Skip to Navigation | Skip To Content

Should People with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Fibromyalgia Be Blood Donors?

No.

I make this recommendation because it is not healthy for those with CFS/FMS to donate blood.

This question has been raised because of recent research suggesting that XMRV virus may be present in a higher percent of people with chronic fatigue syndrome. Because of this, blood bank officials are debating whether people with CFS should be allowed to be blood donors.

Researchers have indicated that NIH research has confirmed the presence of XMRV, though the study has not yet been released.

If this were the key issue, an argument could be made equally well that people with prostate cancer should not be allowed to be blood donors, as this illness is also associated with higher levels of XMRV virus. In addition, should any patient who is immune suppressed be prevented from giving blood as they are more likely to carry infections? CFS patients are likely to have multiple different infections associated with poor immune function, so although the question of XMRV gets more attention, the issue goes beyond this.

Although this is likely to become a politically and emotionally charged topic, it does not need to be.

Research has shown that people with chronic fatigue syndrome have a very significant deficiency of red blood cells themselves, which is likely a major contributor to their symptoms. Because they are also dehydrated, the blood tests done looking for anemia come back as falsely normal. Donating blood is likely to worsen their CFS and is therefore not recommended, just as in any one with anemia. Instead, our "SHINE Protocol" (Sleep, Hormonal support, Infections, Nutritional support, and Exercise as able), which has been shown to be helpful in 91% of CFS patients, and which is used at the Fibromyalgia and Fatigue Centers nationally, includes multiple measures that also help support the production of red blood cells.

For the benefit of those with CFS or fibromyalgia, it is not a good idea, for the sake of their health, to be blood donors.


News & Announcements



Some information on this site is from the book From Fatigued to Fantastic! Third Edition by Jacob Teitelbaum MD, copyright 2007 by Jacob Teitelbaum MD. Used by permission of Avery Publishing, an imprint of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.