Every time you donate blood, we measure the level of hemoglobin in your bloodstream with a quick finger stick test.

It’s an indirect way of checking iron levels – iron is a critical component of hemoglobin – since iron helps your body replace the red blood cells lost through blood donation.

If your hemoglobin level (and, as a consequence, your iron) is too low, we’ll ask you to come back later to make a donation, just to make sure your body has the capacity to make new red cells in a timely manner.

Hemoglobin levels are measured in grams per deciliter (a tenth of a liter); the normal range for women is 12.0 to 15.5 g/dL, and for men, it’s 13.5 to 17.5. Women must have a reading of at least 12.5 g/dL and men must be at least 13.0 to be eligible to donate.

Iron levels are dependent on many factors, including age, gender, genetics and body type. 

Charles Drew, the first African-American to earn a doctor of medical science degree from Columbia University, is known as the father of blood banking in the United States.

His interest in the science of blood transfusions was sparked while he was in medical school at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, when he saved a man via a transfusion.

At Columbia, his interests expanded, and his doctoral dissertation, “Banked Blood: A Study in Blood Preservation,” described methods he developed for long-term preservation of plasma, and closely examined existing practices for blood collection and transfusion.

John Scudder, a scientist working on building a blood banking program in New York, called the thesis a “masterpiece,” noting that it was “one of the most distinguished essays ever written, both in form and content.”