Blood Donation is something I have always thought of. Some people think donating blood might make them sick/ lead to weakness. Even I heard this from someone but then I thought how can saving someone’s life would affect us? Then I sat in front of my computer and searched about it. I got to know much about blood donation. All the positive things about it obviously because there was no such negative thing about it.
Donating blood is a voluntary thing. No one is ever forced to do such thing. But let’s think that doing something once which will take hardly your few hours can save someone’s life. Yes! By donating blood you can save up to 3 lives.
The average amount of blood present in an adult is 4-5 liters or about 8% of the body weight. Life cycles of the different components are short. The RBC lives about 120 days while white cells last about 3-9 days. New blood cells are constantly generated in the body. A person can donate blood 168 times during his 18 to 60 years. The quantity of blood present in 1kg of body weight is 76ml for males and 66 ml for females. Out of this 8 ml per kg body weight can be donated. Males can donate for every three months while females for every four months. All donated blood is recuperated within 21 days. At one time only 350 ml will be taken from a donor. Your body will begin to replace the blood you donated immediately. After some biscuits and juice, most people resume their regular activities after donating.
I’m 18 year old and thought that I can completely donate blood now but then I read that a person who is donating blood needs to be completely healthy, weighing more than 45 kgs and in the age group of between 18 to 60 years of old. Sadly, I’m 42 kg right now and plus already having weakness and calcium problem. So I’ve decided I’ll eat more and put my health my first priority and when I become totally fit I’ll donate blood not just for another person but for myself too. Because I think giving blood is not only beneficial to you physically, it is rewarding mentally and spiritually. Being a regular donor makes you feel a sense of accomplishment. Although you never know who will be getting your blood, you know that it will be someone who needs it. A person does not have to be wealthy to give blood, just willing. So what if I can’t, but you can make use of this opportunity rather than just wasting it. The measure of life is not it’s duration but someone’s donation. There is also the fact that the blood a person gives may be the blood that saves…
By Sujata Poojary,
S.Y.BMS
Bhavans College, Andheri (W)
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