Blood facts

	Blood fights against infection and helps heal wounds, keeping you healthy.
	Blood makes up about 7% of your body's weight.
	A newborn baby has about one cup of blood in his or her body.
	White blood cells are the body's primary defense against infection.
	Granulocytes, a type of white blood cell, roll along blood vessel walls to search and destroy bacteria.
	Red blood cells carry oxygen to the body�s organs and tissue.
	There are about one billion red blood cells in two to three drops of blood.
	Red blood cells live about 120 days in the circulatory system.
	Platelets help blood to clot and give those with leukemia and other cancers a chance to live.
	Apheresis is a special kind of blood donation that allows a donor to give specific blood components, such as platelets.
	If all blood donors gave 2 to 4 times a year, it would help prevent all blood shortages.
	The fear of Blood is called Hemophobia or Hematophobia. Common symptoms of this fear are nausea, fear of dying, sweating, dry mouth, etc. It only takes a realization to overcome it.

Contact Us BharatBloodBank.com
301, Third Floor, Prince Centre,
No. 709, Anna Salai (Pathari Road),
Chennai 600 006, Tamilnadu, INDIA
Ph / Fax: 91-44- 4229870

Email: savealife@bharatbloodbank.com

Who needs blood?

Every 2 seconds someone needs blood. Your blood helps more than one life at a time. Accidents, premature babies, major surgeries require Whole blood, where your blood after testing is used directly. Trauma, Anemia, other surgeries requires only RBC, which is separated from your blood. The procedure of splitting blood components is called Cytapheresis. Similarly Platelets are used for Cancer patients undergoing Chemotherapy, Dengue fever, etc. Fresh frozen plasma is used for patients having massive Transfusions, Plasma is used for Burns and Cryoprecipitate is used for Hemophilia.

When is blood needed?
Blood is needed at regular intervals and at all times as it has only a finite time to store. Red blood cells can be stored for about 42 days, Fresh Frozen Plasma and Cryoprecipitate for a year and platelets for 5 days.

Who can donate blood?
Anyone above 18 years weighing more than 50kgs (110 lbs) can donate blood. At the time of donation, you should not be suffering from fever or had consumed alcohol 48 hours before or smoked during that day.

Tips on Blood Donating

	Please have a good meal at least 3 hours before donating blood.
	Please accept the snacks offered to you after the donation, it is vital you have them. You are recommended to have a good meal later.
	Please avoid smoking on the day before donating. You can smoke 3 hours after donation.
	You will not be eligible to donate blood if you have consumed alcohol 48 hours before donation.

Misconception about Donating Blood

	You wont feel drained or tired if you continue to drink fluids and have a good meal.
	You can resume your normal activities after donating blood, though you are asked to refrain from exercise or heavy weight lifting for twelve hours after donation.
	Donating blood will not leave you low of blood; in fact you will still have surplus blood after the donation.
	If you choose to consume alcohol, you can on the next day.
	While donating blood you will not feel any pain.
	You will not faint or feel uncomfortable after donating blood. This is a common misconception.
	You will not get AIDS if you donate blood.
	Patients are just like donors - most of them have common blood types. Because your blood type is common, the demand for that type is greater than for rare types. So, even if your blood type is common there is still a requirement.
	Blood donors donate blood and do not sell it.

Online Coverage

Chennai
Sept 8, 2005

Using internet to save lives
Bharat Matrimony group launched a non-profit social service initiative Bharat Blood Bank. com by organising 'save a life' blood donation camp at Umpathy Arangam, here yesterday. The donors throughout the country, more

Metro Plus Chennai
Sep 12, 2005

Site for blood donors
BharatMatrimony Group started BharatBloodBank.com, a website that helps people in need of blood contact donors. Donors across India can register themselves on the site after going through the basic requirements for donating blood. more

Newspaper

The Hindu
Metro Plus Chennai
Sep 12, 2005

The Hindu
Metro Plus Coimbatore
Sep 12, 2005

News Today
Chennai
Sep 8, 2005

Every 2-seconds, someone in the country is in need of blood. Every year our nation requires about 4 Crore units of blood, out of which only a meager 5 Lakh units of blood are available.

It's not that, people don't want to donate blood. Many, many times it's just that they are not aware of a need. As a result, needy people end up going through a lot of pain. If only, there was a platform where donors and recipients could come together. And this is exactly what BharatBloodBank.com is all about.

BharatBloodBank.com a non-profit, non-commercial interface was born out of our social commitment and our desire to use the power of the Internet to help common people. We started this mission with the one idea in mind; connecting those with a heart and those who need a life. We aim to become to the single largest congregation of donors across India, thereby helping needy recipients find donors quickly and effortlessly.

In that regard I would see all eligible visitors to this site as lifesavers. After all, saving a life does not require heroic deeds. You could just do it with a small thought and an even smaller effort by saying "yes".