It is World Blood Donor Day today! It is celebrated every year on 14th June, with efforts to create awareness among people about the need of blood donation. This year, the theme for World Blood Donor Day, set by World Health Organisation (WHO) is, What can you do? Give blood. Give now. Give often.
Millions of lives are lost each year due to different emergencies. Blood is a necessary resource, for both planned treatments, as well as emergency situations. We have a shortage of more than 2.5 million pints of blood in India itself. The only thing we can do to help these lives is to donate blood. Each pint of blood can save three lives. And it’s easy. We don’t need to wait for the calamity to strike, we need to donate blood now!
We have clarified some of the doubts which frequently occur in a potential donor’s mind. Read on and gear up to donate blood.
Is blood donation safe?
Blood donation is entirely safe, and is in fact good for your health. New and sterile equipments are used for each donor, and so the risk of infection or disease is nil. You will not experience any weakness after donating blood, as long as you are healthy.
How much blood do I donate?
Generally, about 350-400 ml of blood is drawn in one donation. You can participate in Blood Donation Camps and Drives in your cities, or you can visit any hospital to donate blood. Ensure that you are doing do under doctor/professional guidance.
What are the benefits of donating blood?
Donating blood can help reduce the effect of hemochromatosis, which is the production of excessive iron in the body. The excessive iron can be reduced during donation.
It also triggers the production of new blood, which helps improve your health.
And what is greater than the joy of being able to save so many lives!
Can I donate different components of blood?
Yes, you can choose to donate any of the 3 components of blood like plasma, platelets, or red blood cells. It is called as pheresis. The process is the same, the only difference is that your blood is collected in a machine which can separate each component, and the components which aren’t required are flown back into your body.
How often can I donate blood?
You need to wait for 8 weeks before you donate whole blood again. This is because red blood cells take time to develop. Since plasma is created again within just 24 hours, platelet donors can donate after one week. Red Blood Cell donors need to wait for at least 16 weeks before donating again. If you are suffering from any disease or disorder, consult your doctor before making blood donations because it may make you weak.
How old do I have to be to donate blood?
You need to be above 18 years of age, and below 60 years of age to be eligible to donate blood, and your weight can not be lower than 45kgs. Any healthy person meeting these criteria is eligible to donate blood every 8 weeks.
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Who cannot donate blood?
Donors below the age of 18 or above the age of 60 can’t donate blood, or with weight less than 45kgs can’t donate blood. Donors with active infection that can spread through blood, like HIV AIDS also should not donate blood. It is advisable to consult a doctor and share your medical history before you decide to go for blood donation.
On this World Blood Donor Day, let’s decide to do the small deed of donating blood every 8 weeks, and save millions of lives together.
