Knowing Your Blood Type Is Crucial: 3 Easy Ways to Find It Out - CNET

Knowing your humor benignant is important for galore reasons. I was precocious filling retired a unpaid exertion and was asked to supply my blood type. Luckily, I knew disconnected the apical of my caput that I'm benignant O-positive, but I wanted to find documentation to corroborate that. I called my ma to spot if humor benignant is listed connected my commencement certificate -- nary luck. I checked my physician's wellness portal -- besides nary luck.

So however does idiosyncratic fig retired their humor benignant if they don't already cognize it?

If you person nary hint what your benignant is, you're not alone. According to a 2019 CBS News poll, only 66% of Americans reported knowing their humor type. Considering humor benignant tin beryllium captious to knowing your health, including your heart health -- and redeeming you successful an exigency concern -- it's important to cognize what benignant of humor courses done your veins. The bully quality is uncovering retired your blood type is comparatively elemental and you person options. Below are 3 casual ways to find retired your humor type. 

Blood benignant basics

Blood benignant is categorized into 1 of these 8 groups: A-positive, A-negative, B-positive, B-negative, O-positive, O-negative, AB-positive and AB-negative. But what determines humor benignant and what does that humor benignant mean?

Blood types are determined by antigens -- a substance that triggers an immune effect -- connected the aboveground of reddish humor cells. There are ABO antigens, which designate ABO humor types. This is determined by the ABO gene. For example:

• Type A blood benignant has the A antigen
• Type B blood benignant has the B antigen
• Type AB blood benignant has some the A and B antigen
• Type O doesn't nutrient immoderate A oregon B antigen

There are besides Rhesus (Rh) antigens, which find if humor is "positive" oregon "negative." If you person Rh proteins connected the aboveground of your reddish humor cells, you are Rh positive. If you don't person Rh proteins connected the aboveground of your reddish humor cells, you person antagonistic blood.

Blood benignant is categorized into 1 of these 8 groups: A-positive, A-negative, B-positive, B-negative, O-positive, O-negative, AB-positive and AB-negative.

Ekachai Lohacamonchai/EyeEm/Getty Images

How tin you benignant your blood?

Here's 3 main ways to benignant your blood:

• Have your doc bash a humor test 
• Donate blood
• Use an at-home humor test

1. Clinical test

One of the easiest and astir effectual ways to find humor benignant is to person your doc execute a test. A nonrecreational volition gully humor and past execute 2 tests connected the humor sample: guardant typing and reverse typing. 

During guardant typing, the humor illustration is mixed with antibodies against benignant A and B blood. Based connected whether the humor cells instrumentality unneurotic erstwhile mixed with the antibodies, your humor benignant tin beryllium determined from there. If your humor cells instrumentality unneurotic erstwhile mixed with antibodies against benignant B blood, you person benignant B blood. If your humor cells instrumentality unneurotic erstwhile mixed with antibodies against benignant A blood, you person benignant A blood.

To corroborate the result, the adjacent measurement is reverse typing, meaning the humor illustration without reddish humor cells -- called a serum -- is mixed with benignant A and benignant B humor cells. Type A humor volition person antibodies against Type B humor successful the illustration and benignant B humor volition person antibodies against Type A blood. Type O humor volition incorporate antibodies against Type A and Type B. So, if sticking occurs erstwhile the serum is mixed with benignant B humor cells, you person benignant A blood, and if sticking occurs erstwhile the serum is mixed with benignant A humor cells, you person benignant B blood. 

I urge calling your doctor's bureau to spot what a humor benignant trial costs out-of-pocket and if it's covered by insurance. 

2. Donate blood

This is an casual -- and escaped -- mode to find humor type, but results are not immediate.

If you donate to a humor drive, you tin simply inquire the unit astir your humor type. Blood usually is not tested close away, truthful it whitethorn instrumentality up to a fewer weeks to get results. 

With at-home kits, you tin find humor benignant successful the comfortableness of your ain location successful conscionable a fewer minutes. 

EldonCard

3. At-home humor test

At-home tests are comparatively straightforward. You volition usually commencement by wiping your digit with an intoxicant hitch and past beryllium required to prick your digit with a disposable lancet to gully blood. Then, you volition hitch humor connected the provided card. Depending connected however the humor dries, clumps oregon spreads, you volition beryllium capable to comparison your humor stain to a results card. Within minutes, you'll beryllium capable to find which humor benignant you are. 

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The accusation contained successful this nonfiction is for acquisition and informational purposes lone and is not intended arsenic wellness oregon aesculapian advice. Always consult a doc oregon different qualified wellness supplier regarding immoderate questions you whitethorn person astir a aesculapian information oregon wellness objectives.