All Body Parts You Can Donate to a Good Cause
If you’re feeling generous, you have more options than just opening a wallet or creating a DIY gift project . You have many of your own body parts that you can donate to those in need. From blood and hair to your entire body , these are the things you can contribute to a good cause now or when you no longer need them.
Blood
Who needs it? People who have cancer or have had surgery often need blood; the same is done by those who lose blood due to injury or are being treated for a blood disorder. The Blood Centers of America report that a total of 40,000 pints of blood are used daily in US hospitals.
Who can donate? There can be bacteria, viruses, and even drugs in your blood, so blood banks may refuse you because of the drugs you are taking or because of any medical conditions you have. They will even reject you because of the illnesses you may be exposed to, even if you believe you are safe. For example, men who have sex with men are still unable to donate blood for 12 months . Some of these rules are set by the FDA, but individual blood banks can use stricter rules if they choose. The Red Cross lists its selection criteria here.
How to donate blood : The easiest way is to use this tool to find a blood bank near you. The Red Cross is a big name in blood donation, but there are also many small blood centers , each serving a different city, state or region. At a referral or donation center, you will complete a questionnaire and undergo a short check-up before lying down with a needle in your hand. After you donate a pint of blood, you will receive a cookie and hit the road. You can check in again in six weeks.
You can also donate other blood products such as platelets and plasma. Blood banks will not pay for blood , but there are places that will pay for plasma. They filter proteins from your plasma to be used to treat conditions like hemophilia and immune disorders . You can donate plasma every 28 days.
Bone marrow
Who needs it? People with leukemias and lymphomas , bone marrow diseases, and immune system disorders such as SCID may need a bone marrow transplant . They also cannot simply use bone marrow: the donor’s tissue type must match the recipient’s tissue type . Most transplant patients cannot find a family member whose tissue type is close enough to allow them to donate. This is why registries are so important – maybe you match someone.
Who can donate? Recommendations for donating bone marrow are similar to those for donating blood. In addition, you have to match well the tissues of the person who needs the bone marrow. People are more likely to match someone else of their own race or ethnicity, so registries especially need people who are African, Hispanic, Native American, Asian, or mixed race. Most doctors ask for a donor under the age of 45 because the cells of young people make the transplant more successful.
How to donate: Register with the National Bone Marrow Donation Program . As part of the registration process, you will take a cheek swab and submit the swab for analysis. This will tell them what type of fabric you have. Once you get on the registry, the chances of you becoming someone’s bone marrow donor is roughly 1 in 500.
You may be asked to donate in two ways. The older method is surgery, in which a giant needle is inserted into your thigh. This is great for medical television, but is not very common anymore. These days, you are more likely to receive five daily injections of a drug called filgrastim, which causes the bone marrow to release stem cells into the bloodstream. When you donate blood, the machine will spend several hours filtering these cells from your blood. Until then, you can watch movies and chat with your friends . If you were denied a bone marrow donation because you were afraid it was a huge painful needle, don’t do it.
Hair
Who needs it? Several charities are collecting hair for wigs. Pantene and the American Cancer Society give out wigs to women with cancer. “Curls of Love” gives wigs to children with long-term hair loss. Find other organizations for children with hair loss here or visit your local salon.
Who can donate? Each organization has its own requirements. Most ask for donated hair to be at least 10 inches long (Pantene will accept eight), and some have requirements for hair color and history, such as whether it has been bleached or dyed.
How to donate: Before getting your hair, check with your specific charity’s requirements. Usually, hair needs to be braided or tied up before a haircut, and then sent to a charity. Some salons partner with charities and send your hair to them. This will save you time if you don’t want to take your hair home and send it to another charity of your choice.
Breast milk
Who needs it? Breast milk is the best food for premature babies, but their mothers often cannot provide it. For example, they may have a medical condition that led to premature birth. Formula puts these babies at a greater risk of fatal infections , so pasteurized donated milk is best .
Who can donate? Milk people, of course. Some milk cans require you to give birth less than a year ago. You can read the North American Human Milk Banking Association guidelines here . They are quite strict, excluding people with diseases that can be transmitted through milk, as well as many people who regularly take medication. Even if your milk is safe for your own healthy baby, these requirements should be additional protection for medically weak babies.
How to make a donation: first contact your nearest dairy bank . Some may require you to live within a certain radius. They will then interview you and request a blood test. You may also need to provide doctor’s records from both your own doctor and your child. You may also need to donate a certain amount of milk, usually 100 ounces or more.
To donate blood, simply pump out and freeze the milk according to the instructions in the milk bank. I donated when I was working and expressing milk for my own baby; every day I pumped out eight ounces for my daughter and three ounces for the milk can. (In fact, since they required a harsher protocol with copious handwashing and pump disinfection, I figured I could pump my daughter out for a few more days and then dedicate one day of pumping to a milk can.) Freezer stash, neat pack it up and take it or send it to the milk bank.
Sperm
Who needs it? Women and couples who need a source of healthy sperm in order to have children.
Who can donate? Sperm banks often ask donors to live an hour’s drive from the bank and ask them to make a certain number of donations, for example, four to eight per month for six months. Some also set minimum growth requirements and ask for a college degree . You will need to be screened for both infectious diseases and genetic disorders , and your sperm must withstand the processing steps – which means that even if your sperm is suitable for fatherhood the old fashioned way, it can still be rejected if it doesn’t match sperm bank criteria.
How to donate: Begin the process by talking to your local sperm bank . The actual donation takes place through masturbation in a sperm bank. Sperm donation pays off quite well: up to $ 50 per donation , according to a sperm bank guide . Of course, each bank will set their own rates.
Umbilical cord blood
Who needs it? Stem cells in cord blood can treat many of the same conditions as bone marrow donation — leukemias and lymphomas, bone marrow disorders, and immune system disorders.
Who can donate? You and your baby donate immediately after delivery, but you will need to start the donation between 28 and 34 weeks of pregnancy. Start by completing this National Bone Marrow Donor Program questionnaire to see if you are eligible. (They match people for cord blood donations as well as bone marrow.) Among other criteria, you and your child must not have an infectious disease, blood disorder, or a family history of cancer.
How to donate blood : After the baby is born, the hospital staff will take blood from the umbilical cord and send it to the cord blood bank. You can find a list of participating hospitals here or request a donation kit from Be the Match .
Do not confuse cord blood donation with cord blood storage. In banking, you pay a fee ( estimated at $ 4,000 , although the cost may vary) to store your child’s cord blood in case his or her siblings need it in the future. The American Academy of Pediatrics encourages the donation of cord blood to government registries, but not to private banks for family use , as it is unlikely that a child’s cord blood will ever be used for a child or his or her siblings.
Organs (or your entire body)
Who needs it? A heart, lung, liver, kidney, intestine, and pancreas transplant can replace diseased organs and save lives. A corneal transplant can help restore vision for people with certain eye conditions. Various other tissues can help improve life: skin can help burn patients, tendons can help repair an injured athlete’s knee, bone can help repair injured limbs and prevent amputation. So … a lot of people.
Who can donate? In most cases, the rule is pretty strict: you have to die. Almost anyone can potentially be a donor, but the specifics will depend on your medical condition at the time of death, and whether you or your family give permission.
How to donate: All you have to do while you are alive is to register with your state’s organ donor registry or indicate on your driver’s license that you want to become an organ donor. If the hospital staff do not know what you want, they will ask your next of kin if they would like to donate your organs. Be sure to let your family know your intentions.
However, there is an exception to the death rule. You can donate a kidney or part of a liver while you are alive. People usually do this to help a relative or close friend, but it is also possible to make an “inappropriate” donation when you offer your organ to someone in need. If you think you want to do this, the American Transplant Foundation has a mentoring program where they match you with another living donor to help you make a decision. If you would like to continue, the first step is to contact your local transplant center .
If you want to donate your entire body, that is also possible. Medical schools use bodies to teach anatomy, and scientists can use donated body parts for medical research. You can even donate your organs as described above and then donate the rest of your body to science. ScienceCare can help you donate your body in any state other than Minnesota and New Jersey, or you can contact a medical school or hospital directly. For example, information about donating to the Mayo Clinic can be found here . The school or donation company will return the cremated remains to your family a few weeks after death, and this usually does not cost the family.
The decision to donate your body or any part of it is an important decision. Since donations can benefit those in need – or medical research that can benefit others in the future – this is worth considering.
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