Can regular blood donation really “detoxify” you?

June 14 is the 19th World Blood Donor Day. This year's theme is "Donating blood is an act of solidarity. Join us and save lives." In 1998, the "Blood Donation Law of the People's Republic of China" was implemented, and my country established a voluntary blood donation system. So far, the number of voluntary blood donors and the amount of blood collected in China have achieved more than 20 years of continuous growth.

my country has always advocated voluntary blood donation. While promoting knowledge about blood donation, it also strengthens the promotion of the benefits of blood donation to the body, such as strengthening detoxification, identifying health problems of "unqualified" blood donors, etc. The ancient "bloodletting therapy" was considered ignorant, while modern blood donation is promoted as beneficial to health. So what is the truth?

1. “Permanent Chemicals” That Cannot Be Degraded

In the public's perception, there are "toxic garbage" and "metabolic waste" in the blood. These "toxins" are clinically called perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl compounds (PFAS), which include more than 4,000 different specific compounds. Because they cannot be degraded in the body, they are called "permanent chemicals." PFAS are widely present in various household items such as carpets, non-stick pans, and firefighting foams, and are difficult to remove. Some studies have shown that high concentrations of PFAS in the blood are closely related to various adverse health effects, including impaired immune function, changes in liver function, abnormal thyroid function, obesity, etc. In addition, research results in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health show that a variety of PFAS are associated with an increased risk of cancer.

Screenshot of research paper

2. Does regular blood donation help detoxify?

Recently, Australian scientist Dr. Robin Gasiorowski and his team recruited 285 firefighters (279 of whom were male, with an average age of 53 years) with elevated PFAS levels in their blood. The subjects were divided into three groups: plasma donation every 6 weeks for one year; blood donation every 12 weeks for one year; and a control group without intervention measures. The primary endpoint of the study was the change in serum PFOS and serum PFHEXANE SULFONATE levels in the plasma donation group or the whole blood donation group after 12 months compared with the baseline and observation groups.

The results showed that compared with the control group, regular blood or plasma donations can significantly reduce PFAS levels in the blood, and plasma donation is more effective, with a corresponding decrease of 30%. For subjects who donated blood more than five times in 52 weeks, PFAS metabolism levels in the body increased by 37%. This is the first time that an intervention measure that can effectively reduce PFAS levels in the blood has been discovered, and the relevant research results were published in JAMA Network Open.

Screenshot of JAMA Network Open publications

Because the long-term effects of PFAS exposure remain a source of investigation and debate, this study provides evidence of interventions that can directly reduce PFAS levels in the blood, but the researchers did not investigate whether such a reduction would result in clinical health benefits. However, the results of this study still provide a certain degree of protection and comfort for the firefighting population, or it may become an effective intervention for people with high PFAS levels. In the future, more research is needed to evaluate the clinical significance of these findings.

3. What are the benefits of regular blood donation?

Many people believe that donating blood is not good for the body and may even cause harm. However, in fact, medical science has proven that regular blood donation has the following three benefits.

1. Improve hematopoietic function

After donating blood, the number of blood cells decreases and the human body is in a state of blood loss. This situation will have a feedback effect on the hematopoietic organs, prompting the production of blood cells in the bone marrow, spleen, liver and other organs, making the hematopoietic system more active, thereby promoting metabolism and enhancing the body's immunity. Frequent blood donation can keep the bone marrow vigorous and make the hematopoietic system react more quickly, and the recovery process after injury or massive blood loss is faster than that of ordinary people.

2. Lower blood lipids and reduce the risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases

Regular blood donation can effectively reduce blood viscosity, reduce the formation of deposits on blood vessel walls, and speed up blood flow, thereby effectively alleviating and preventing hyperviscosity syndrome, effectively reducing the incidence of hypertension and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, and has a good effect on preventing cerebral thrombosis, arteriosclerosis, myocardial infarction, etc.

3. Improve the health of people with iron overload

(1) People with hereditary hemochromatosis or thalassemia have a large amount of excess free iron in their bodies because they cannot metabolize iron normally. Free iron is easily taken up by the liver, heart, pancreas, skin and joints, resulting in iron overload, which eventually induces local tissue damage, inflammation, liver fibrosis, cardiac hypertrophy, insulin resistance, etc. Therefore, for such people, they need to donate 400~500 ml of blood regularly every 2~3 months to reduce the iron load in the body and maintain life.

(2) Ordinary people may also experience iron overload as they age, eat a lot of red meat, suffer from alcoholic liver disease or fatty liver disease, etc. The International Cancer Journal reported that if the iron content in a man's body exceeds 10% of the normal value, the probability of cancer will increase. At the same time, a 35-year study published in TRANSFUSION on 1,110,329 blood donors in Sweden and Denmark found that the all-cause mortality rate of blood donors was 30% lower than that of the general population, and the cancer incidence rate was 4% lower. Therefore, donating blood helps reduce excess iron in the body and can reduce the incidence of cancer. It is an effective way to maintain health.

Screenshot of TRANSFUSION publication

In summary, whether for healthy people or people with iron overload, regular and appropriate blood donation actually has many benefits for the body. Most importantly, the donated blood can be used to treat diseases and save lives. Every time a blood donor extends his arm, he is passing on the hope of life. The World Health Organization said that China ranks among the top in the world in terms of voluntary blood donation, blood quality and safety, and clinical blood use. I believe that more and more people will continue to unite and join the ranks of voluntary blood donation in the future.

Text and layout by Yang Yining