LifeShare Blood Center needs donors

Wednesday afternoon, Tiffany King of LifeShare Blood Center described the importance of blood donation to the members of the Nashville Rotary Club.

King said LifeShare Blood Center desperately needs O negative donors because they are the universal donors. She explained AB positive blood types are the universal recipients. According LifeShare.org, 1 in 3 people are O positive and A positive, while 1 in 167 are AB negative. King said 53 percent of the Hispanic population is O positive and 8 percent of Caucasians are o negative. 

King said 30 percent of blood donations are used by cancer patients and 12 is used for accident victims.

King said you can donate whole blood every 8-weeks, plasma every 28-days and platelets every 14-days. She said before you donate you should get a good night’s sleep the night before, drink plenty of water and eat a healthy balanced meal that includes iron rich foods.

To find out about upcoming blood drives, visit lifeshare.org.