Multiple myeloma
• Myelodysplastic syndromes
• Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Vitamin deficiency anemia

Bleeding

Typical causes of blood loss in people include giving blood for testing at the doctor’s office, menstruation, a nosebleed — which normally doesn’t cause complications. But experiencing an injury or undergoing surgery may cause severe bleeding and require a blood transfusion.

Being a blood donor is a very good thing to do. It can help so many people in the world. Thank you for taking the time to read this blog.