Donating Blood
Every day of the year thousands of African
American Blacks face a frightening emergency. They,
of course, suffer from all of the same
life-threatening Blood related situations that
necessitate Blood transfusion and the introduction
of Blood products as every other human in the world.
The problem for African American Blacks in the
United States is that there are a disproportionately
large number of individuals with rare Blood types
unique to that race. In our opinion, this is a very
serious health risk in the African American Black
community that must no longer be ignored.
Those who need a Blood transfusion require an
exact match of certain Blood traits of the Blood
donor with their own. Statistically, because these
traits are inherited, a patient's most likely match
is another family member. Unfortunately, over 70% of
African American Blacks cannot find a Blood type
match within their own families. They, therefore,
require an unrelated individual willing to be tested
and then to donate Blood. This is very simple in
words, but when the reality of this acute need sets
in, the order is, more often than not, too tall. The
result is often fatal.
It is possible for an African American Black
patient to match Blood types with a donor from any
racial or ethnic group. However, the most likely
transfusion reaction free Blood type match, and the
least likely to be available, is an African American
Black person. In every country in the world and with
every individual in the world, the most compatible
Blood transfusion is most likely to come from
someone of the same ethnic, racial and genetic
background as the patient.
The problem is likely to worsen. The African
American Black population is outpacing the white
population. More African American Blacks will need
even more Blood in the future. Although more and
more African American Black patients are finding
Blood donors, the number is still appallingly less
than with Caucasians. African American Black
patients will continue to benefit from increasingly
more African American Black individuals having their
Blood tested, and then donating Blood.