Quick Facts On Blood & Blood Donation
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- The shelf life of blood is 35 days.
- Anyone between the ages of 16 and 65 years, in good health and weighing over 50 kg is fit to donate blood.
- Males can safely donate blood every 3 months, and females every 4 months.
- 60% of the blood collected in Kenya is from high school children.
- 30% of blood is collected from 20-64 year olds.
- 47 million is the total population of Kenya.
- 1% of the population is the World Health Organization recommended percentage of the country's blood collection.
- 470,000 – constitutes 1% of Kenya’s population.
- 250,000 -is the current units of blood collected annually in Kenya.
- Sterile procedures are used to ensure no risk of infection to the donor.
- Donated blood is screened for HIV, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and Syphilis.
- Donated blood can also be used for research purposes..
- There are Four main blood groups.
- A single unit of blood can be separated into several components: red blood cells, plasma and platelets.
- Red blood cells carry oxygen to the body's organs and tissues.
- Red blood cells live for about 120 days in the circulatory system.
- Platelets promote blood clotting.
- Plasma, which is 90% water, makes up 55% of blood volume.
- Healthy bone marrow produces a constant supply of blood.
- An average adult has about 5 litres of blood circulating in their body.
- Blood makes up about 7% of your body's weight.
- Newborn babies have about 80-90 ml/kg of blood in their body.
N/B Giving blood will not decrease your strength.
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