Donating blood can take a few days or weeks to recover from

We had a blood drive recently at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation. When I complimented a coworker for participating, he mentioned it takes the body 56 days to “replenish” that pint of donated blood. Is that true?

Dr. James prescribes

Not exactly. Blood donation centers require donors to wait eight weeks — 56 days — between donations to ensure their body has had adequate time to replenish the blood components lost during the previous donation. But the process doesn’t usually take that long.

When you donate blood, you give up a little less than 10% of your blood volume. In a healthy donor, plasma, the liquid component of blood, is replenished within 24 hours. Platelet and white blood cell counts return to normal in a few days to a week. But red blood cells, which carry oxygen throughout the body, take four to six weeks to reach predonation levels.

A shortage of red blood cells can lead to fatigue, weakness, and in some cases, anemia. So, to protect the health of donors, blood collection organizations established the eight-week waiting period between donations.

Although it takes several weeks for our blood to return to normal, most people can resume usual activity levels the same day. If you engage in athletic activities — like, say, running — be sure to reduce the intensity of your workouts in the days following donation.

Numerous studies have found significant drops in athletic performance measures in the 48 hours after blood donation. In one study focused on the long-term effects of blood donation, Belgian researchers followed two dozen moderately trained young men for nearly a year. More than half of the participants donated blood once every three months, and these donors had average decreases of 4% in maximum power output and 10% in their body’s ability to utilize oxygen. The reductions were most significant in the first four weeks after donation.

Athlete or not, after you donate blood, drink plenty of water, eat a balanced diet rich in iron and other essential nutrients, and get sufficient rest. Each contributes to your body’s ability to restore blood cell levels efficiently.

PROVIDED OMRF Vice President of Clinical Affairs Judith James, M.D., Ph.D., vice president of clinical affairs of the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, was named one of 100 new members of the National Academy of Medicine, one of the highest honors in the field. James is the first woman from an Oklahoma institution to receive the honor. James has received international recognition for her research work in autoimmune diseases such as lupus.

GETTY IMAGES Although it takes several weeks for our blood to return to normal after a donation, most people can resume usual activity levels the same day.