Jump to content
This site uses cookies. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. More Info... ×
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.




  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):



    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):


  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Giving Blood And Plasma


jen3899

Recommended Posts

jen3899 Apprentice

Hi everyone! I was just wondering if anyone knows about donating blood? Can we (people with celiac disease) still give blood and plasma?

Thanks

-Jennifer


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



Lily Rookie

Call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE. It's the American Red Cross, they should be able to tell you.

Lily

spk1954 Newbie

Hi

I live in Australia and we can give blood with celiac disease. It is mainly infectious things they worry about, like aids, hepatitis, etc. I am on the Bone Marrow Registry but have since found out they don't take celiacs if they come up as a match. Not sure why.............don't think you could give a person celiac disease by giving them blood...........surely! Anyone know if that is a likely scenario? :blink:

Shaz

tylormom Newbie

I have given blood since being diagnosed with celiac, but I have a much more difficult time qualifying due to iron deficiency. My doctor recommends against giving blood or plasma as it takes my system longer to recover. That's speaking from personal experience. It might be different for each individual.

Darlene

gf4life Enthusiast

The Bone Marrow thing probably has to do with the fact that celiacs tend to be at higher risk of developing osteopenia/osteoporosis, due to the lack of nutrients being absorbed, so this may put them at risk from donating bone marrow, not at risk of giving the disease to someone else.

But I am wondering about the blood donation. This saturday they are having a blood drive in our town for my son's second grade teacher who has cancer (uterine cancer that spread to her lungs) and now that they have the lung cancer under control through chemotherapy, she is having her uterus removed next week. Since she has been in chemo for 4 months she needs blood for the surgery and platelets. So they are having a blood drive in her honor. I plan to go sign up, I don't know if they will take my blood, but I have to try. I have tried before more than a decade ago, when I was in better health, and they wouldn't take my blood after I filled out the questionaire. We'll see this time.

Do you think it will make me feel sick? I'm apparently not anemic, but I am so darn tired everyday. Only been gluten-free for 5 weeks...any thoughts?

Mariann

YankeeDB Contributor

I used to donate blood regularly and often barely squeaked by on the iron tests (although I was not officially anemic). However, I usually felt weak afterwards.

I think anyone who is feeling tired due to celiac disease should NOT donate. They are so desperate for blood these days that their criteria for accepting people may not be as stringent as it should be, I suspect.

The last time I tried to donate (a couple of years ago before my dx) they had to stop early because I was starting to pass out. So, my blood could not be used and it was a waste all the way around.

My main symptom of celiac disease so far has been fatigue.

It seems as if the antibodies to gluten that are detected in the blood STAY in the blood and would be passed on to the blood recipient. Even if this infused blood is only a small portion of the person's total blood volume, perhaps the infusion of antibodies could be enough to trigger the disease in someone susceptible. So little is known about this disease, why chance it?

If someone asks me why I don't donate anymore I will say that my body produces antibodies to certain grain foods and I don't want to risk passing on the allergy to someone else. Who is to say this is NOT well-founded? Better safe than sorry.

pturse Apprentice

I actually have given blood before and after my diagnosis. I used to have to prep myself w/iron before dontating but since I've been gluten-free, my iron is stronger then ever.

I don't think it's a problem. Otherwise the doctor would have advised that I not give blood. I think the best bet is to ask your local blood association.


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



gf4life Enthusiast

I actually did give blood this last Saturday. I checked the guidelines of who could donate, and since they check your iron when you get there, I figured I'd probably get turned away, but I would try anyhow. Well this was the first time that my iron level was up. I was actually quite excited to know that. I certainly feel like I'm absorbing more nutrients from my food. And I let them know up front that I was gluten intolerant, but since I didn't take medication for it, they didn't see it as a problem.

Someone had mentioned earlier that they didn't want to take the chance of triggering celiac disease in someone who had the gene but hadn't gotten the disease, and I thought about that, but I figured that whatever they needed the blood for was probably more than enough of a trigger. That if they are going to get celiac disease, the few antibodies still floating around in my blood was not going to cause them to get sick.

Just make sure that if you do give blood, to bring your own gluten-free snacks. It helped a lot, since the only thing on the snack table that was gluten-free were raisins, the rest was Hostess cupcakes, Twinkies, Ding Dongs and other such junk food. I was glad that I brought a snack bar from home. I felt a little tired that day, but a nap helped and then by the next day I felt better. And I get to know that I helped out my friend. She gets credit for 48 pints of blood! And someone else will get my pint of blood that they really need.

Don't let Celiac Disease get in your way of helping other people. Most blood banks are in constant need of donations. And they won't let you give if you feel sick or your iron is low. It doesn't hurt to try.

God bless,

Mariann

wildones Apprentice

Celiac is not something that would stop you from being an eligible blood donor. Potential donors are screened thoroughly with a questionare. Like mentioned earlier a screening iron level test is done. All donated blood is tested for many potential problems before being administered. I was not able to donate blood for several years after I had my triplets, because of elevated liver enzymes. It was thought at the time, that my liver damage was from HELLP syndrome (severe toxemia of pregnancy) but the problem has now been attributed to newly diagnosed celiac.

I now donate regularly again.

Being able to donate blood is really important to me. Blood donations saved my son's life 13 times when he was very ill as a newborn.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):



  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      131,188
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    Leeila
    Newest Member
    Leeila
    Joined

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):


  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.4k
    • Total Posts
      1m

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):





  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):



  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Ginger38
      So I recently had allergy testing for IGE antibodies in response to foods. My test results came back positive to corn, white potatoes, egg whites. Tomatoes, almonds and peanuts to name a few.  I have had obvious reactions to a few of these - particularly tomatoes and corn- both GI issues. I don’t really understand all this allergy versus celiac stuff. If the food allergies are mild do I have to avoid these foods entirely? I don’t know what I will eat if I can’t  have corn based gluten free products 
    • Kris2093u4
      Geography makes a difference.  I'm in the West and Trader Joe's gluten-free bread tastes great and is a better price than most gluten-free breads sold elsewhere in my area.  
    • JForman
      We have four children (7-14 yo), and our 7 year old was diagnosed with NCGS (though all Celiac labs were positive, her scope at 4 years old was negative so docs in the US won't call it celiac). We have started her on a Gluten Free diet after 3 years of major digestive issues and ruling out just about everything under the sun. Our home and kitchen and myself are all gluten-free. But I have not asked my husband/her dad or her other siblings to go completely gluten-free with us. They are at home, but not out of the home. This has led to situations when we are eating out where she has to consistently see others eating things she can't have and she has begun to say "Well, I can't have <fill in the blank>...stupid gluten."  How have you supported your gluten-free kiddos in the mental health space of this journey, especially young ones like her. I know it's hard for me as an adult sometimes to miss out, so I can't imagine being 7 and dealing with it! Any tips or ideas to help with this? 
    • Jane878
      By the time I was 5 I had my first auto0immune disorder, Migraine headaches, with auras to blind me, and vomiting, sensitivity to light and sound. I was 5 years old, and my stepfather would have pizza night, milling his own flour, making thick cheesy gluten pizza, that I would eat and the next day, I would have serious migraines, and my mother & stepfather did nothing about my medical problems. When I was 17 in my first year at college, I was diagnosed with my 2nd known auto-immune disorder, Meniere's disease. I was a elite athlete, a swimmer, and soccer player. And once again my parents didn't think anything of understanding why I had a disorder only older people get. Now after my mother passed from Alzheimer's disease she also suffered with living with gluten. She had a rash for 30 years that nobody could diagnose. She was itchy for 45 years total. My brother had a encapsulated virus explodes in his spleen and when this happened his entire intestines were covered with adhesions, scar tissue and he almost lost his life. He has 5 daughters, and when I finally was diagnosed after being pregnant and my body went into a cytokine storm, I lost my chance to have children, I ended up having Hashimoto's disease, Degenerative Disc disease, and my body started to shut down during my first trimester. I am 6ft tall and got down to 119lbs. My husband and I went to a special immunologist in Terrace, California. They took 17 vials of blood as we flew there for a day and returned home that evening. In 3 weeks, we had the answer, I have Celiac disease. Once this was known, only my father and husband made efforts to change their way of feeding me. At the family cabin, my stepfather & mother were more worried that I would ruin Thanksgiving Dinner. It wasn't until one of my cousins was diagnosed with Celiac disease. They finally looked into getting Gluten Free flour and taking measures to limit "gluten" in meals. He did nothing but ask for me to pay for my own food and wi-fi when I came to the cabin to stay after our house burned down. When he informed my mother, they proceeding to get into a physical fight and she ended up with a black eye. The is just more trauma for me. Sam had no interest in telling the truth about what he wanted. He lied to my mother that he had asked my husband if I could pay for "food" when he asked Geoffrey if I had money to pay for my wi-fi. My mother hates when he spends so much time on the computer so he lied and said I could pay for my own food. I will remind you I weighed 119lbs at this time. (At 6ft) that is a very sick looking person. Neither parent was worried about my weight, they just fought about how cheap my stepfather was. As my mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2014. He had her sign over the will to a trust and added his children. He had no testimonial capacity at the time, so she signed without proper papers. Making this Trust null and void. When I gave my brother my childhood home, my mother stated I would be getting an equal part of inheritance to the house on Race. It currently worth 2.0 million $. I got nothing, and my stepfather has since disowned me b/c of my claim and he knows that my mother would never have left it uneven between my biological brother and myself. She sat me and my husband down, as we lived at the Race Street house and treated and took care of it as our own. My brother took over b/c he was going through a horrific divorce and needed a home so he could get a better custody deal with his soon to be ex-wife who was a Assist DA for Denver. She used the girls against him, and he & I were the primary caregivers. We, Judd and I spent the most time with them pre the divorce. Once Judd moved into the house, he threw all of my mother, grandmother and my family heirlooms out to the Goodwill. Nobody told my mother about this as she was going through cancer treatment and had Alzheimer's disease in her mother and her sister. My stepfather and biological brother took advantage of this matter, as I called a "family council" that my brother just never could make it to at the last moment. All of the furnishing, kitchen ware, everything was in the house my brother just moved into. He had had 2 weddings, I chose to elope b/c my stepfather ruined my brother's first wedding by talking about his relationship with my brother in front of my dad and his entire family, insulting him and having my grandfather leave the ceremony. It was a disaster. My stepfather just plays dumb and blames my father for the slight. I was the only child not to have a wedding. So, my mother and stepfather never had to pay for a thing. My mother had had an agreement with my father he'd pay for college and all medical issues with their kids, myself and Judd. So truly my mother never had to pay for anything big for me in her entire life. I am looking for anyone that has had a similar story, where they grew up in a household that had a baker that regularly milled flour and ate gluten. What happened to you? DId you suffer from different auto-immune diseases b/c of living with a baker using "gluten" Please let me know. I have been looking into legal ways to get my stepfather to give me what my mother had promised, and he erased. Thank you for listening to my story. Jane Donnelly  
    • trents
      Possibly gluten withdrawal. Lot's of info on the internet about it. Somewhat controversial but apparently gluten plugs into the same neuro sensors as opiates do and some people get a similar type withdrawal as they do when quitting opiates. Another issue is that gluten-free facsimile flours are not fortified with vitamins and minerals as is wheat flour (in the U.S. at least) so when the switch is made to gluten-free facsimile foods, especially if a lot of processed gluten-free foods are being used as substitutes, vitamin and mineral deficiencies can result. There is also the possibility that she has picked up a virus or some but that is totally unrelated to going gluten-free.
×
×
  • Create New...