Donating blood and weight loss

kerenelly
kerenelly Posts: 61 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
I'm 21 years old, and weigh 117 pounds at 5 ft tall. I'm hoping to lose another 10 - 12 pounds.

I donate blood at my local clinic every 90 days, and each time I go they check my weight. During my most recent visit the woman mentioned that they don't allow anyone under 50 kg to donate blood. 50 kg is 110 pounds, so for me to reach my goal weight would mean I wouldn't be able to donate blood anymore.

I don't think 105 pounds is too low for me personally as I have a very slight build. However, not being able to donate blood anymore for the sake of a 5 or 6 pounds isn't really worth it in my eyes. So I think I'll see where I'm at when I reach 110.

Just wondering if anyone else had encountered this problem, or any other problems to do with losing weight and donating blood?

Replies

  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
    Easy solution. Lose the weight, then do a lean bulk where you put weight on in the form of lean mass. You'll be able to donate blood, and you'll end up looking more athletic/aesthetic in the process.
  • 29_adjacent
    29_adjacent Posts: 104 Member
    I have no experience with being too light to donate (at my goal weight now of 153lbs) and I'm not sure whereabouts you live but that sounds about the same as the limits where I live in Scotland. I believe there's also additional limits for females between 17-19 years old based on height/weight, although I'm not sure what the reasons are for those.

    However, since I've been losing weight my iron levels have never been high enough to donate despite eating what I believe to a much more iron-rich diet now. Seriously I don't understand how my terrible diet when I was fat gave me more iron than my pretty healthy/balanced diet does now!
  • hapa11
    hapa11 Posts: 182 Member
    Yes, I have thought of this too. I'm currently 122 and my blood bank here in California just told me they changed the requirements--instead of 110, donors now have to weigh 120. I haven't decided what to do yet because my target is 115.
  • Speckle38
    Speckle38 Posts: 53 Member
    I was turned away once for being under 50kg when I was around 19. I was too thin and it wasn't a sustainable weight for me. I'm 5'4"-ish.
    I've also been turned away more than once for my iron levels being too low.
  • slaite1
    slaite1 Posts: 1,307 Member
    My mom is 4'11", and teeny tiny. She has never been allowed to donate blood, the highest she's been has been about 101 pounds. See where you are at, but if you still want to lose, perhaps you can convince someone else to start donating for you if you get too small :-) just a thought
  • hrtchoco
    hrtchoco Posts: 156 Member
    Our blood donor center has weight requirement of 115lbs. I usually just eat a full meal and drink a glass of water before I go to make sure I can reach the weight requirement.

    I used to have an iron problem when I donated every 2 months, then I switched to every 3-4 months and I'm ok.
  • hekla90
    hekla90 Posts: 595 Member
    kerenelly wrote: »
    I'm 21 years old, and weigh 117 pounds at 5 ft tall. I'm hoping to lose another 10 - 12 pounds.

    I donate blood at my local clinic every 90 days, and each time I go they check my weight. During my most recent visit the woman mentioned that they don't allow anyone under 50 kg to donate blood. 50 kg is 110 pounds, so for me to reach my goal weight would mean I wouldn't be able to donate blood anymore.

    I don't think 105 pounds is too low for me personally as I have a very slight build. However, not being able to donate blood anymore for the sake of a 5 or 6 pounds isn't really worth it in my eyes. So I think I'll see where I'm at when I reach 110.

    Just wondering if anyone else had encountered this problem, or any other problems to do with losing weight and donating blood?


    In the U.S. Until you are I think 23-24 you actually have to weigh more than 110 if you are short. The requirement has nothing to do with a healthy weight and is based off weight and corresponding circulating blood volume of which lighter people have less. This is to ensure you actually have enough blood to tolerate the loss of the donation. 105 is a perfectly healthy weight but the percentage of blood you would be losing compared to those that weigh more and thus have higher blood volumes would be too high.
  • Merkavar
    Merkavar Posts: 3,082 Member
    I think the best option of all involved would be to gain some muscles.

    That way you can lose fat and stay above the weight requirements for blood donations.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,106 Member
    hekla90 wrote: »
    kerenelly wrote: »
    I'm 21 years old, and weigh 117 pounds at 5 ft tall. I'm hoping to lose another 10 - 12 pounds.

    I donate blood at my local clinic every 90 days, and each time I go they check my weight. During my most recent visit the woman mentioned that they don't allow anyone under 50 kg to donate blood. 50 kg is 110 pounds, so for me to reach my goal weight would mean I wouldn't be able to donate blood anymore.

    I don't think 105 pounds is too low for me personally as I have a very slight build. However, not being able to donate blood anymore for the sake of a 5 or 6 pounds isn't really worth it in my eyes. So I think I'll see where I'm at when I reach 110.

    Just wondering if anyone else had encountered this problem, or any other problems to do with losing weight and donating blood?


    In the U.S. Until you are I think 23-24 you actually have to weigh more than 110 if you are short. The requirement has nothing to do with a healthy weight and is based off weight and corresponding circulating blood volume of which lighter people have less. This is to ensure you actually have enough blood to tolerate the loss of the donation. 105 is a perfectly healthy weight but the percentage of blood you would be losing compared to those that weigh more and thus have higher blood volumes would be too high.

    ^^This
    In theory they could just take a smaller amount of blood from lower-weight individuals, but that would present practical problems, since in a hospital situation you want to have standard size "units" to administer.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    Trying to donate blood in my late teens is how I found out I was anemic. They tested for it, and wouldn't let me donate.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    vismal wrote: »
    Easy solution. Lose the weight, then do a lean bulk where you put weight on in the form of lean mass. You'll be able to donate blood, and you'll end up looking more athletic/aesthetic in the process.

    +1
  • kerenelly
    kerenelly Posts: 61 Member
    edited August 2015
    29_adjacent wrote: »
    I have no experience with being too light to donate (at my goal weight now of 153lbs) and I'm not sure whereabouts you live but that sounds about the same as the limits where I live in Scotland. I believe there's also additional limits for females between 17-19 years old based on height/weight, although I'm not sure what the reasons are for those.

    However, since I've been losing weight my iron levels have never been high enough to donate despite eating what I believe to a much more iron-rich diet now. Seriously I don't understand how my terrible diet when I was fat gave me more iron than my pretty healthy/balanced diet does now!

    One of the nurses once said something quite interesting while I was waiting one day. He said that a lot of people come in under the impression that they have plenty of iron in their diet. But they drink tea and coffee with almost all of their meals and/or immediately after their meals. And something in the coffee and tea inhibits iron absorption to a certain degree! He said it was more a problem in serial tea/coffee drinks.

    Mind you, I haven't done any looking in to it, so I'm not saying it's a sure thing. I just thought it was quite interesting!

    Edit: I live in Ireland.
  • kerenelly
    kerenelly Posts: 61 Member
    vismal wrote: »
    Easy solution. Lose the weight, then do a lean bulk where you put weight on in the form of lean mass. You'll be able to donate blood, and you'll end up looking more athletic/aesthetic in the process.

    Definitely seems like the best solution all round!
  • smotheredincheese
    smotheredincheese Posts: 559 Member
    My dad has never been allowed to donate blood because according to all the charts he's underweight. He's maybe 5'5 and very small framed but muscular, several of my female cousins are also not able to donate blood because they're technically underweight, but that side of my family all just have very slight builds.
    It does seem a bit nuts that healthy people can't donate blood when 'larger' people who might have all kinds of health problems that could make it problematic for them can, but so be it. I guess they have to have a cut off point somewhere and if it prevents a few people from donating then that's just how it is.
  • misskarne
    misskarne Posts: 1,765 Member
    edited August 2015
    I wish I could say I've had this problem...unfortunately, never. That said, I do wonder what the upper limit for donating blood is in Australia, because surely I was close last time. Fortunately, I've never had any iron problems (I remember the nurse boggling at how high it was one time, but she didn't say it was a problem), and my blood pressure is good, not high at all.

    EDIT: Apparently the only upper limit depends on the weight limit of the donation chairs, which can hold between 120kg and 200kg!!!!
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