I would like to begin with a question that everyone has been asked at least once in their life. “What is your blood type?” When were you last asked, and did you have an answer? And if you did, were you really sure? In this article we will share in detail why knowing your blood type matters. Let’s go over some basics about the importance of knowing your blood type, and convince you that you really should know yours well.
A Survey on Knowing Your Blood Type
In a study carried out in 2018–2019 with eight hundred and fifty-four people working at the Kayseri Provincial Health Directorate, 132 participants, or 15.5 per cent, did not know or could not remember their blood type. In addition, in 2004 the Department of Medical Microbiology, the Blood Centre and the Department of Biostatistics of Mersin University Faculty of Medicine surveyed 3,479 donors about their blood type, and found that 906 of the participating donors did not know their blood type correctly.
The share of people who do not know or cannot remember their blood type in these two studies is truly sad. I say sad because you will understand me better once you hear the reasons I am about to explain. We will go through all of them in detail shortly.
What Is a Blood Type?
First, I would like to give you the definition of blood type found in the Cambridge Dictionary. Each of the groups into which human blood is divided is called a blood type. Blood types are divided into four types, depending on the presence of glycoproteins on the surface of red blood cells (antigens) and of antibodies in the plasma. For example, if a person’s blood type is A, this means that antigen A is present on their red blood cells and antibody B in their blood plasma: Now that we have talked about blood types, it is time to answer the question of why you need to know yours. Considering that everyone is at risk of accidents and injuries throughout life, knowing your blood type for certain is very important, both to receive the right blood transfusion in an emergency and to help others in need.
Why Married Couples Should Know Their Blood Types
A 2020 study by Mohammed Alwan Farhan emphasised that married couples should carefully assess their blood types and Rh factor to protect against fetal risks. In other words, you need to know your blood type to plan a safe pregnancy.
Why Knowing Your Blood Type Helps Reduce Health Risks
Finally, you may want to know your blood type well in order to reduce your health risks. For example, the link between blood types and peptic ulcers was one of the first to be discovered, and there are studies showing that people with type O are more susceptible to peptic ulcers.
Final Words from Kan Akademi
At Kan Akademi, we hope this research has convinced you that you should know your blood type well, for your own life and for the lives of others. Please make sure you know your own blood type, and then those of the people around you.
Researcher
Elif Bölükbaş Advisor Zekiye Kübra Yılmaz