Can you give blood?

Question

Can you give blood if you are on medications?
Pain, muscle relaxers, and high blood pressure?

Curious, some one asked every one to donate blood in another question.

Answer 1

I checked the Blood Center website. They have a list of deferral criteria you can check. I didn't recognize most of the drug names so I don't know for sure the answer to your question, but you should be able to find it there. The address is http://www.thebloodcenter.org/donor/deferral.html.

When I donate, they don't usually ask about pain relievers or blood pressure medications, except aspirin--I think you can't donate if you've had aspirin in the last 24 hours. It thins your blood.

There's also a phone number listed on the website: 1-800-86-BLOOD. If you really want to make sure you're eligible before trying to donate, you should give them a call.

Answer 2

As long as the donor's condition is under control and he/she is generally healthy, taking medications usually do not disqualify a person to be a donor. There are some medications however that would require delaying the donation to a certain period.

High blood pressure medication is not a contraindication and a qualified person can donate blood as long as the BP is below 180/100 mmHg at the time of donation.Muscle relaxants and pain relievers are not problems either however, depending on their contents, a donation can also be postponed.

Check out the list of medications that can place the qualified donor to a "waiting period".
http://chapters.redcross.org/ky/rivervalley/eligibility.htm

Answer 3

Maybe. Certain medications can cause a donor to be defered because of how they affect blood cells. The Red Cross's website:

Answer 4

That would not be the best idea.
Medicines go through your blood stream, so you should wait a few hours for it to distill.

Answer 5

Was on YA for something else, then this topic was displayed on the sidebar...