Institute seeks increased voluntary blood donation

The Institute of Human Virology has called for increased voluntary blood donation to reduce the incidents of maternal mortality in Nigeria.

This was contained in a statement by Ms Blessing Ukpabi, the institute’s Communications Officer, on Friday in Abuja, as the world marks Blood Donors’ Day.

NAN reports that the day is celebrated annually on 14 June with this year’s theme being “Safe Blood for Saving Mothers”.

According to the statement, this year’s celebration is aimed at drawing public attention to the need for safe blood donation to increase the chances for safe delivery.

The statement said almost 800 women died daily from pregnancy or childbirth-related complications globally.

“Almost all of these deaths occur in developing countries. More than half of them occur in sub-Saharan Africa. The risk of maternal mortality is highest for adolescent girls below the age of 15.

“In Nigeria, the maternal mortality rate in 2010 was 630 per 100,000 live births,” the statement read.

The statement urged the public to voluntarily donate blood to increase patients’ access to safe and sufficient blood.

It said blood donation had some health benefits which included boosting of the production of red blood cells, reduction of the risk of suffering from heart diseases and the maintenance level of iron in the blood.

It also said voluntary blood donation reduces the risk of the donor suffering from cancer ailment and also helps in weight loss by burning calories.