Benefits of blood donation, What to Expect Before, During & After it
Donating blood is not a one-way process, where the donor loses and the recipient gains. Rather, it is a two-way process in which the donor and the recipient both benefits. Blood donation is a simple and safe way to save someone’s life. So, if you have decided to donate blood, it would be valuable for you to be aware of the most important blood donation benefits. Check out-
Blood donation is an amazing way to lower your blood iron levels. Now, you must be wondering why you should care about lowering your iron levels. Just like people can have low blood iron levels, people can also have higher levels of this mineral in their blood. If you belong to the latter group of people, it would be wise to go and donate some blood. This will remove some red blood cells from your blood stream, which will help lower your iron levels.
People who donate blood regularly have better cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Although it’s not clear how blood donation helps keep these levels optimum, but there are studies to support this.
After donating blood, you receive immense peace of mind. So, there are certain obvious emotional benefits of blood donation. The feeling you experience when you help someone live longer is truly rewarding, even when the beneficiary is not among your acquaintances.
Now, here are some benefits that a recipient can reap-
Accidents and certain emergency situations cause the loss of blood. Such people can benefit immensely from someone’s donated blood.
Surgeries also cause a lot of blood loss. So, people who go through surgeries also benefit from donated blood.
Sometimes, certain gastrointestinal problems cause people to lose blood. Such people also might require external supply of blood from a donor.
A lot of women go through complications during pregnancy or childbirth. As a result of which they might lose a lot of blood. A person’s noble decision to donate blood can help all such women.
Even people with anaemia and cancer may require blood infusion. By donating blood, you will help a lot of people suffering from such diseases.
Things to know before you donate your blood-
You need to be at least 16 years old for blood donation.
Your weight should be at least 110 pounds.
Your health condition must be sound.
What to expect during donation?
Blood donation takes place in four steps- registration, examination of donor’s health and medical history, blood donation and refreshments. All the steps are carried out smoothly and donors face absolutely no hassles.
Effects after donating blood-
There are no side effects that last long. Still, you might feel some temporary effects-
You might feel lightheaded.
There might be a little bleeding from the site where the needle was injected.
Proper rest, drinking a lot of non-alcoholic beverages and eating well should help you get rid of all such side effects.
Now, that you know in how many amazing ways blood donation can benefit you, there is no reason why you should not go ahead and give it a shot.
