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20 Facts About Blood & Blood Donations

20 Facts About Blood & Blood Donations

Jan. 21st, 2022

Are you thinking about donating blood?

In honor of National Blood Donation Month, we’ve compiled a list of 20 blood donation facts to help you learn about blood and blood donations.

  1. According to Community Blood Center, 4.5 million Americans will need a blood transfusion each year.1
  2. According to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are more than 13.2 million blood donors in the U. S., and they donate 17.2 million blood transfused products each year.2
  3. Only 37% of the U.S. population is able to donate blood, and less than 10% do it annually.1
  4. Donated red blood cells can be stored for 42 days, donated platelets can be stored for 5 days, and donated plasma can be stored for one year.4
  5. When you donate blood, your body replaces lost fluids within hours. The red blood cells from the donation will be replaced within 4 weeks. The iron you lost from the donation will be restored in 8 weeks.3
  6. Karl Landsteiner discovered different blood types because he looked at the differences between blood transfusions. The four types of blood he found were A, B, and O. Type AB was discovered a year later.4
  7. The most requested blood type by hospitals is type O.5
  8. Red blood cells use hemoglobin, a protein, to carry oxygen throughout your body. Oxygen is necessary to help your body carry out its daily functions.6
  9. White blood cells heal wounds by fighting infection. They also protect us from foreign bodies such as allergens as well as mutated cells (including cancer).7
  10. 95% of red blood cells are made in the bone marrow. All blood cells start out as a stem cell and evolve into red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.7
  11. There are 50 billion red blood cells in a single ounce of blood and 2.4 trillion red blood cells in a pint.8
  12. Nearly 7% of human body weight is made of blood.9
  13. About 100,000 Americans have sickle cell disease, which is a red blood cell disease that is usually inherited and causes a shortage of red blood cells.10
  14. The severity of an accident will determine how much blood someone needs. Car accident and trauma victims might need 50+ red blood cell transfusions. People who are severely burned need 20 platelet transfusions. Bone marrow and transplant patients need platelets and red blood cells from over 100 donors.11
  15. Someone in the U.S. needs blood every 2 seconds.5
  16. The average American adult has 10 pints of blood in their body, and 1 pint is given during a donation.5
  17. Donating blood usually takes 10-15 minutes.
  18. You can donate blood as often as every 56 days.12
  19. Blood can’t be made synthetically, and there is no substitute for it.13
  20. 1 in 7 people entering a hospital need blood.13

Donate Blood Today

Donating blood is a great way to give back to the community and help someone in need. If you are willing and able, find a local blood donation drive near you and donate blood today!

To learn more about Saber Healthcare and the services we offer, click here.

Saber Healthcare is an organization dedicated to providing consultant services to long term care providers. This article is for informational purposes and is not meant to be seen as professional advice. Please consult with a medical expert before relying on the information provided.

Sources

  1. “Blood Facts.” Community Blood Center, Givingblood.org. Accessed 14 January 2022. Link: https://givingblood.org/about-blood/blood-facts.aspx
  2. “Blood Safety Basics.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Last reviewed 18 March 2020. Accessed 14 January 2022. Link: https://www.cdc.gov/bloodsafety/basics.html
  3. “56 Facts about Blood.” Community Blood Bank, fourhearts.org. Accessed 14 January 2022. Link: https://fourhearts.org/facts/
  4. Farhud, Dariush D, and Marjan Zarif Yeganeh. “A brief history of human blood groups.” Iranian journal of public health vol. 42,1 (2013): 1-6. Link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3595629/#:~:text=After%20discovery%20of%20the%20first,is%20given%20in%20Table%202.
  5. “50 Quick Blood Facts From the American Red Cross.” American Red Cross. Accessed 14 January 2022. Link: https://www.umms.org/ummc/-/media/files/ummc/community/blood-facts.pdf?upd=20180513171649
  6. “What Are Red Blood Cells?” University of Rochester Medical Center. Accessed 14 January 2022. Link: https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx?ContentID=34&ContentTypeID=160
  7. “Facts about Blood.” The Johns Hopkins University, John Hopkins University. Accessed 14 January 2022. Link: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/facts-about-blood
  8. “Blood fun Facts.” Community Blood Center of the Ozarks. Accessed 14 January 2022. Link: https://www.cbco.org/blood-fun-facts/
  9. Lifeline Blood Services. Accessed 14 January 2022. Link: https://www.lifelinebloodserv.org/blood-facts
  10. “How Common Is Sickle Cell Disease?” Health Union, Sickle-Cell.com. 16 November 2020. Accessed 14 January 2022. Link: https://sickle-cell.com/statistics
  11. “Blood Facts.” New York Blood Center. Accessed 14 January 2022. https://www.nybc.org/donate-blood/become-donor/blood-facts/
  12. “Facts About Blood Donations.” Cedars-Sinai. Accessed 14 January 2022. Link: https://www.cedars-sinai.org/programs/blood-donor-services/about-donation.html
  13. “Blood Facts.” Nebraska Community Blood Bank. Link: https://www.ncbb.org/donate-blood/about-blood/expert-q/blood-facts/
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