Sophie, the blood recipient. Please read on.

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I block ads from every single website except this one. Now I get "Sophie, the blood recipient." blood donor ad. This will be a little bit longer, but it's interesting and important, so please read on.

They won't take my blood because they fear I might bleed internally after having donated and will run out of blood and die. haha. Yah, I'm not kidding this time.

But, in the spirit of donating blood, since a lot of you people aren't doing anything except sleeping and playing video games, I would ask of you all to check out your local blood donor clinic website or call them and complete a pre-screening and sign up to donate blood. It's the easiest life-saving move you can make.

I've had more needles than people have toes - and I'm counting you 11 and 12 toe people out there. So, even if you don't like needles, remember it's just a small sacrifice. Whether you have O- "universal blood" or rare AB- or just a plain jane strain, you can help many people.

Now for the interesting biology part:

For example, I have a blood type of B-. It is one of the more rare blood types. It's found in about 1.5% of the population. Even more rare is AB- at about 0.6%. On the other hand, those with O- blood (the universal donor) is about 6.6% of the population. Sounds like a lot in comparison, right?

In actuality, it's not nearly enough. Every 2 seconds, someone in the US alone needs a blood transfusion and a lot of those are emergencies.

O+ blood is the most common blood type at around 37% of the population and needs either O+ or O- donations. Anyone who has O+ blood should donate often, as needed, by their local blood bank (don't get discouraged if they say no - they have enough O+ blood on hand then, but they will need you later). Most of these people need your blood for surgeries, treatments, etc. and it is better to use O+ blood, rather than O- for those patients because O- can be used with anyone and it's far more rare.

O- types can only receive O- blood. That 6.6% of the population with O- blood is extremely valuable to other O- people who need a blood transfusion. Remember, O- is the universal donor as well. The issue is compounded by emergency blood transfusions where the time it takes to type someone's blood could easily be the time necessary to transfuse them to save their life. Whether someone has fallen, been in a car accident, is the victim of an attack or a member of law enforcement or military personnel that has been injured in the line of duty, it's extremely important to have O- blood on hand.

Not an O? That's okay! You're still needed - especially if you have AB- type blood. This is kind of where I find it gets more interesting. Ever hear of blood PLASMA and PLATELETS?

Blood Plasma is literally the liquid part of our blood. The red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets are all suspended in this plasma. Plasma is important for trauma and burn patients. Similar to the way that O- donors are universal, the plasma from an AB- donor is the universal plasma donor -- and AB- blood is uber rare - just 0.6% of the population!

A person who has an AB- blood type is not just necessary for direct AB+ and AB- blood transfusions, but for plasma that can be given to all the blood types. You will likely always find a smiling nurse with a needle waiting for you if you're an AB- blood type - you're really important.

Blood PLATELETS! Who's the universal platelet donor? AB+ is the universal platelet donor, but this is where everyone can participate! Unlike whole blood, which is good for 42-days, and blood plasma that is good for 1-year (they freeze it), blood platelets are only good for a lousy 5-days!

I will say it again! BLOOD PLATELETS are only good for a lousy 5-days!

So, who cares? Everyone should. Blood platelets are what stick and clot to stop bleeding. They are made in bone marrow - that sticky, spongey stuff in the center of our bones. Blood cancer patients, like those suffering from leukemia and multiple myeloma need platelets because their bone marrow cannot produce their own platelets. Platelets are also used in surgery, especially organ transplants. Since these colourless little warriors are only good for 5-days - and that's while being constantly agitated so they don't clump together - anyone and everyone who can donate blood should donate blood for platelets.

In fact, you don't even need to donate your blood! Well, you kind of do, but only temporarily! Your blood can be separated temporarily while some platelets are retained. The remaining red blood is given back to you and it takes more blood, separates it again and takes some more platelets! This means you can donate 4-6 times more platelets than separating them from many single whole blood donations to create a single unit for transfusion. Pretty neat and well worth your time and effort.

So folks, there you have it. The amazing world of blood and three ways we need it. I cannot donate blood - I've tried many times - but they won't take mine due to health concerns. I can only ask you all to help fight the good fight. After all, it may be you who needs a blood transfusion. One less donation could be be the one you need.
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