Donating Blood

Why it is so important to donate blood?

You have probably seen the plea from organizations all over the world saying that blood donations are in great need because of low supply. Blood donations are in great need for a variety of reasons. For one, when we are at war, many of our soldiers lose a great deal of blood, the blood you donate are used in transfusions and could work to save the life of one of the men and women that are fighting for our country. Blood is also used during operations that cause a lot of blood loss or accidents where a person has lost a great deal of blood. Blood is the essence of life within the body and is much needed, you never know when it could be you that needs a transfusion, donate blood today!

Where can I donate Blood?

There are a variety of places that offer regular blood drives. You will likely see many advertisements letting you know of the location and times that you can donate blood. Many organizations will sponsor a blood drive, in efforts of helping others. If you would like to see the times and location of blood drives, visit www.givelife.org, and type in your zip code, it will show you the times, dates, and location of blood drives in your area.

You can also donate for yourself, if there is a surgery that could require blood transfusions or donate specifically to a family member or friend if you wish.

Remind Myself to Donate Blood

Sometimes in our busy schedule we may forget the need of blood donations. It is important you find a way to remind yourself to donate blood on a regular basis. The need for blood often outweighs the supply. Here are some helpful tips on how you can remind yourself to donate blood.

1. Understand how often you can donate - some areas only allow blood donations every 8 weeks and others specify the number of time yearly you can give blood.
2. Write your blood donation dates on a calendar you look at often
3. Register with a reminder service such as www.MyHealthTestReminder.com. This will send you an email whenever the date comes around.
4. Think about how often you wish to donate, then make and keep that commitment.

Blood Types – Knowing your Blood Type

Knowing your blood type is extremely important, as some blood types are needed more than others are. The reason for this is that some blood types can only give or receive from other blood types. For example, a person who has a blood type that is O negative can give to anyone with any blood type. However, a person who has blood type that is O negative can only receive blood that is O negative. Givelife2.org estimates that only 7% of the United States population has O negative blood types.

Another example is that a person with AB positive blood type accounts for about 3% of the US population, can receive from anyone, but can only give to that 3% that has AB positive blood type. It is important that you know your blood type when giving and receiving blood as it can make all the difference in the world for a person.

The Blood types are:

• A Positive
• A Negative
• Positive
• Negative
• B Positive
• B Negative
• AB Positive
• AB Negative

In conclusion, donating blood is something we should all consider, we never know when there is a need for blood. Therefore, donating on a regular basis will help ensure that there is a good supply on hand in the event of an emergency.