Blood Drive Draws Crowd

The Red Cross is always looking for more volunteers and donors to help save lives. For more information or to find a blood drive near you, go to www.redcross.org.
Image courtesy of redcross.org

Well ladies and gentlemen, it happened once again. The blood-suckers came and drained students of their much needed resources. No, not student loans, the Red Cross Blood Drive that occurs at least once a semester every year on campus. The event itself occurred on Thursday, August 27, and lasted all afternoon. Students could either set up an appointment to give beforehand or could have just as easily walked in and donated that way. The Red Cross attempts to make the process easy for those wishing to donate. 

While the actual donation itself may be a bit too much for some to handle (those with a fear of needles need not apply), the work that the Red Cross does is absolutely necessary for medical purposes. According to the Red Cross’s official website, every 2 seconds, someone in the United is need of blood. One pint of blood, just one donation, can potentially save up to three lives. On top of that, five million people in this country every year are in a desperate need of blood. Most importantly, blood cannot be manufactured. Eligible volunteers are the only source of blood for those that need it. Unfortunately, only 38 percent of the population of the United States of America is eligible to donate blood. Therefore, when the Red Cross says they are in a constant need for blood, they are incredibly serious. 

So, if helping fellow human beings and potentially saving them from certain death is not enough reason to consider donating, there are plenty of reasons to donate blood that will benefit your health. In an article on news.health.com entitled "4 Unexpected Benefits of Donating Blood," writer Rachel Swalin explains some of of the personal appeals of blood donation. First, your blood may flow better. According to the article, “Repeated blood donations may help the blood flow in a way that’s less damaging to the lining of the blood vessels and could result in fewer arterial blockages.” 

Second, you get basically a mini-checkup. Before you can even donate, they test your hemoglobin count, your iron levels, your blood pressure, and they test your blood for many infectious diseases, including HIV, AIDS, and the West Nile virus. If your blood test positive for any of these diseases, you will informed immediately. If they come back negative, then anything that you have been exposed to will have proven to not have affected you. 

On the subject of iron, donating blood can help you keep a proper balance. Swalin writes, “The statistics appear to show that decreasing the amount of iron in otherwise healthy people over the long run is beneficial to their blood vessels, and diseases related to abnormalities in blood vessels, such as heart attack and stroke.”However, it should be noted that if you have an iron deficiency or anemia of any kind, you should not donate blood. 

Finally, donating blood can actually help you live longer. A study in Health Psychology states that doing good works, such as donating to charities like Red Cross for altruistic reasons can potentially live for four years longer than those that donated for the checkup or other reasons. Whatever reason, all students are urged to donate blood if they can. It could potentially save a life, and by doing such a good work,  potentially saving oneself.