LEARN MORE

Why donate blood?

There is a huge number of reasons why someone may need to receive blood, from regular blood transfusions to giving birth and emergency surgery. Have a read about why donating blood, if you are able, is so important to others.

What happens to blood after donation?

Have you ever wondered where your blood goes after your donation? How quickly it’s used and by who? Have a read about how blood gets stored, split and given to the recipient.

What is blood made up of?

Do you know the difference between plasma and platelets? What does a red blood cell do differently from a white blood cell? Read more about the components of blood and why they are all important!

What is a blood type?

Whether you’re a A, O, AB or B, each blood type is made up differently. There are many different factors that make our blood types specific to each of us.

FUN FACTS

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In the one pint of blood you donate, there are approximately 2.4 trillion red blood cells. 

 
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It has been shown that the universal donor (type O blood) is ‘tastier’ to mosquitoes than the other blood types. Therefore, having type O blood makes you more susceptible to mosquito bites!

 
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The human body produces 17 million new red blood cells every second. In stressful situations, it can produce 7 times this amount, which means we can make up to 119 million red blood cells per second!

 
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There are approximately 800 different blood types in cows compared to the 8 different blood types in humans. 

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A pregnant woman’s blood volume will increase by approximately 50% by the end of their pregnancy.

 
 
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There is 0.2mg of pure gold in our blood. This makes up 0.02% of our blood volume, meaning we literally all have gold running through our veins! 

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Not all animals have red blood! For example, crabs have blue blood and starfish have yellow blood.

 
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Plasma makes up approximately 55% of blood; 90% of this is water. This is why it is so important to drink plenty of water before and after your blood donation!

 
 
 
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The President of the United States always has a fridge full of their own blood type in the car they use for travel in case of emergencies.

 
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We have approximately 5 litres (10.5 pints) of blood in our body; our blood makes up approximately 8% of our total body weight.