Despite its familiarity, human blood was thoroughly studied not so long ago. Ancient scientists made various assumptions about its nature, but only the development of science and medicine helped establish the true meaning and functions that blood performs in the human body. We collected some interesting facts about human blood, that you might not know about.
1. Scientists estimate the amount of blood in a human body to be approximately 8% of body weight. The average amount of blood in your body is an estimate because it can depend on how much you weigh, your sex, and even where you live.
2. The average amount of blood in the body of a newborn baby is only about one glass.
3. The cornea of the human eye is the only part of our body that does not have a blood supply.
4. HP printer’s black ink is more expensive than human blood.
5. Spiders, snails, and octopuses all have blue blood because it contains hemocyanin. This molecule, instead of having an atom of iron in its middle, has an atom of copper that binds oxygen.
6. It takes more than 1,200,000 mosquitoes to suck out all the blood from the human body.
7. Only female mosquitoes drink blood. Male mosquitoes only drink sugary fluids, so basically they are vegetarians.
8. Our body contains about 0.2 milligrams of gold and most of it is in the blood.
9. Red blood cells can make a full circle ( from the heart, all around the body, and back to the heart again) in half a minute.
10. An adult heart pumps about 6,000-7,500 liters (1,500-2,000 gallons) of blood daily. This means that in a lifetime, our heart can pump about 250 million liters (66 million gallons) of blood.
11. In an emergency, coconut water can be used instead of blood plasma.
12. The tiny dots that you see when you look at the bright light or blue sky are actually your own white blood cells flowing through your eyes. This experience is called the “blue field entoptic phenomenon”.
13. About 55% of the blood volume is plasma, and the remaining 45% are different types of blood cells that move through the circulatory system due to plasma.
14. A person will survive, even losing up to 40% of blood. But he will need a blood transfusion immediately.
15. In 1936, the world’s first blood bank was opened at Cook County Hospital in Chicago.
