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Blood

The first step in understanding our own blood and that of our donors as Sanguinarian or blood feeders is to understand the makeup of blood on a biological level before we can understand how our blood relates to our health and our donor's health. Blood is made up of many components in itself.

The blood components can be classified in two major categories, liquid and solid states. The liquid state is the plasma which makes up 50 to 60 % of our blood volume. The solid state is the red and white blood cells and the platelets. Plasma is a clear, yellowish liquid protein and salt solution which carries the red and white cells as well as platelets. It consists mainly of 95% water (H2O) and contains blood clotting agents, sugars, lipids, vitamins, minerals, hormones, enzymes, antibodies and other proteins that nourish the red and white cells and platelets while removing toxins from them through metabolic processes.

Red blood cells (also known as erythrocytes) are cells without nuclei and make up 40 to 50 % of solid matter in the plasma liquid state. They transport oxygen to tissue and carbon monoxide from tissue. Red cells are produced by our marrow from stem cells. Hemoglobin (what makes our red cells red) is the gas that transports an iron based protein throughout our tissues. This hemoglobin makes up 95% of our red cells and each red cell in a healthy human being carries 270,000,000 iron-rich hemoglobin molecules. The individual red cells remain viable about 120 days before being removed from our system and recycled by the spleen.

White blood cells (also known as leukocytes) only make about 1% of the solid matter in the plasma liquid state. They are also produced in the bone marrow by the same stem cells as the red blood cells. The white cells known as lymphocytes (from the lymph nodes in our bodies) are the major part of our immune system. There are also granulocytes and macrophages that protect our bodies from infection, these white cells remove old non-viable red cells and foreign matter such as dust as well. The individual while cells only have a life span of 18 to 36 hours before they are removed by the spleen.

Platelets (also known as thrombocytes) are cells that clot the blood at the site of a wound. They adhere to the wall of blood vessels and plug the rupture to achieve this. They also release coagulating chemicals. More than a dozen types of blood clotting agents and platelets need to interact to cause the blood clotting process. The expected lifespan of a platelet is 9 to 10 days and is also produced in the bone marrow by the same stem cells.

The average adult body hold about 10 pints or 5 liters of blood, in comparison a newborn's body holds about a cup or 237 milliliters of blood.

Now that we've gone through the biology of blood, diseases that affect our blood can cause the blood to taste different ways. For example, diabetes, lead poisoning, elevated levels of carbon dioxide can cause a very metallic taste to blood. Elevated iron levels such as a rare disease called haemophalgia where iron levels can be anywhere from 5 to 10 times the normal volume, 135,000,0000 hemoglobin’s per red cell, can also cause a very strong metallic taste. While on the other hand diseases such as anemia or sickle-cell anemia (genetic disorder) cause very bland tastes in blood.

As for color of the blood, while more iron causes the blood to look a deeper shade of red. Less iron causes a paler, if not orange hue to blood. Asthmatics, who have experienced and asthmatic attack, have blood shades that tinge more on the bluish to purple hue rather than the red, oxygenated hue of easy breathing.

The plasma or liquid state of our blood causes the taste of saltiness while the red blood cells causes the metallic hue to the taste. Diet can cause variances in the taste of a donor's blood. For instances, fatty diets cause an almost greasy taste to the donor's blood while a vegetarian is

Sheal Mullin

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