How does donating blood help

National Blood Foundation. AABB Store. My Account. Prospective Members. Current Members. Standards Portal. Accredited Member Tools. Accredited Facilities. Transfusion Medicine. Patient Blood Management. Donor History Questionnaires. Regulatory Affairs. Make an even greater impact for patients in need by giving an AB Elite plasma donation.

Ideal Donation Type: A single whole blood donation can help more than one person. How Blood Donations Help. When a patient receives blood, it was given in advance by a generous donor. Cancer Patients. Ideal Donation Type Platelets donation , because certain cancers and cancer treatments prevent patients from producing their own.

Play Video. Trauma Patients. Sarah Vossoughi, M. Prior to becoming a physician, Dr. Vossoughi served as a military officer, medical crew director, and trauma nurse in the U. Air Force in South Korea, Iraq, and Afghanistan, where she evacuated more than troops out of combat zones, earning six medals. Her research interests include hemovigilance, the processes that keep the blood supply safe, and pediatric transfusion medicine.

Find a Doctor or call Subscribe to receive the Health Matters monthly newsletter of curated stories about science, care, and wellness delivered straight to your inbox. Check out our Newsletter. Sarah Vossoughi. If you plan to give blood, follow these steps: Drink plenty of water. Staying hydrated makes it easier to find your veins and prevents you from becoming light-headed after donating, Dr. Eat well beforehand. Exercise before donating blood, not afterward.