Around 6.8 million people in the United States donate around 13.6 million units of blood annually. The huge amount of blood donations ensured the United States, for a long time, was the largest blood supplier. Although the Black population comprises around 13% of the national population, they make up less than 3% of blood donors.
Recently, the United States has been forced to lower the blood distribution of type O blood to a level most hospitals find discomforting. While there are four types of blood groups, the O blood group is usually the most demanded in hospitals.
Usually, people with one type of blood group can only receive blood from people with the same blood group. However, the O- (O-negative) blood group is called a ‘universal donor’ because it can be safely given to individuals with every other blood group. This makes it extremely important during emergencies.
January is designated National Blood Donor Month in the United States and this coincides with the cold season when blood donation is at its lowest which increases the risk of blood shortages. The month of awareness serves as a reminder to people why it is important to donate blood. The theme for the 2025 celebration, according to the Association for the Advancement of Blood & Biotherapies (AABB), is ‘Celebrating the Importance of Blood Donation’.
Representation matters in blood donation too
Like in every other aspect of life, representation also matters in blood donation. This is because there are different types of blood tissues in the different types of blood. For a healthy blood transfusion, the blood of the donor and the recipient must match. However, due to the lower rate of blood transfusion among the Black community, it is harder to find matching blood when members of the Black community need to have a blood transfusion.
Besides emergency situations where people need blood transfusion, some rare diseases also necessitate regular rounds of blood transfusions, hence the need for people from different races to contribute to extending the supply of rare blood types to ensure adequate supply for those whose lives depend on blood transfusion (people suffering from sickle cell, for example). But why are Black adults not donating blood enough?
Why some Black adults are alienated from blood donation
Most blood donation awareness campaigns give incentives to people to donate blood, but that doesn’t always work for the Black and minority communities. Those of us who donate blood do so because we want to help. The reason for the shortage of Black donors is that some of those who are willing to donate are alienated from doing so for one reason or another. Here are 4 factors that can hinder willing Black blood donors from doing so:
- Health reasons: Black adults are disproportionately affected by health conditions (including blood cancer, HIV/AIDS, heart diseases, severe asthma, bleeding disorders, and hepatitis B or C) that permanently make them unfit for blood donation.
- Recent tattoos: the tattoo culture is becoming popular in the Black community but those who get tattoos or piercings may be asked to hold off from donating blood due to the risk of infection.
- Other medical conditions: several medical conditions like low hemoglobin levels, anemia, use of certain medication, high blood pressure, malaria, vaccines, recent surgery, obesity, and certain infections can temporarily hinder someone’s ability to donate blood.
- Pregnancy and recent childbirth: a temporary delay from donating blood may be placed on pregnant women or those who recently gave birth.
Being alienated from donating blood can be a frustrating experience. However, there are other ways to help foster representation in blood donation in our community. This includes educating others on the importance of blood donation, volunteering with blood donation organizations, contributing financially to assist blood donation organizations, and so on.
Health risks of low blood donation in low-income areas
The failure of Black adults and minority groups to fill the blood donation gap can lead to severe health consequences. This is particularly true for the Black community which has been identified to have a dominant population of adults with the O- blood group. Also, our blood carries unique genetic markers that are easier to find within our community. Therefore, any person from our community needing a blood transfusion with certain genetic markers will find a match easier within our community. The risks of low blood donation in low-income areas include the following:
Avoidable loss of lives
In emergency situations like accidents and obstetric hemorrhage where there is severe blood loss from the victim, timely blood transfusion can be a game-changer in preserving the life of the victim while the shortage of it can spell doom for them.
Deteriorating health outcomes for anemic patients
People suffering from anemia often experience tiredness and shortness of breath because they don’t have enough red blood cells or hemoglobin to carry oxygen to their body tissues. This affects their quality of life—and they’ll have to endure it if there is a blood shortage or their blood match can’t be found.
Force doctors to make difficult choices
When there is a severe shortage of blood, doctors have to make the difficult choice of deciding who gets a transfusion and who doesn’t. In other words, they have to choose who lives and who dies. That is an extremely stressful condition for any health professional.
One round of blood donation can save up to three lives. In addition to saving lives, there are also personal benefits you get from doing so. Firstly, you will get free screening—a necessary part of the blood donation process. Regular blood donation has also been linked to a lower risk of heart attack and high blood pressure. Therefore, when we donate blood, we are not only helping our community but also helping ourselves to stay healthier.
For more reading
https://race.undark.org/articles/good-blood-bad-policy-the-red-cross-and-jim-crow
https://www.aabb.org/for-donors-patients/national-blood-donor-month
https://www.cuimc.columbia.edu/news/surprising-benefits-donating-blood
