On Thursday, November 29, Ithaca High School’s Student Council hosted a Red Cross blood drive in Activities. Throughout the day, 82 people gave blood. Although fewer people donated blood this year than last year, many more had made appointments than were able to donate.

Student Council President Molly Q. ’08 attributes low donation levels to high denial rates, perhaps because people are sicker in the winter than they were at the last drive, which was held in the spring. Still, Michele Murphy, a nurse at the drive, said that the drive was “very successful. There’s been a very good turnout.”

To be eligible to donate, a student must be 17 years old (16 with parental permission) and weigh over 110 pounds. But there are a myriad of other factors that stopped many people from donating. Low iron levels, recent illness, visits to a malarial country in the past year, and male homosexual activity are all grounds for being refused. Also, people who have spent time between 1980 and 1996 in countries where mad cow disease is found, such as Britain, can’t donate.

“In order to get enough iron, I ate broccoli all this week,” said Ilona P. ’08, who was able to donate. Isabel S. ’08 planned to donate blood “because it’s for a good cause and it’s kind of a hard commodity to get.” Isabel S. was “a little bit” scared before going in. In the end, though, she was unable to donate blood because her temperature was too high.

There were eight beds for a normal donation, which is about a pint. The donation center also had three beds set up for double-red-cell donation. Double red cell has more restrictions than normal donations: participants must weigh over 130 pounds, be at least 5’1’’ tall, and be male; high school females can’t donate because of low iron levels. Double-red donations take twice the amount of red cells, and leave plasma and platelets, since red cells are in the highest demand. Platelets and saline are returned to the donor.

Another drive is scheduled for January 31, 2007, when all the donors from this drive will be able to donate again.