How much do you know about blood? Here’s what you should know and why donating blood is crucial.

The Building Blocks of Blood
Plasma is the liquid element of blood and contains red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.

Red blood cells (RBCs) carry oxygen from the lungs to the body tissues, take carbon dioxide away from the tissues and carry it back to the lungs.

White blood cells (WBCs) fight off infections.

Platelets assist in the blood clotting process in order to close wounds and stop internal bleeding..

What’s Your Type?
There are eight different blood types — for example, AB-positive and AB-negative or O-positive and O-negative — that fall into four different groups. The groups are determined by the presence or absence of A and B antigens.

• Group A can donate RBCs only to A and AB blood types.
• Group B can donate RBCs only to B and AB blood types.
• Group AB is the universal plasma donor and can donate RBCs only to AB blood types; however, group AB can receive RBCs from all other blood types.
• Group O is the universal RBC donor and can donate blood to any blood type, but can only receive O RBCs.

The Need to Give
Every two seconds, someone in the United States is in need of blood. More than 41,000 daily blood donations — a total of nearly 16 million donations a year — are needed. Your donation is crucial, as less than 10 percent of potential donors in the United States donate each year.

By simply spending one hour of your time, you can donate blood to those in need. The donation process consists of four easy steps: registration, medical history, a mini-physical and the donation itself. The actual blood donation usually takes between 10 and 12 minutes. On average, adults have roughly 10 pints of blood; approximately one pint is taken during a donation. A healthy donor is allowed to donate red blood cells (RBCs) every 56 days — or double RBCs every 112 days — and platelets as frequently as every seven days, with a maximum of 24 times a year.

Please make plans to donate at our upcoming Blood Drive on Thursday, May 26. The drive will be held in the Blood Assurance Blood Mobiles located in the main parking lot of Tennova Healthcare – Clarksville, 651 Dunlop Lane from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. To register visit www.bloodassurance.org/Tennova. Walk-ins Welcome.

This publication in no way seeks to diagnose or treat illness or to serve as a substitute for professional medical care.