Blood drives place limitations on a wide variety of conditions. Are marijuana consumers affected by these rules?

The coronavirus pandemic has affected our health system in different ways, overflowing hospitals and triggering a crisis for hospitals that shows no signs of abating any time soon. Stay at home and social distancing measures have also halted blood drives across the country, resulting in a severe blood shortage across the U.S..

Blood supplies are extremely important, especially in instances of a pandemic, keeping hospitals running and saving the lives of patients struggling with all sorts of conditions. “Blood donation is always important to help save lives—the need does not go away during a pandemic,” doctor Richard Seidman told Health magazine.

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Donating blood is also a more complex process than it should be, placing limitations on gay men and on people with piercings and tattoos. Can regular marijuana users give blood?

According to The Active Times, marijuana users who don’t use synthetic marijuana should be fine as long as they’re over the age of 16, are in general good health and weigh over 110 pounds. According to the FDA, K2, an element present in many synthetic marijuana products, is the main reason why they don’t accept donations of people who use these products regularly.

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Synthetic marijuana, aside from preventing you from donating blood, is risky. These products contain many unnatural elements that can cause adverse reactions ranging from elevated moods to seizures and kidney damage. They’re sold since they are cheaper or claim to produce stronger highs than the ones produced by regular marijuana.