Donating blood enables many medical procedures and treatments and helps save thousands of lives each year.
By donating blood, you can help accident victims, new mothers who bleed during childbirth, cancer patients, those who need surgeries and transplants, and those being treated for chronic diseases like sickle cell disease.
Blood cannot be produced and the only source of this medicine is man. Yes, blood is also medicine.
What some people may not realize is that donating blood doesn’t just help the recipients. Donating blood helps save the lives of patients in need of medical care, but it also benefits the donor.
How donating blood can help your health:
Donating blood allows your vital signs to be checked
When you check in at a blood donation center, staff will first check your vital signs, blood pressure, and heart rate to see if you’re eligible to donate blood. They will also test your blood to check for anemia and iron deficiency, as well as for infectious diseases such as hepatitis and HIV.
It can lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart attack
Hemoglobin is a protein made by bone marrow. Hemoglobin, which is stored in red blood cells, helps those cells carry oxygen from your lungs to your body through your arteries. Symptoms of high or low hemoglobin include fatigue, dizziness, or shortness of breath.
For people with high hemoglobin, donating blood reduces blood viscosity – the thickness and stickiness of the blood. Blood viscosity can contribute to the formation of blood clots, strokes and heart attacks.
Donating blood can help with some hereditary diseases
Hereditary hemochromatosis is a disorder that causes excess iron to accumulate in the blood. It is good for people suffering from this condition to donate blood.
It strengthens mental health
Research shows that helping others, including donating blood, can have a positive effect on mental health and well-being, including less stress and improved mood and self-esteem.
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