This is to be considered when donating blood – Regensburg – Nachrichten

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Regensburg.Donating blood saves lives: Countless people depend on being given blood in an emergency. There is no alternative. Patric Nohe, press spokesman for the blood donation service at the BRK, explains how donation works – and what needs to be considered.

How important are blood donations?

There are many people who would have no chance of survival without foreign blood. These are people of all ages – from infants to old people. And there is a very wide range of diseases: Contrary to many assumptions, most of the blood is not used after accidents, but in cancer therapy for chronically ill people. This is followed by heart operations, stomach operations, transplants – and only then accidents. The range is very, very broad. And we don’t have any artificial alternatives to donated blood. Therefore, the blood donation is actually essential for survival.

Who is eligible for a blood donation?

In principle, anyone between the ages of 18 and 73 can donate, but you should weigh at least 50 kilos and of course be healthy. You should also feel fit on the day of the donation. Women can donate up to four times, men six times within twelve months. There must also be a minimum interval of 56 days between two blood donations. An exclusion criterion are certain previous illnesses, taking medication or staying in malaria risk areas, whereby one is only temporarily deferred. People who have just been tattooed or pierced are also put on hold for a short time. All of these criteria serve, on the one hand, to protect the donors and, on the other hand, to protect the recipients.

What does someone do who gets slightly dizzy even while taking their blood?

The most important thing is to eat and drink enough (alcohol-free) beforehand so that the body can adjust to it. Basically, a blood donation is very, very well tolerated. But if I notice that I feel weak, tired and exhausted, then I shouldn’t go to the blood donation. There is no help. And: with us nobody is chained to the chair. As soon as there are the first signs that the blood donation cannot be tolerated, the procedure is terminated immediately. We have very experienced colleagues on site who have an eye for something like this.