Is it safe to give blood during pregnancy ?

No, pregnant women are not eligible to donate blood according to the American Red Cross Association. They  also advise you to wait at least 6 weeks after childbirth to donate blood. The blood in the body increases about 50 % during pregnancy. However you and your baby need this blood for a good and healthy pregnancy .

An exception may be when the doctors think you may need some blood transfusion for a high risk pregnancy  or delivery. In this case , they may ask you to bank some for  yourself in case you need it.

Some people donate blood before they find out they are pregnant. It is unlikely you will have any issues . However if you have any concerns, contact your health care professional. He may order some blood tests to make sure you are not anemic.

If you are looking to help others, another option you  may look into is donating umbilical cord blood after your baby is born. If you have no plans of storing the cord blood at a private bank, you can donate it to a public cord bank where it may help others. This blood contains stem cells which is sometimes used to treat people with life threatening  diseases such as leukemia, immune system disorders or sickle cell disease.