Donation and Charity

Voluntary Donation of Blood as a Lifesaving Habit

Have you pondered upon the possibility that if you happen to suffer a life threatening disease or meet an unexpected accident that would urgently require you a series of blood transfusions, would there be enough for your blood type?

Every second of every day, a lot of individuals worldwide depend upon their survival on blood transfusions and although the reasons may differ, nothing can change the fact that the demand for blood is rising and ubiquitous. Not to mention the growing number of injuries and accidents requiring blood transfusions all across the world.

Over 39,000 units of blood each day are required in hospitals and for urgent situations to meet the needs of accident victims, surgical and trauma patients, oncology patients on chemotherapy, kidney failure patients and children with diseases. And since red cells last only about 35 days while the platelets only five days, there is a constant need of blood supply.

Who are qualified to donate blood?

You are most probably eligible to give blood if you are a healthy person with no known blood borne infections and weigh at least 110 pounds. The age limit may vary from country to the country. However, the general range is from 17 to 65 years old. On the other hand, you are not allowed to donate blood if either your own health suffers as a result of blood donation or your donated blood causes harm to the recipient of the blood. It is not advisable to give blood on the following instances:

• You are feeling sick and weak, have a sore throat, flu and colds.
• You are pregnant or breastfeeding.
• You have recently undergone a surgery or a minor procedure and not yet fully recovered.
• You are taking some medications, for example, antibiotics.
• Have certain serious illnesses like anemia or low iron level, sickle cell disease, Diabetes, low or high blood pressure, multiple sclerosis, Heart diseases, Lyme’s disease and epilepsy.
• You have acquired a recent sexually transmitted disease (HIV or syphilis), or you have sexual contact with more than one sexual partner.
• You have a tattoo, ear or any body piercing and skin scarification.
• You have injected recreational, non-medicinal or illegal drugs.
• You can’t tolerate the sight of needles.

Blood Donation is somewhat an easy procedure and a quick process, which takes a little over an hour and requires minor preparations. It can be achieved in four easy steps as follows: registration, medical history taking, blood extraction and snacks. The registration involves filling up a few pertinent details on the registration form. During the medical history taking, you need to answer honestly screening questions to determine if you are qualified as a donor. Temperature, blood pressure and hemoglobin are all checked as well as a blood sample is extracted to ensure that your blood meet minimum standards. After thorough screening and approval that you are fit as a blood donor, your blood will be drawn and processed to save the life of someone in need. Usually less than 10% of your total blood volume is taken from you, and you do not need to worry at all because your body is capable of replacing the lost fluid within 36 hours. To end the process, the donor is usually given snacks to serve as an 'instant energy' to the donor without any cost. The whole process is entirely safe as nobody ever contracted any disease by merely donating his or her blood.

Giving Blood as a Gift

Volunteering to give blood, unlike any other gifts you can give, can never be bought by money. It is one of the noblest acts as it can save people’s lives. It feels good to know that with just half a liter of donated blood, you have the opportunity to help save as many as three people’s lives in exchange of experiencing a slight discomfort as the needle is inserted. Besides, donating blood can save your own life too as studies show that blood donations are strongly associated with a reduced risk of heart attack in adult men. A similar study supported this finding affirming that men who gave blood experienced 30 percent fewer incidents of heart disease, stroke and bypass surgery in comparison to those non-donors.

The gift of voluntarily giving blood is truly an unselfish and humane act that can make a positive difference in someone else’s life. Anybody can be a hero by giving a gift of blood that can last a lifetime. So what are you waiting for? Donate blood, save a life and make it a habit.

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