Recently vampire researcher Erin Chapman contacted Dr. Tomas Ganz, Professor of the Department of Medicine Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of California in Los Angeles (I wish she would have gone to a guy with some actual CREDENTIALS, for Pete’s sake!), in regards to the subject of sanguinarianism; that is, the phenomenon of human beings who feel the compulsion to drink blood. (As opposed to true vampires, who drink it because they like it. Also because it affords them immortality and the ability to shapeshift into the forms of certain animals.) Dr. Ganz believes the condition may be caused by iron deficiencies in the blood of the sufferers.
The transcript of the interview, available at the link below, is a fascinating read. Dr. Ganz, who admits he does not personally know anyone in the sanguinarian community, warns of the potential health risks of consuming blood, the numerous diseases that can be
contracted through the process. Even so he concedes that blood is highly nutritious (“a protein-rich, iron-rich, salty material”) and that ingesting it does have positive physiological effects on the Sanguinarian, although he suggests that this might be the result of a placebo effect, i.e. the sanguinarian’s needs are partially if not completely psychological in nature. Sufferers of IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) having reported relief from the ingestion of blood, Ms. Chapman asked Dr. Ganz if the phenomenon warrants further study. “There are so many higher priority nutritional problems,” he replied. “I do not think it will make the top twenty list for nutritional research.” Well, maybe not in HIS world.
But I do drink because I like it as well as have to