Blood transfusion is an essential medical procedure that saves hundreds of thousands of lives every day. At the same time, blood cannot be reproduced artificially; it can only be taken from another person. It was this fact that contributed to the fact that donors began to appear all over the world - people who donate their blood to help others. It is noteworthy that you can donate blood for money or for free, it will be entirely your choice.

Donation - a noble mission or way of earning money

Many people are now interested in how to donate blood. Not all of these people are driven by the desire to help their neighbors; for many, this is a stable way to earn money. However, in any case, regardless of motives, donors help doctors save lives, and therefore, the nobility of this procedure cannot be overestimated. At the same time, not every person will take blood for transfusion. To donate, you must meet many health-related requirements. All the criteria necessary for donating blood and contraindications that can put an end to donation will be discussed in detail in this article.

How to become a blood donor

So, having decided to become a donor, you should know what requirements apply to the candidate:

• have sufficient weight for your height and age;
• good overall health and well-being on the day of blood collection;
• age not less than 18 and not more than 60 years.

If you meet all the criteria, the next question is: “Where can I donate blood?” As a rule, these are blood transfusion stations; they are located in every city. You need to come there with identification - a passport. Men also need to have their military ID with them. After registration, you must fill out a form, answering the questions as honestly as possible. Please note that if you give incorrect answers that could lead to any consequences for the recipient, you may be held accountable according to the law.

• general;
• biochemical;
• for hepatitis;
• syphilis;
• HIV infection.

After donating blood, you need to visit a therapist. When the test results are ready, you can act as a donor, provided that no pathologies are identified. As a rule, this is the next day after submitting the application. This procedure is only necessary for the initial application for donation. No further waiting is required.

Contraindications to donation

There are quite a few factors that prohibit you from becoming a donor. Moreover, they are divided into absolute and temporary. In the first case, we mean people who have suffered a specific disease that affects the composition of the blood. The list of diseases prohibiting blood donation is very extensive; it includes more than 30 diseases, which are included in the following sections:

• viral infections (HIV, hepatitis, syphilis);
• heart disease (ischemia, hypertension, defects, myocarditis and other diseases of this organ;
• lack of vision, speech or hearing;
• skin diseases;
• blood diseases;
• malignant tumors;
• lung diseases (tuberculosis, asthma, etc.)

In addition to absolute prohibitions, there are also temporary ones:

• pregnancy and lactation;
• any operations, including abortions;
• staying abroad more than 2 months before donating blood;
• infectious diseases that are not mentioned in the list of absolute prohibitions;
• menstruation;
• vaccinations;
• antibiotic treatment;
• acupuncture and tattooing;
• tooth extraction;
• period of exacerbation of allergies.

The period of a temporary ban on donation ranges from 10 days to a year and depends on the specific reason.

Benefits of donation

People who are interested in how to become a blood donor also want to know what privileges this procedure provides. In fact, for this category of people, the state provides benefits that are quite attractive. Thus, a person who donates blood has the right not to go to work on the day of the procedure and the next. At the same time, time away from work is paid. On the day of blood collection, the donor is provided with free food. These incentives apply to all categories of people who donate blood. At the same time, there are additional benefits for those who donate blood for free and those who have been awarded the title of honorary donor. They will be discussed below.

Free blood donation

Many people who decide to become donors are guided by moral principles and decide to donate blood for free. The state provides certain benefits for the category of people who donated blood for a year without payment, during which they were given the maximum dose at least twice:

• temporary disability benefit with full salary for a year. This item does not depend on length of service and illness;
• free trips to sanatoriums or holiday homes at the place of work or study;
• free distribution of iron supplements and vitamins throughout the year;
• 25% supplement to the scholarship from the local budget. This incentive applies to students and is valid for six months.

Honorary donor - who is it and how to become one

The title of honorary donor was introduced in Russia in 1983 and is valid to this day. This is a badge that provides additional benefits.
Its receipt depends on the number of visits to blood transfusion stations on a free basis. Therefore, if your goal is to donate blood for money, then becoming an honorary one will not work. So, to receive this badge, you need to:

• donate blood or its components 40 times;
• Donate plasma 40 times, then donate blood another 25 times;
• donate plasma 60 times.

Considering that you can only donate your blood a certain number of times during the year, it will take at least 10 years to obtain this title. However, given the privileges it provides, many feel the long journey is justified. So, by becoming an honorary donor to Russia, you can count on the following benefits:

• receiving an annual pension in the amount of 12 thousand rubles;
• the right to receive treatment in municipal and state health care institutions without waiting lists;
• receiving preferential vouchers from places of work or study as a matter of priority;
• the opportunity to take vacation at a time convenient for you.

Here it should be taken into account that in order to maintain the received title, it is necessary to continue to donate blood at least 3 times a year.

Paid donation

If you're considering donating blood as an opportunity to make extra money, of course you're interested in how much donors get paid. Until 2013, they paid 435 rubles for donating blood. This amount was supposed to be spent on lunch to recuperate. However, it could vary depending on the region. For example, in St. Petersburg, an additional 554 rubles were paid from the local budget to this money. This concerned active donors who donated blood at least 3 times a year.

However, since 2013, the law on paid donation has been abolished. Russia decided to follow the example of European countries, where donation is an absolutely free procedure. The authorities explain their decision by the fact that people who consider donating blood as an opportunity to earn money may provide inaccurate information about their health.

However, donation has not become completely free. They still pay money to owners of a rare blood group, namely fourth negative. Also, if you donate plasma or only platelets, you can receive from 800 to 1500 rubles for this procedure. Thus, if you decide to donate blood for money, the state provides this opportunity. However, it should be borne in mind that donating plasma and platelets is a more complex procedure than simply donating blood. The recovery period takes longer and a hospital stay may be required.

Also, given that the abolition of paid donation has sharply reduced the number of people willing to donate blood, some regions continue to practice payment. For example, in Moscow they accept blood at the same points, and the payment has not changed, only the source is the local budget, not the federal one.

How many times can you donate blood?

Important questions include how long you can donate blood and whether this procedure harms the body. According to the recommendations of doctors, the maximum number of blood donations per year for men is 5 times, for women - no more than 4. At the same time, whole blood can be donated with an interval of at least 60 days. As for plasma, it can be donated twice a month, provided that at least a month has passed since donating whole blood.

As for the effect of this procedure on the body, doctors say that donation brings only benefits. They explain this by saying that only absolutely healthy people can donate blood, and for them, a loss of 400 mg is not significant. In addition, blood loss forces the body to mobilize and also improve metabolism. For blood collection, only disposable instruments are used, which are opened in the presence of the donor. And finally, all the rights of a person donating blood are protected by law.

Preparing to donate blood

So, having learned how to become a blood donor and having made the decision to donate blood, you must follow a number of rules in order for the blood collection to be as efficient as possible:

• exclude fatty foods and alcohol from the diet at least three days before the procedure;
• sleep at least 8 hours the night before;
• abstain from cigarettes for at least an hour before the procedure;
• dinner in the evening before donating blood should be light, and only sweet tea and bread are allowed before the procedure;
• After blood sampling, it is recommended to refrain from physical activity and driving for 24 hours, and not to drink alcohol.

4 simple steps to become a donor

You have decided to become a donor. In order for the solution to be implemented, you need to go through 4 steps:

• - find out where to donate blood. This can be done at any blood transfusion station in your city. Just find out the address of the nearest one;
• - really evaluate your health, remembering in detail everything you have suffered from since childhood;
• - follow the rules of preparation for the blood donation procedure;
• - go to the selected blood collection point and join the Russian donor community.

The word “donor”, ​​translated from Latin, means gift, to give. And perhaps, by learning how to become a blood donor and deciding to donate your blood regularly, you will save more than one life.

Donor blood transfusion has a history of almost a century. Despite the fact that this procedure is quite familiar to many people, the process of donating blood is still surrounded by numerous myths. Today we set out to debunk the most common of them.

Source: depositphotos.com

Donating blood is harmful to health

The amount of blood circulating in the body of an adult is on average 4000 ml. It has been proven that the periodic loss of 12% of this volume not only does not have a negative effect on health, but also works as a kind of training that activates hematopoiesis and stimulates resistance to stress.

The volume of a one-time donation of donor blood does not exceed 500 ml (of which about 40 ml is taken for the purpose of testing). The body quickly replaces blood loss without any negative consequences.

The blood donation procedure is painful and tiring

Modern donor centers are equipped with everything necessary to make the person donating blood feel comfortable. The donor's discomfort is reduced to instant pain at the moment of needle insertion. The further procedure is absolutely painless.

Donating whole blood takes about a quarter of an hour. After its completion, the donor may experience slight fatigue, so on the day of the procedure it is not recommended to engage in heavy physical labor or go on a long trip. Donating blood components (plasma, platelets or red blood cells) can take up to one and a half hours.

There is a risk of donor infection

Many people believe that the donor is at risk of getting one of the dangerous blood-borne infections (for example, hepatitis C virus or HIV). Currently, this is absolutely excluded: only disposable instruments and devices are used for blood collection, which are unpacked in the presence of the donor, and after the procedure they are immediately disposed of.

The need for donor blood is low

Patients undergoing complex surgical operations, women in labor with complicated childbirth, and people with severe injuries or burns need blood transfusions. Donor blood and its components are used in the treatment of leukemia and other oncological diseases. There are artificial blood and plasma substitutes, but their use has a number of contraindications, as they sometimes lead to negative side effects.

In order to fully provide the healthcare system with the required amount of blood, 40-50 people out of 1000 must be donors. In some European countries this ratio has been achieved, but in Russia this figure is still significantly below the norm.

According to statistics, every third person on our planet needs a blood or plasma transfusion at least once in their life. At the same time, the blood of absolutely all groups is in demand, and not just rare ones, as is sometimes believed.

Anyone can become a donor

This is far from true. In Russia you cannot become a donor:

• under the age of 18 or over 60 years of age;
• having a body weight of less than 50 kg;
• being infected with hepatitis, human immunodeficiency virus or tuberculosis;
• having any blood disorders or diseases of the blood (blood-forming organs);
• suffering from cancer.

Temporary restrictions on blood donation apply:

• for pregnant women (blood will be accepted no earlier than one year after birth);
• for nursing mothers (they can become donors three months after the end of lactation);
• for women during menstruation (blood donation is allowed at least a week before the start or a week after the end);
• for people who had the flu or acute respiratory viral infection less than a month ago;
• for patients who have undergone dental surgery (at least ten days must pass);
• for people who were treated with acupuncture less than a year ago, or who had a tattoo (piercing) of any part of the body;
• for patients who have recently undergone vaccination (the period elapsed before donating blood depends on the type of vaccine and ranges from ten days to a year).

In addition, an exemption from donation can be obtained if tests on the day of the procedure show the presence of an inflammatory process or traces of alcohol in the body, increased body temperature, or if there are serious deviations from normal blood pressure readings. Men can donate blood no more than five times a year, and women - four times a year.

Donating blood for transfusion requires a responsible attitude. Two days before the procedure, the donor must give up alcoholic beverages. You should refrain from smoking for at least an hour before blood collection. Three days before the procedure, you must stop taking medications that reduce blood clotting (including aspirin and painkillers).

The donor should eat high-calorie foods before and after the procedure

The day before donating blood, you should not eat fatty, dairy, meat foods, eggs, smoked foods, chocolate, bananas, canned food and fast food.

It is important that the future donor does not make mistakes that could negatively affect his health. It is better to donate blood in the first half of the day. Before the procedure, you need to get a good night's sleep, have breakfast, preferring porridge or pastries and sweet tea. After donating blood, you should eat a balanced diet (at least five times a day if possible) and remember to drink plenty of fluids to replace blood loss.

Donating blood may cause weight gain

Donation itself (including regular donation) does not affect body weight in any way. There is a risk of gaining weight for those people who, having misunderstood the recommendations for nutrition, begin to intensively consume high-calorie foods to donate blood and cannot stop in time.

Donation is bad for your appearance

Some women are hesitant to donate blood, believing that this will negatively affect their complexion and skin elasticity. In fact, regular donation activates the work of the hematopoietic organs, causes the blood to renew itself faster, and has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the immune, cardiovascular and digestive systems.

Donors, as a rule, do not have problems with the tone and color of their skin. They are cheerful, fit, active and have a positive attitude.

Regular donation is addictive

In this case, we can talk about addiction only in the sense of increased resistance of the body to various stresses, diseases and negative influences of the external environment. Thus, regular blood donation teaches the body to quickly replenish blood loss, which can play a positive role in the event of an injury or illness from which no one is immune.

It has been clinically proven that donation reduces the risk of developing cardiovascular pathologies. Some men note that regular blood donation has a positive effect on potency.

For a successful blood transfusion, the donor and recipient must be of the same nationality

The statement has nothing to do with reality. The compatibility of the donor and the recipient (the person to whom the blood is transfused) depends solely on the composition of the blood, that is, the presence or absence of certain proteins in it. For transfusion, the compatibility of blood groups (AB0 system) and Rh factor is important. These indicators are distributed almost equally among different races and ethnic groups.

With a suitable protein composition, donor blood can be transfused to the recipient, regardless of gender, age or nationality.

Blood donation is the voluntary, conscious donation of blood or its components. This also means all manipulations that allow us to organize and guarantee the safe procurement of delivered materials.

Depending on who they are going for, donation can be:

• directed, when blood is donated for a specific person, mainly for family members, such a procedure is rarely carried out, only if there is no supply of the required blood;
• allogeneic (homologous), in this case it is taken from the donor, stored for some time in a special bank, and then transfused to the recipient who needs it, it is also used for the production of medicines;
• autologous, when it is donated for use in the future by the same person.

Who can participate in donation?

A blood donor is a person who, of his own free will, underwent a medical examination and donated whole blood or its formed elements, plasma. In Russia there is Federal Law of the Russian Federation No. 125-FZ dated July 20, 2012 “On the donation of blood and its components”, it explains what donation is, who can be a donor, what his responsibilities and benefits are.

According to Art. 12 of this law, a legally competent citizen at least 18 years old can become a donor:

• he has Russian citizenship;
• he is not a citizen of the Russian Federation (a foreigner or stateless person), but he has been living here legally for at least 12 months;
• passed a medical examination;
• which has no restrictions on donation.

How to become a blood donor

You need to come to the blood transfusion station, show a passport or other document that allows you to uniquely identify the person, fill out a questionnaire about your health and existing and past pathologies, travel abroad, medications taken, women need to indicate the date of their last menstruation, the presence or absence of pregnancy.

After this you need to undergo a medical examination. It's free. The candidate is examined by a therapist who measures blood pressure and pulse and collects anamnesis. Blood is also taken from a finger and a vein.

It is taken to determine its group affiliation, Rh factor, detect anemia, syphilis, HIV infection, hepatitis B and C. If a person wants to undergo plasmaphoresis, then he is prescribed a more advanced analysis, which allows him to determine whether he is ready for the procedure.

If everything is fine, you can donate blood.

Restrictions

Contraindications to blood donation can be permanent (absolute) or temporary (relative).

With absolute contraindications, a person can never become a donor, regardless of how long ago he suffered from a particular illness or what the results were after therapy.

These include the following blood-borne diseases:

• Hansen's disease;
• HIV infection;
• tularemia;
• tuberculosis;
• typhus;
• Bang's disease;
• hepatitis of viral etiology;
• toxoplasmosis;
• dracunculiasis;
• sleeping sickness;
• filariasis;
• leishmaniasis.

Among somatic pathologies, the absolute restrictions on donating blood are:

• hemolytic diseases;
• deaf-mute;
• organic lesions of the central nervous system;
• psychical deviations;
• alcohol and drug addiction;
• cardiovascular diseases (arterial hypertension of 2-3 degrees, ischemic heart disease, atherosclerosis, thrombosis with inflammation of the walls of blood vessels and the formation of blood clots, spontaneous gangrene, Takayasu Syndrome, heart disease and inflammation of its membranes);
• pathology of the respiratory system (bronchial asthma, bronchiectasis, emphysema, decompensated extensive pulmonary fibrosis, bronchitis with obstruction);
• gastrointestinal diseases (achylia, gastric and duodenal ulcers, chronic liver diseases, inflammation of the gallbladder and bile ducts);
• kidney pathologies, kidney stones;
• severe connective tissue diseases;
• severe endocrine disorders;
• fetid runny nose, acute and chronic severe bacterial otolaryngological diseases;
• radiation sickness;
• eye pathologies (myopia from 6D, trachoma, absolute blindness, inflammation of the choroid, iris, ciliary body, retina);
• mycoses of the skin and internal organs;
• dermatological pathologies (squamosal, eczema, bacterial skin lesions);
• osteomyelitis.

Also, a patient who has had an internal organ amputated or undergone a transplant cannot become a donor.

Some people are not allowed to donate for a certain period of time:

• after drinking alcohol - 2 days;
• after taking analgesics, salicylates - 3 days;
• Women can donate blood after the end of menstrual bleeding after 5 days;
• after dental surgery, administration of an inactivated vaccine - 10 days;
• after rabies vaccination, antibiotic therapy - 2 weeks;
• after the administration of a live vaccine, autonomic dysfunction, acute respiratory infections, acute respiratory viral infections, tonsillitis, after relieving acute attacks of inflammation, disturbances in the ratio of protein fractions - 1 month;
• after relief of an allergy attack - 2 months;
• after contact with a patient suffering from Botkin’s disease, completion of breastfeeding, with an increase in alanine activity by a maximum of 2 times - 12 weeks;
• after traveling abroad for at least 2 months, surgery, blood transfusion - six months;
• after tattooing, a course of reflexology, contact with patients suffering from hepatitis B and C, typhoid fever, childbirth, immunoglobulin vaccination against hepatitis - 12 months;
• after suffering from malaria or after traveling to countries where it is common - 3 years.

Rules for blood donation

A person planning to become a donor should know how to prepare and what not to eat before donating blood.

There are certain requirements for donating blood that must be followed:

1. At least 48 hours before blood donation, you should not drink alcohol, including drinks with low alcohol content.
2. Smoking is prohibited 2 hours before.
3. For 72 hours, you should not take pharmaceuticals based on metamizole sodium and medications that reduce blood viscosity.
4. The diet before donating blood should consist of avoiding fatty, fried, spicy, processed foods, dairy products, eggs, nuts, dates, butter and vegetable oil, meat, and chocolate. They must be excluded from the menu 24 hours in advance for blood donations. Vegetables and fruits are allowed (except bananas and tangerines, lemons), cereals, pasta and baked goods, jam, fish cooked in a double boiler. When donating blood for donation, the rules read:
   • Before donating blood, you need to have breakfast; you can eat porridge without milk, with the addition of honey (but not more than 1 teaspoon), fruits, dried fruits, drink sweetened tea with jam, jam, buns, cookies, dried fruits.
   • To replenish blood loss, it is necessary to ensure that the body receives a sufficient amount of minerals and fluids. You need to drink before and after the procedure. It can be juices, fruit drinks, mineral water, sweet tea, coffee. It is especially important to follow a diet if blood components are donated, otherwise it is difficult to separate them.
   • Eating fatty and fried foods can distort the results of the examination; chylosis is possible, in which the content of fatty particles in the bloodstream is higher than normal. This result can happen, for example, if you drink a glass of kefir on the day of delivery. Moreover, even if you drink coffee with milk in the morning, it is better not to come for blood donation, since, most likely, the analysis will show an increased fat content in the blood, and donation will be prohibited.
5. It is prohibited to take it during intense mental and physical stress, for example, before a state exam. Before donating, it is imperative to get enough sleep.
6. It has been proven that blood loss is replenished faster if blood is donated in the first half of the day; only active donors can do this in the afternoon.

How often you can donate blood depends on your gender and what is being donated: whole blood, formed elements or plasma. In the case of donating whole blood, the interval between donations should be at least 2 months, when donating its components - 1 month. It is permissible for men to donate blood a maximum of 5 times in 12 months, for women - 4.

Stages of blood donation

1. After the doctor issues a conclusion that the person can become a donor, he sits in a special chair.
2. The upper limb above the elbow is tied with a tourniquet, the skin is wiped with an antiseptic.
3. A disposable catheter is inserted intravenously and whole blood is collected. The volume of material taken is 450 ml, and it takes no more than 10 minutes. When donating blood components, plasma (600-680 ml) or platelets (200 ml) are separated using special equipment, and then the rest of the blood is poured back into the body. This procedure lasts 45 minutes. During blood donation, the donor can not only lie down, but also sit or recline.
4. The resulting biomaterial is collected in a special bag, from where some is sent for research. After the procedure is completed, a bandage is applied to the elbow. You can remove it after 4 hours.
5. The donor is given a certificate that he has undergone blood donation. After the procedure, he is entitled to lunch and rest.

Blood donation can take place according to various schemes. The procedure for collecting plasma and platelets is quite complex.

If you donate platelets, you need to undergo additional examination. They are collected in two ways:

• instrumental, in which blood is taken continuously, while it is taken from one limb and poured into the second in parallel;
• intermittent, and in this case one portion of blood is taken, the formed elements are separated, and everything that remains is poured back, then the next portion is taken and everything is repeated.

Plasma donation occurs in exactly the same way, but with the use of other devices, and there is no need to undergo examination before donation. When the material is taken, the plasma is separated, and a larger volume of blood is poured back into the body.

Upon completion of the procedure, you must follow a number of rules:

1. After the procedure, you need to sit for a quarter of an hour, then go to the buffet and drink tea with sugar. If you feel unwell and dizzy, you need to tell the medical staff about it. To combat dizziness, you can lie on your back and elevate your lower limbs, or sit up and bow your head so that it is between your knees.
2. Avoid smoking cigarettes for an hour.
3. For 24 hours, limit physical activity and do not drink alcohol (except Cahors, but not more than 100 ml).
4. Nutrition in the first two days should be enhanced, and you should also drink a lot. Preference should be given to protein foods of plant and animal origin. It could be meat, fish, beans, lentils, eggs. The diet should contain foods that help prevent the development of anemia. To compensate for iron deficiency, you need to include pomegranates, shellfish, buckwheat, mushrooms, offal, and kelp in the menu. The least amount of it is found in milk, bananas, tomatoes, and corn. To improve iron absorption, it is necessary to consume foods containing ascorbic acid and vitamin B12. Also, during blood sampling, a loss of calcium may occur; to compensate for its deficiency, you need to consume dairy products. You can take pharmaceutical medications prescribed by your doctor. For better absorption, you must take vitamin D, which is also produced under the influence of UV rays from the sun.
5. After donation, vaccination is prohibited for 10 days.
6. You can drive a car immediately, and a motorcycle after two hours.

How much do they pay for blood donation?

Some potential donors are interested in how much it costs to donate blood. Blood collection is free of charge. You can rent it out free of charge or for money. How much a donor is paid depends on whether he donates whole blood or only plasma and formed elements.

In 2013, the Ministry of Health established the following prices for blood donation:

• if there is no blood cell antigen or a rare blood phenotype, then you can get 800 rubles at a time, the size of payments can be 8-45% of the subsistence level, it depends on the blood group and the demand for it;
• when donating using apheresis, you can get 1.5 thousand rubles for 600 ml of plasma, 2.5 thousand rubles for red blood cells, 3.5 thousand rubles for platelets.

Blood taken before donation for testing is not paid for.

If a person donates blood for money, then he is not entitled to free food. Those who donate blood for free are required to feed them free of charge. Sometimes it is possible to replace free food with money, in which case the payment amount is 5% of the subsistence level.

Benefits for Honorary Donors

People are often interested in how many times they need to donate blood to receive the title “Honorary Donor”. To assign it you need free of charge:

• donate blood at least 40 times;
• donate plasma at least 60 times.

If a person is an honorary donor of Russia, then he is entitled to the following benefits prescribed in Art. 22 and 24 Federal Law “On the donation of blood and its components”:

• discounted vouchers to a sanatorium;
• if bleeding occurs during vacation, on a holiday or a day off, then he is entitled to 1 day of rest with double pay;
• paid holiday;
• the ability to seek medical help without waiting in line;
• once a year - cash benefits, which are constantly indexed.

The benefits and harms of donation

There are many misconceptions about whether it is useful or harmful to donate blood to donors.

In general, donation is harmless to the body, since the volume of material taken is small and does not interfere with the functioning of the body. In addition, he recovers quite quickly. Yes, and the candidate undergoes a medical examination before donation, and if experts believe that donation is dangerous to his health, the person is not allowed to donate blood. The selection of donors is quite strict.

Moreover, scientists have proven that donation is beneficial for the body.

So what are the pros and cons for the body from the procedure? Pros:

• People who donate blood regularly recover more easily from blood loss, such as from injury or surgery, because their body is already used to it.
• They are less likely to experience myocardial infarction, and the heart itself and blood vessels are healthier. Blood donation is a good prevention of pathologies of the cardiovascular system.
• Regular blood donation activates the overall recovery of the body and improves blood circulation. Immunity increases, the liver is unloaded, and prevents the development of disorders of the spleen.
• Donors regularly undergo medical examinations, and therefore can identify health problems at an early stage and take timely measures to eliminate them.

But you cannot donate blood often, since the body does not recover immediately after donation. Minuses:

1. The main undesirable consequence of blood donation is a drop in the level of red blood cells, which provokes anemia. Therefore, patients who often have low hemoglobin levels are not recommended to undergo the donation procedure. However, before the main blood draw, the candidate takes a hemoglobin test, and if the results deviate by at least 1 unit from normal values, then he will simply not be allowed to donate blood.
2. Platelet concentrations usually recover fairly quickly after apheresis. However, during the procedure, sodium citrate is used as a preservative, which prevents the biomaterial from clotting, and with it the procedure goes faster. But the fact is that it binds and removes calcium from the body. To reduce the risk of leaching of the mineral from bone tissue, calcium gluconate is injected intravenously several times during plateletpheresis. If this is not done, hypocalcemia may develop, which may cause tingling in the lips, cramps, or increased blood pressure. To avoid this, after donating platelets, it is recommended to take calcium supplements for some time, for example, Kalcemin, Kaltsid, Complivit D3. It must be remembered that it is useless to take calcium gluconate in tablets, since without vitamin D it is not absorbed. Also, with frequent blood donations using thrombocytopheresis, a person may experience a citrate reaction, which consists in the fact that the donor has a hard time tolerating the introduction of the next dose of a preservative into the body, and there is a deterioration in his health both during the procedure itself and after it. Therefore, it is recommended to donate platelets no more than once every 2-3 months.
3. Donation of granulocytes began not very long ago. This is a rare procedure, and how it affects the donor’s body has not yet been studied. Some people have concerns because the drug Neupogen is used to stimulate the bone marrow. However, doctors believe that single use will not provoke any negative consequences in the future; clinical trials on safety are still underway. Donors who donated granulocytes almost 10 years ago were examined; they did not reveal any prerequisites for the development of pathologies, including cancer. For some time after the granulocytes are collected, you may experience mild body aches or weakness, similar to flu-like symptoms, but these symptoms are the body's natural response to bone marrow stimulation and do not last long. More severe adverse reactions after the procedure are rare. Heparin is used instead of sodium citrate, so calcium deficiency is not observed after the procedure.
4. A hematoma may appear at the site where the needle was inserted to collect material; after the procedure, weakness and loss of consciousness may occur.

In general, the blood donation procedure is not dangerous for the body if you follow all the doctor’s recommendations.

General practitioner, candidate of medical sciences, practicing physician.

Blood donation (according to the Blood Service standards) is harmful to the donor’s body.

Lies! Donating blood is not harmful, but even useful!!! For those who do not have contraindications, which will be known during the initial examination. No need to mislead people!

Mikhail, why all of a sudden?

Blood guide. Myths and truth about donation How much you can earn from donating blood and other interesting questions Zozhnik asked Yaroslav Nikolaevich Glazov, a transfusiologist, head of the department of blood procurement and fractionation at the Blood Center of the FMBA of Russia.

HOW MUCH BLOOD IS IN A PERSON

Tell us first, how much blood is there in a person and how much of it can be donated?

Depending on gender, age and body type, the circulating blood volume (CBV) per 1 kg of body weight ranges from 50 to 80 ml per kilogram of weight. BCC can be calculated using the formula: body weight * 77. For example, if a person weighs 56 kg, then his blood volume will be equal to 4.31 liters. However, no more than 12% of this volume can be donated.

But in general, the standard volume of blood collection is 450 ml, excluding blood taken for tests - up to 40 ml.

STORAGE LIFE

What happens to the blood that donors donate? We heard that quite a significant part of it is simply disposed of, roughly speaking - poured into the toilet. In what cases does this happen?

Usually, when talking about donation, they most often mean the procedure of donating whole blood. During this short procedure that does not cause even minor discomfort, about 450 ml of blood is removed from the donor’s bloodstream into a special plastic container.

At the same time, about 30-40 ml is separately taken from the donor in order to later conduct examinations in special laboratories and determine its belonging to a certain blood group and Rh factor, biochemical parameters, as well as markers of the immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B and C and syphilis.

Immediately after donating blood, it is divided into components - red blood cells, platelets and plasma.

Red blood cells

Blood components made from red blood cells can be stored for up to 42 days. During this period, a container with a red blood cell-containing component will be sent to the hospital as soon as a request for a given blood type and Rh factor is received.

Platelets

Platelets are stored for no more than 5 days, so their use is most effective immediately after harvesting.

Immediately after its isolation from whole blood, plasma is stored - quarantined. After at least 6 months, the donor must undergo another examination so that doctors can ensure that the dose of plasma collected earlier is completely safe. Plasma from donors who have undergone such testing can be given to medical institutions for transfusion to people in need.

Therefore, it is very important that the donor definitely comes to the blood transfusion facility again. If for some reason the donor cannot visit the blood transfusion facility for routine plasmapheresis after 6 months, then he can come simply to take tests. If the donor does not return after 6 months or a year, his plasma can be sent for virus inactivation, after which it will be released to a medical institution.

HARMS OF MASS BLOOD DONATION

Nowadays, it often happens that after terrorist attacks or disasters, various blood collection points are set up, and someone earns political points from this. People think that their blood will be directly transfused to the victims. Does it make sense to go and become a donor in such situations?

In case of emergencies, blood service institutions constantly maintain a minimum supply of blood components. If necessary, reserves will immediately meet the need to treat a very large number of victims. It is the reserve - blood components previously prepared from regular donors, tested in full and ready for transfusion - that is spent primarily when eliminating the consequences of emergency situations.

During disasters, there is usually a massive influx of donors. Such an influx carries the risk of creating reserves of unclaimed blood. The most annoying thing is that short-term donor activity does not improve the situation with the daily shortage of blood components, and sometimes even worsens it.

A “rebound phenomenon” occurs - a significant decrease in the number of donors two to three weeks after a short surge in the number of donations. This situation arises when potential donors donated blood during the tragedy, and after that they must have a break of at least 2 months. At the same time, such blood components as red blood cells and platelets, as I already said, are stored for a relatively short time (red blood cells - 42 days, platelets - 5 days). Without being overfilled, they are disposed of. A month and a half after the disaster, the refrigerators filled with blood are empty, and life goes on as usual.

Another problem: in the wake of the excitement caused by the disaster, about half of those who donated blood are primary donors. Such donors require careful monitoring due to the higher incidence of infections compared to regular donors, whose blood is safest due to constant monitoring of their health. Due to the unpreparedness of the primary donor for the procedure (violation of the donor diet), the presence of a number of hidden infections that he may not even be aware of, the blood and its components received from such a donor simply will not help the victims of the tragedy, but will be disposed of.

EARNING FROM DONATING BLOOD

Is it possible to make money by donating blood? How much do they pay and what do they give to donors?

In accordance with regulatory legal acts, a gratuitous donor is paid monetary compensation for lunch in the amount of 5% of the cost of living established for residents of the region in which the blood service establishment is located (on average in Russia, a donor will be given 368 rubles 60 kopecks, based on average value of 7372 rubles according to data for the 2nd quarter of 2013 - Zozhnik’s note).

For the donation of blood components, the amount of payments may be different: for blood donors with a rare phenotype - 8% of the subsistence level (590 rubles), for plasma donors by apheresis - 15% (1106 rubles), for platelet donors by apheresis - 35% of the cost of living (2580 rubles).

It is worth noting that regular gratuitous donation is an opportunity not only to check your health, but also to become an “Honorary Donor of Russia.” The “Honorary Donor of Russia” badge is awarded to citizens who have donated free whole blood and platelets 40 or more times or blood plasma 60 or more times.

Honorary donors have the right to priority treatment in state or municipal health care organizations, priority purchase of preferential vouchers for sanatorium treatment at their place of work or study. They are also provided with annual paid leave at a time of year convenient for them and an annual cash payment (for example, in 2013, all honorary donors were paid 11,138 rubles - Zozhnik’s note).

Plus, in each subject there are additional social support measures for “Honorary Donors of Russia” living in this region.

WHITE AND BLACK BLOOD MARKET

Is there a blood shortage in Russia now? In this case, can patients who do not have enough for a transfusion buy blood?

Many patients and their relatives find themselves in a situation where the attending physician says, “We don’t have blood in the clinic, look for donors yourself.” So, according to regulatory documents throughout the Russian Federation, the free provision of donor blood and its components in the provision of medical care is guaranteed.

If previously the patient’s relatives could go directly to the blood transfusion facility and purchase the necessary blood components, now this is a criminal offense. The circulation of donor blood and its components can only be carried out by institutions, the list of which is reflected in the Federal Law “On the Donation of Blood and Its Components” (No. 125-FZ of June 20, 2012).

RARE BLOOD

Is it true that there are especially rare types of blood that contain a certain unique set of elements, and that such blood is especially in demand? Is there a shortage of any specific type of blood (type/Rh, something else)?

All blood is divided according to the principle of group affiliation (blood group of the ABO system), based on 4 combinations of erythrocyte antigens A and B - I (O), II (A), III (B) and IV (AB), as well as Rh -factor - an antigen that is located on the surface of red blood cells. About 85% of people have this same Rh factor and are Rh positive (Rh+). The remaining 15% are Rh negative (Rh-).

There are so-called rare phenotypes - a certain set of letter indicators. But in no case can we talk about any special demand for this phenotype. After all, if the phenotype is rare, then there are few people with such a phenotype, and they also need little blood.

Experts working in blood transfusion institutions agree that it is wrong to consider blood type IV with Rh+ and Rh- rare. Every day, clinics’ need for blood components of a certain group changes. At some point, both blood groups I and II may become “rare” if the number of requests for components of this group coming from health care facilities exceeds the capabilities of the blood transfusion institution.

WHEN WE NEED BLOOD

Wikipedia says that every third inhabitant of the earth needs a blood transfusion at least once in his life. In what cases do people need someone else's blood?

The following people need specialized treatment, requiring the use of components and preparations of donor blood:

– those who have lost a lot of blood due to childbirth, injuries, accidents (poisoning, burns), accidents;

– having cancer;

– for blood diseases (hemophilia, leukemia, aplastic anemia);

– for severe chronic diseases;

– if necessary, bone marrow transplantation;

– during surgical operations (including endoprosthetics, cardiac surgery and other complex operations).

Every year, at least 1.5 million Russians need donor blood, and at some point almost every one of us may need it. Unfortunately, scientists have not yet invented any substitutes for human blood, without which it is impossible to provide the necessary specialized care to patients in need.

TATTOOS AND DONATION

Is it true that if a person has at least one tattoo, he cannot be a donor? What other restrictions are there on becoming a donor?

Many people believe that a person with a tattoo cannot be a donor. This is a big misconception. You will not be allowed to donate only if 1 year has not passed since the tattoo was applied. These are the so-called temporary contraindications, which in addition to tattoos include the following:

– piercing, acupuncture treatment (1 year);

– tooth extraction (10 days);

– sore throat, flu, ARVI (1 month from the moment of recovery);

– surgical operations, including abortion (6 months);

– menstruation (5 days after the end);

– taking hormonal contraceptives (1 month after finishing taking);

– period of pregnancy, childbirth and lactation (1 year after birth, 3 months after the end of lactation);

- Recent vaccinations.

There are also absolute contraindications. In this case, the person is excluded from donation for life. These include: HIV infection, syphilis, viral hepatitis, tuberculosis, blood diseases, cancer, peptic ulcers of the stomach and duodenum, Achilles gastritis, bronchial asthma, urolithiasis, diseases of the endocrine system, cardiovascular diseases, surgical interventions regarding resection and organ transplantation.

HOW TO BECOME A DONOR?

How can I find out the nearest qualified place where I can donate blood?

If you are 18 years old, have no contraindications to donation and weigh more than 50 kg, you are ready to become a donor. You can find out the address of the nearest blood service institution on the official website of the Blood Service www.yadonor.ru in the section “Where to donate blood?” or by contacting the Blood Service Hotline 8-800-333-33-30.

Read on Zozhnik: All daily diets and recipes with KBJU

Donors are not recommended to:
The evening before donating blood, eat fatty, fried, spicy, smoked, dairy products, butter, eggs.
Drink alcohol less than two days (48 hours) before the procedure.
Take analgesics and aspirin, as well as medications containing them (these substances impair blood clotting), less than three days (72 hours) before the procedure.
Smoke less than an hour before the procedure.
Donate blood on an empty stomach. In the morning, on the day of blood donation, it is recommended to eat a low-fat carbohydrate breakfast (porridge cooked in water, dry cookies) and drink a large amount of liquid (sweet tea).
Donate blood if you feel unwell (unwell): chills, dizziness, headache, weakness.
You should not donate blood after a sleepless night.
Women should not donate whole blood during menstruation, 7 days before menstruation and for a week after. And also during pregnancy and lactation (during lactation, hormonal levels have not yet returned to normal, and the body needs time to recover after childbirth and breastfeeding, usually 1.5-2 years).
Donor must weigh not less than 55 kg.

When appearing for blood donation, the donor Necessarily must have a passport with you.

After the blood donation procedure, it is recommended to refrain from heavy physical and sports activities and heavy lifting. For two days after the blood donation procedure, it is recommended to eat well and regularly and drink at least two liters of liquid per day: juices, water, weak tea (alcohol is not recommended). For recovery after blood donation, the following products are recommended for the donor: chocolate, coffee, hematogen.

According to current rules, you can donate whole blood no more than once every 60 days.
Men can donate whole blood no more than 5 times a year, women no more than 4 times a year.
After donating whole blood, you can donate plasma after 30 days.
Repeated donation of plasma or blood components is allowed after 14 days.

CONTRAINDICATIONS TO DONATION OF BLOOD AND ITS COMPONENTS
Not everyone who wants to donate blood can be a donor, so everyone who comes to the blood transfusion station undergoes a medical examination. This is dictated by concern for the health of the donor and the patient to whom the blood will be transfused.
Contraindications to donation can be absolute, when a person cannot be a donor under any circumstances, and relative, when a person can become a donor after some time.

1.10 Malignant neoplasms.
1.11 Blood diseases.
1.12 Organic diseases of the central nervous system.
1.13 Complete absence of hearing and speech.
1.14 Mental illnesses.
1.15 Drug addiction, alcoholism.
1.16 Diseases of the cardiovascular system:

• arterial hypertension II, III degree, risk greater than 2;
• cardiac ischemia;
• obliterating endarteritis;
• nonspecific aortoarteritis;
• recurrent thrombophlebitis;
• varicose veins of the third degree;
• diseases of the muscles and heart valves, including heart valve prolapse;
• rhythm and conduction disorders of various etiologies.

1.17 Respiratory diseases:

• bronchial asthma;
• bronchiectasis;
• emphysema;
• diffuse pneumosclerosis in the stage of decompensation;
• sarcoidosis

1.18 Diseases of the digestive system:

• peptic ulcer of the stomach and duodenum;
• chronic pancreatitis.

1.19 Diseases of the liver and biliary tract:

• chronic hepatitis, including toxic nature and unknown etiology;
• cirrhosis of the liver;
• calculous cholecystitis with repeated attacks.

1.20 Diseases of the kidneys and urinary tract:

• chronic kidney damage (pyelonephritis, glomerulonephritis);
• urolithiasis disease.

1.21 Diffuse connective tissue diseases.
1.22 Radiation sickness.
1.23 Diseases of the endocrine system:

• diabetes;
• diseases of the thyroid gland with dysfunction (hypo- and hyperthyroidism, autoimmune thyroiditis);
• III degree obesity.

1.24 Diseases of the ENT organs:

• ozena;
• other acute and chronic severe purulent-inflammatory diseases.

1.25 Eye diseases:

• chronic uveitis (iritis, iridocyclitis, chorioretinitis);
• high myopia (6 diopters or more);
• trachoma.

1.26 Skin diseases:

• common diseases of an inflammatory and infectious nature (pyoderma, furunculosis, sycosis);
• psoriasis, erythroderma, eczema, lupus erythematosus, blistering dermatoses;
• fungal infections of the skin (microsporia, trichophytosis, favus, epidermophytosis) and internal organs (deep mycoses).

1.27 Osteomyelitis, acute and chronic.
1.28 Surgical interventions for organ removal (stomach, kidney, spleen, ovaries, thyroid gland, etc.) and transplantation of organs and tissues.