Blood . The very word can prompt syncope ( fainting ) in hemophobics , or those affected with an irrational veneration of the sight of the stuff . Then again , it might be absolutely rational : Bloodcarries nutrientsin our bodies , support us with oxygen , and protect against transmission . Keeping it inside our veins and arterial blood vessel is idealistic , and losing it would intelligibly chevvy some anxiety .
So how much roue does an average adult carry around ? And how much can they afford to lose ?
For a helpful visual on the former , try heading to the dairy aisle of the grocery computer storage and peck up a congius of Milk River . That ’s roughly how much blood you ’re harboring at any given moment .
Specifically , it ’s more like 1.2 to 1.5 gallons , consort to Dr. Daniel Landau , a hematologist and oncologist who spoke withLiveSciencein 2016 . For some adult , that equates to about eight to 10 pct of their body weight unit ; that full parentage volume remains static from close to the age of 6 on . Babies carry far less blood — about a cupful , or the same as your mean cat .
Lose some of that and your body begins to remark the absence seizure . That 1.2 to 1.5 gallons is tantamount to 4.5 to 5.5 cubic decimetre : Blood bestower typically give about one dry pint , or a half - cubic decimeter , at a time without any serious effects . But if an injury or other disaster incite you to lose three to four pints , you ’re at aClass 3hemorrhage and a bloodline transfusion is in order . More than that and your affectionateness ca n’t uphold blood imperativeness . ( The reason we release pale when lose blood is because the consistence is set about to use vasoconstriction to disport what ’s will to vital organ . )
A 200 - pound individual will carryfar moreblood than a 100 - lb person and could conceivably fall back more of it without coming nigher to death . However , researchers have monish that blood volume is not totally related to to body weight and can also be influenced by consistence theme . If a person has more fat than skimpy tissue paper , or vice versa , it will affect the vascular system .
Using anonline blood volume figurer , it ’s potential that André the Giant , who weigh about 525 pounds , toted around 21 liters of blood — or four times the amount a normal person would have , not accounting for varying body fatness percentage . That ’s impressive , but André was not among the declamatory of mammals , no matter what his promoter may have exact . Consider instead that a patrician heavyweight ’s 400 - pound heart pumps220 litersthrough its massive frame , or roughly 58 gallons .
Have you got a Big query you ’d care us to answer ? If so , let us know by e-mail us atbigquestions@mentalfloss.com .
