So—being a good citizen—you visit a blood bank and sit in the chair for fifteen or twenty minutes while your blood fills a plastic bag. You sit down and rest for a while, have a drink of orange juice, and maybe a donut and a piece of pie. You get up, taking things slowly to start with, and the rest of that day you make sure to drink extra fluids. That evening you shower, and you remove the small bandage from the inside of your elbow. Then you wonder, what happens to that pint of blood? This video gives you the answer. Red blood cells make their way to a blood bank refrigerator, plasma heads to the freezer, and platelets stay at room temperature, waiting for rapid use. Yep, you’re a real multitasker!

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