5 Benefits of blood donation that is a pity to miss

Blood is one of the most important components in the human body. Your decision to donate blood through blood donation can save one life, or even several lives at the same time. Not only is it beneficial for the recipient, as a donor you can also get the benefits of blood donation for your own health. Anything? Check out the reviews below.

What are the benefits of blood donation?

Blood donation allows you to provide a small amount of blood in the body. Usually, 480 milliliters of blood is drawn.

Men can donate blood every 12 weeks (3 months) and women can give blood every 16 weeks (four months) —a maximum of 5 times in 2 years — because men usually have more supplies of iron than women.

Later, the blood that you donate will be checked and tested for safety and grouped by blood type. This is useful so that the blood given is really in accordance with the patient's needs and is ensured that it is safe from possible diseases that appear in the blood.

Some conditions that require blood donation include:

• Accident
• Organ transplant
• Cancer
• Anemia
• Sickle cell anemia
• Thalassemia
• Hemophilia

In addition to patients, there are several benefits that you will get if you regularly donate blood, namely:

1. Reducing the risk of heart and blood vessel disease

Regular blood donation is known to be useful for reducing blood viscosity. The thicker the blood flowing in the body, the higher the chance of friction between the blood and the blood vessels.

The friction that occurs in these blood vessels can damage the cells of the blood vessel walls, which in turn can increase the risk of blood vessel blockage. This condition increases your risk of developing heart disease.

According to American Journal of Epidemiology , blood donation activities can reduce the risk of heart disease by 33% and heart attack by 88%. The American Medical Association says donating blood once every 6 months can reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke at the age of 43-61 years.

This is because blood donations also help the body to get rid of excess iron. Excess iron in the blood can lead to oxidation of cholesterol. The result of this oxidation process can accumulate on the artery walls and increase the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Through blood donation, iron levels in the body can become more stable and reduce the risk of developing heart and blood vessel disease.

2. Reducing the risk of cancer

The next benefit of blood donation is preventing cancer. This is also related to the amount of iron that is reduced when donating.

According to research published in Journal of the National Cancer Institute , excess iron can cause free radical damage that puts you at risk for cancer and aging.

3. Helps you lose weight

According to the University of California San Diego, donating 450 milliliters of blood can actually burn up to 650 calories. That is why, blood donation is also useful for maintaining ideal body weight and keeping you from the risk of obesity.

Even so, do not use blood donations as an "arena" for weight loss. Excessive blood donation can be dangerous for your health.

4. Detecting serious illnesses

Every time you donate blood, you will undergo routine basic checks, such as checking your weight, body temperature, pulse, blood pressure, and hemoglobin levels.

You will also be asked to undergo blood tests to detect the presence or absence of infectious diseases, such as HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, syphilis, and malaria. This aims to prevent disease transmission through transfusion.

For donors, this examination is of course useful for detecting certain diseases early. So besides helping other people who need blood, you can also get free health checks.

5. Helping to be healthier psychologically and a long life

A study in the field of psychology shows that people who donate blood in order to help others have a lower risk of death. These results were compared with those who donated blood for their own purposes or did not donate blood at all.

An equally important benefit of blood donation is the fact that donating invaluable things to the needy will make us feel psychological satisfaction.

What to do before blood donation?

First of all, you need to meet the blood donation requirements. Some of the general conditions include:

• Physically healthy
• Between 17-66 years old
• Weight more than 45 kg
• The body temperature is between 36.6-37.5 degrees Celsius

Apart from having to meet the requirements for blood donation, here are some things that you must prepare before doing the procedure so that you can get the maximum benefits of blood donation, such as:

• Drink plenty of fluids the day before donating blood, especially if the weather is hot. The reason is, when you donate blood, your blood volume will decrease.
• You can eat salty foods about 12 hours before donating blood. The reason is, after the blood is drawn, you lose about 3 grams of salt from the body.
• Get enough daily iron needs so you don't lack iron. You can eat beef, fish, broccoli, asparagus, spinach, and other green vegetables.
• Make sure you get enough sleep before drawing blood.
• Tell me about any medications you are currently taking (be it prescription, over-the-counter, vitamin, or herbal) before donating blood.
• Eat enough 3-4 hours before the donor to prevent weakness, dizziness, or tearing after blood donation.
• Three hours before donating blood, you are advised to drink lots of water or fruit juice.

What should you prepare when donating blood?

Here are some things that you must prepare when donating blood:

• Use clothes that are loose or not too tight, making it easier for the blood to draw.
• If this is your first time donating blood, try to relax. You can try listening to music, reading, or chatting with fellow donors so that the blood draw process runs smoothly.
• If you are used to it, the process of finding blood vessels will be easier. You can inform this to the donor officer.

What should you pay attention to after donating blood?

After the blood donation, you are advised to sit for a while drinking water or eating small meals. You can get up slowly to make sure you don't feel dizzy. Don't get up quickly.

In addition, some tips that you can do so that you can really feel the benefits of blood donation, include:

• Limit physical activity for at least 5 hours after donating.
• Do not immediately remove the tape stuck to the injection area.
• Clean the area around the plaster with soap and water.
• If you have bruises in the area where the injection was taken, you can put a cold compress on it to ease the pain.
• If the needle puncture is bleeding, it's best to press on the area and raise your arm straight up for about 5-10 minutes or until the bleeding stops.
• Do not stand for long periods in direct sunlight and do not drink hot drinks.
• If you smoke, you should not smoke for two hours after donating your blood.
• If you drink alcohol, you should not drink alcohol until 24 hours after donating.
• Drink lots of fluids to replace your lost body fluids, at least you add 4 glasses of water on the day you donate blood.
• Expand foods that contain iron, vitamin C, folic acid, riboflavin (B2), and vitamin B6.

Inform the donor officer if you experience health problems after donating blood, such as feeling nauseous, dizzy, experiencing bleeding, or there is a lump in the injection site.