# What's your blood type? Do you even know? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 20, 2005, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314 "2005-04-20T21:06:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Telperien](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@Telperien](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperien)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/62 "2005-04-21T04:21:49Z")
A+, baby. The techs all fall over each other when they see me coming. They know they can get a nice big bag from me, and I watch everything they do. I never look away when they put the needle in. I also fill my bag fast. Squeeze for a ten count, relax for a five count, repeat. I have also been known to offer encouragement to nervous first-time donors who end up sitting beside me. ---
**Author:** ![Kiros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/439d5e/32.png) [@Kiros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiros)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/63 "2005-04-21T04:21:59Z")
No clue; I have beta thalassemia minor, so I do my duty by volunteering at blood drives instead of actually giving blood. Kind of sad, really - I don’t particularly have anything against needles, so I’m one of the people who would be there every few months getting sucked dry. ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/64 "2005-04-21T04:23:06Z")
B+. Blood types are like astological signs in Asia - your blood type is supposed to influence your personality. Supposedly B-type men are arrogant, jealous, yet strangely attractive. Just a hint to any B-type guys planning to visit Korea. You can use your blood type as your pickup line. ---
**Author:** ![IGJoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/igjoe/32/5420_2.png) [@IGJoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IGJoe)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/65 "2005-04-21T04:26:24Z")
O+ I donate pretty regularly. ---
**Author:** ![SolGrundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@SolGrundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SolGrundy)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/66 "2005-04-21T04:58:34Z")
> [@Kiros](#): > > No clue; I have beta thalassemia minor, so I do my duty by volunteering at blood drives instead of actually giving blood. Kind of sad, really - I don’t particularly have anything against needles, so I’m one of the people who would be there every few months getting sucked dry. Good point. I guess I could actually be doing something productive and donating time, instead of just complaining that they won’t let me donate blood. (Of course, it always feels like I have more blood than time…) ---
**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/67 "2005-04-21T05:09:55Z")
I’m O-, which was surprising, since my mom is A+ and we think my dad is an A of some sort. It was kinda disappointing, I wanted to be AB+ (the universal taker! ;)). The only thing that’ll suck is if _I_ need a transfusion, because, IIRC, I can only receive more O- blood so I hope that there’s enough of that if the need should arise. I keep trying to donate, but I’ve only been able to once (my iron levels are way too low). ☹ I bet the Red Cross would secretly like to sneak into my house and stuff iron pills down my throat as I sleep. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![WaryEri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ea666f/32.png) [@WaryEri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WaryEri)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/68 "2005-04-21T05:16:18Z")
O- I just found out, after donating for the first time. My Mum was O- too, and they loved her, except for occasional low iron issues. I hate donating, since the urge to haul the needle out of my arm starts rising about halfway through the process ( I can’t stand IV’s either), but I figure I really should. ---
**Author:** ![Telperien](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@Telperien](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperien)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/69 "2005-04-21T05:18:31Z")
Both my parents are A+, like me, but my sister is O+. It was fun to explain to Mom and Dad how that could be. ---
**Author:** ![Campion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@Campion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Campion)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/70 "2005-04-21T05:22:22Z")
Another O+ here, and another one on the Red Cross’s “thanks but no thanks” list, due to my sojourn in the lovely UK. Interestingly, when my mom needed surgery, they wouldn’t let any of us donate blood for her (because of our mad cow disease, which all people who have ever even thought about England have, or could have, or at least know about). But they did let my little brother donate, because he had only been in England for a couple months before we moved back to the states, so he was beneath their three-months-in-the-UK-and-you’re-out threshold. Had they counted the nine gestational months, however, when he was getting all his nutrition from my (presumably) mad-cow-inflicted mother, they might have reached a different conclusion. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/71 "2005-04-21T05:26:44Z")
Yet another O+, but seriously lacking iron and difficult to get to, so I don’t donate. I come away from a blood draw looking like a junky. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/72 "2005-04-21T05:32:08Z")
A+. \*Boooorrrrring \*. It’s getting more and more difficult to donate. These days I have to squeeze that ole rubber thingy and they still manage to only extract about 200-300ml before time’s up. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/73 "2005-04-21T05:38:25Z")
> [@](#): > > Unfortunately, being O+ apparently also means that one of the people who are supposed to be my mommy and daddy is not my mommy or daddy. Oops! There are two ways this statement could be true: Either one of your alleged parents is AB, or they’re both Rh-negative. Any other combination of parent blood types could lead to O+. Remember, O is recessive. And like so many other Dopers, my blood type is the same as my grades :). [A Christmas Story]A+++++++++++++++++[/ACS] ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/74 "2005-04-21T06:20:24Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And like so many other Dopers, my blood type is the same as my grades :). I’ve never thought of it like that. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sarah\_Woodruff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df788c/32.png) [@Sarah\_Woodruff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarah_Woodruff)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/75 "2005-04-21T06:36:59Z")
For anyone who knows bloodtype genetics: My mum is O+ My dad is B- (pretty rare but he’s a Pom so he can’t donate anymore). So what would be my bloodtype? ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/76 "2005-04-21T06:52:07Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Mom was a nurse. How could anyone not know their blood type?? No medical types in my immediate family. I have a phobia of needles, so I will probably never be able to donate blood (certainly not without hysterics or the aid of very powerful drugs). I do know that my mom is B-, and my sister and I are something+, but that’s all I know. I wish there were some way to find out that didn’t involve needles, because I would like to know. ---
**Author:** ![Telperien](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@Telperien](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperien)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/77 "2005-04-21T06:57:32Z")
> [@Sarah Woodruff](#): > > For anyone who knows bloodtype genetics: > My mum is O+ > My dad is B- (pretty rare but he’s a Pom so he can’t donate anymore). > So what would be my bloodtype? You could be B+, B-, O+, or O-. The Rh factor and the blood group are independent of one another. [Here](http://www.biology.arizona.edu/human_bio/problem_sets/blood_types/Intro.html) is a link with a blood type tutorial, which may be helpful. It has a blood type calculator, too, with which I checked what I came up with based on your parents’ blood types. Why I didn’t become a geneticist, I don’t know–this stuff fascinates me. ---
**Author:** ![Tentacle\_Monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba9def/32.png) [@Tentacle\_Monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tentacle_Monster)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/78 "2005-04-21T07:10:47Z")
The third best part about giving blood (behind the general good feelings and free cookies and stuff) is the list of questions you have to answer, especially considering my line of work. It’s a damn shame most people asking the questions don’t have a sense of humor about it. “In the last year, have you taken cocaine through your nose?” “Nope, I’m taking it in suppository form.” “Have you ever been outside the US and Canada?” “Yeah, I went to Mexico for New Years in 2003…” “Have you ever been to Toronto, China, or Vietnam?” “Oh, right, I just got back from Ho Chi Minh City. It’s lovely this time of year.” “Have you ever given money or drugs for sex?” “Does aspirin count?” “Have you had sex with a man since 1978?” “No, last time I rode the mantrain was in '77. Yes, I’m 23. I’ve got a time machine, which I built for the express purpose of having gay sex while still being eligible to give blood.” ---
**Author:** ![Telperien](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@Telperien](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperien)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/79 "2005-04-21T07:22:07Z")
> [@Tentacle Monster](#): > > “Have you ever given money or drugs for sex?” > “Does aspirin count?” > > “Have you had sex with a man since 1978?” > “No, last time I rode the mantrain was in '77. Yes, I’m 23. I’ve got a time machine, which I built for the express purpose of having gay sex while still being eligible to give blood.” You, sir, are evil. Wonderfully evil! My favorite part is staring intently as the tech shoves the big needle in my arm, while people looking on have to turn away due to grossed-out-ness. I’ve been tempted to give a relieved sigh as the needle goes in, but I have to be careful not to look too perverted, due to where I live. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/96bed5/32.png) [@Cat\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Jones)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/80 "2005-04-21T07:38:42Z")
O - Used to donate in the UK, then had to take a break after Glandular fever - since then I’ve been abroad and no one’s wanted me 'cos I’m a Brit ☹ ---
**Author:** ![congodwarf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@congodwarf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/congodwarf)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2005, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314/81 "2005-04-21T07:50:33Z")
AB+ with a very high Platelet count. Sadly, the last few times I donated, the process made me very uncomfortable. They tried a couple different ways of extracting my platelets but I still got very queasy and dizzy. It’s lessened my desire to donate. Another factor is the constantly low iron count. So, I got another tattoo. After it’s been a year, I’ll give donating another shot. The nurses in the apheresis department really like me though because they can get a double dose from me in a very short amount of time. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-blood-type-do-you-even-know/300314.md?page=5)