World Blood Donor Day

In the News and Trending for World Blood Donor Day

World Blood Donor Day Facts & Quotes

• The theme for World Blood Donor Day in 2021 was Give blood and keep the world beating.
• According to the World Health Organization, in 2020, there was 118.5 million blood donations collected globally.
• According to the American Red Cross, donors can donate whole blood every 56 days, platelets every 7 days (up to 24 times a year), plasma every 28 days (up to 38 times a year) and double red cells every 112 days.
• Type O negative blood and Type AB positive plasma can be transfused to all blood types. The demand is great but supply is low.
• Today, only 62 countries get close to 100% of their national blood supplies from voluntary unpaid blood donations, with 40 countries still dependent on family donors and even paid donors. - World Health Organization

World Blood Donor Day Top Events and Things to Do

• Give the gift of life. If you are an eligible donor, you can donate blood at many centres throughout your city or country. Search online to find your nearest centre.
• Revaluate your diet. In order to donate, you must have sufficient iron in your blood and once you have donated, iron will have been removed from your body. Add some food rich in iron to your diet. Food such as red meats, seafood, green leafy vegetables and beans are known to be rich in iron.
• Find out what blood type you are! There are 8 types, with AB being the rarest (only 4% of the world population has it) and either a positive or a negative factor (the negative being the recessive and more rare factor).
• Check out the documentary The Blood in This Town (2010) or Blood (Krov) (2013) to see some life-changing stories about blood donation in the US and Russia.

World Blood Donor Day References and Related Sites