With Christmas and Boxing Day falling on the weekend this year, Canadian Blood Services is under additional pressure to collect donations.
With holiday days being pushed back, it means fewer days to collect the donations the Ottawa area is estimated to need between Dec. 26 and Jan. 2.
“We need 3,578 additional people on top of the people who have already made appointments,” said Canadian Blood Services spokeswoman Ann Luu.
“It’s always harder to get blood donations around the holiday season, added Luu.
“People either go away or have things to do, and are pushing it to the month following.”
When donating blood, Luu said donors should watch their alcohol intake at holiday parties the night before.
“When you drink, you dehydrate, and you can’t donate when you’re dehydrated,” she said.
Canadian Blood Services recommends limiting alcohol intake, drinking lots of water and getting eight to 10 hours of sleep the night before giving blood.
