Donating Blood vs. Heart Attacks

Palmpilot

Palmpilot

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I heard a guy on the radio, claiming that statistics show that people who donate blood regularly are 88% less likely to have a heart attack (or some number in that ballpark). True or false?
 
You'd have to age/sex/risk factor match the two cohorts, have it mean anything at all.
 
That makes sense. For example, people with higher heart attack risk could be avoiding donating blood for some reason.

You made me look up "cohort." :)
 
I always wondered if I might be passing along some of my high cholesterol to some other poor sod, and replacing the donated volume with fresh, cholesterol-free blood and plasma. :)
 
If a study showed the opposite, the blood industrial complex would make sure you never heard it. Science is so political now, another dark age is right around the corner.
 
The last time I tried to donate blood, I was denied because I have lived in Europe. Just in case I have Crueztfeldt-Jakob disease. Their loss, I am type O-negative.
 
Palmpilot said:
I heard a guy on the radio, claiming that statistics show that people who donate blood regularly are 88% less likely to have a heart attack (or some number in that ballpark). True or false?
Click to expand...

Correlation is not causation. Remember you have to meet certain minimum standards to donate blood. If you screen out, its usually for health or lifestyle reasons. Those reasons may be the result of the higher heart attack risk.

Thats IF that statistic is true.....
 
I'm scheduled to give blood at a scheduled donation here on Thursday . . . has anyone ever read the rules for donation?

Age: 17 (16 year-olds can donate with written permission of parent or guardian).
Weight: At least 110 pounds (different requirements for 16-22-year-olds, please call 1-888-393-GIVE).
Diet: A well-balanced meal is recommended within four hours of donation.
Health: General good health
Identification: Valid identification such as a driver’s license, DMV identification card, passport, etc.
Do not donate if any of the following apply to you:

AIDS: You are a person with symptoms or laboratory evidence of HIV infection.
Cancer: Hematological, ie: Hodgkin, Leukemia, Lymphomas.
Hepatitis: A history of the disease after the age of 11, or a positive lab test for the virus.
Organ Failure: Kidney, lung or liver failure.
Recreational Drug Use (by injection): Having injected yourself with drugs not prescribed by a physician.
United Kingdom: You have visited or lived in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Isle of Man, Channel Islands, Gibraltar or Falkland Islands for a total of 3 months or more from 1980 thru 1996.
European Countries: If you have spent a cumulative of 5 years or more since 1980.
U.S. Military/Dependents/Civilian Military Employee: If you are U.S. Military / Dependent / Civilian Military Employee who spent a cumulative of six months or more between 1980 thru 1996 associated with a military base in Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Italy or Greece, and/or 1980 thru 1990 in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany.
Travel: Travel to certain countries may temporarily restrict you from donating blood.
Sexual: You are a man who has had sex with another man since 1977.
Sexual: You have engaged in sex for money or drugs since 1977.


So, while male homosexuality is a normal, common occurrence we are supposed to accept as a perfectly normal event - it is also a public health risk. Likewise if you have ever taken recreational drugs by needle.

Some donation centers will also reject your donation if you:
Have had a tattoo at ANY time in the last 12 months or
Have had a tattoo performed at any location which has ever reused instruments, like prison and college tats and tattoos before 1996 . . .

Think about that carefully folks . . .. and guess what? You need ID for that too.
 
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There is some truth to this for a small subset of patients. If you have an abnormal iron metabolism, you are at a higher risk for heart disease. If such a patient happens to be a regular blood donor, they inadvertently treat that elevated iron level and as a result of that have a somewhat lowered risk for the negative effects of iron overload on their liver and heart.
 
comanchepilot said:
I'm scheduled to give blood at a scheduled donation here on Thursday . . . has anyone ever read the rules for donation?

Age: 17 (16 year-olds can donate with written permission of parent or guardian).
Weight: At least 110 pounds (different requirements for 16-22-year-olds, please call 1-888-393-GIVE).
Diet: A well-balanced meal is recommended within four hours of donation.
Health: General good health
Identification: Valid identification such as a driver’s license, DMV identification card, passport, etc.
Do not donate if any of the following apply to you:

AIDS: You are a person with symptoms or laboratory evidence of HIV infection.
Cancer: Hematological, ie: Hodgkin, Leukemia, Lymphomas.
Hepatitis: A history of the disease after the age of 11, or a positive lab test for the virus.
Organ Failure: Kidney, lung or liver failure.
Recreational Drug Use (by injection): Having injected yourself with drugs not prescribed by a physician.
United Kingdom: You have visited or lived in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Isle of Man, Channel Islands, Gibraltar or Falkland Islands for a total of 3 months or more from 1980 thru 1996.
European Countries: If you have spent a cumulative of 5 years or more since 1980.
U.S. Military/Dependents/Civilian Military Employee: If you are U.S. Military / Dependent / Civilian Military Employee who spent a cumulative of six months or more between 1980 thru 1996 associated with a military base in Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Italy or Greece, and/or 1980 thru 1990 in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany.
Travel: Travel to certain countries may temporarily restrict you from donating blood.
Sexual: You are a man who has had sex with another man since 1977.
Sexual: You have engaged in sex for money or drugs since 1977.


So, while male homosexuality is a normal, common occurrence we are supposed to accept as a perfectly normal event - it is also a public health risk. Likewise if you have ever taken recreational drugs by needle.

Some donation centers will also reject your donation if you:
Have had a tattoo at ANY time in the last 12 months or
Have had a tattoo performed at any location which has ever reused instruments, like prison and college tats and tattoos before 1996 . . .

Think about that carefully folks . . .. and guess what? You need ID for that too.
Click to expand...

Yep. I lived in the UK for nearly four years in the early 1990s. Then Germany for three years. The UK ban is because of Crueztfeldt-Jakob disease, but really, if I had it, I would have developed it by now. I think the ban does more harm than good. I'm type O-negative.
 
bluee said:
Yep. I lived in the UK for nearly four years in the early 1990s. Then Germany for three years. The UK ban is because of Crueztfeldt-Jakob disease, but really, if I had it, I would have developed it by now. I think the ban does more harm than good. I'm type O-negative.
Click to expand...

Little is known about the maximal incubation period for variant-CJD. One of the US cases happened in 2001 to an individual who had moved from the UK in 92. Another case happened in 2005 on someone who had moved from the UK in 96. As historically there had been a couple of cases of transmission of v-CJD through blood transfusions, I can understand why the the CDC is skiddish. I have seen what the disease does, and anything we can do to not have it transmitted is ok with me.
 
weilke said:
Little is known about the maximal incubation period for variant-CJD. One of the US cases happened in 2001 to an individual who had moved from the UK in 92. Another case happened in 2005 on someone who had moved from the UK in 96. As historically there had been a couple of cases of transmission of v-CJD through blood transfusions, I can understand why the the CDC is skiddish. I have seen what the disease does, and anything we can do to not have it transmitted is ok with me.
Click to expand...

It's a nasty disease, but I left the UK twenty years ago. I'm not worried about CJD. Plus, I didn't eat meat then.
 
Pi1otguy said:
Is this the article in question?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2333882/Donating-blood-good-YOUR-health-receiver.html

650 calories per pint donated plus other effects like reducing iron. So is this human equivalent of changing the oil?
Click to expand...

That article cites a bunch of papers, but does not provide the citation information needed to retrieve them. I see that Wikipedia does have specific citations for a few of them, including one paper that focuses on selection bias and confounding.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_donation#Donor_health_benefits

http://www.readcube.com/articles/10.1111/j.1537-2995.2011.03270.x
 
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