Determine Your Blood Type

You might need to know your blood type for medical reasons, to get an international visa, or to just learn more about your own body. You can guess at your blood type based on your parents' blood type, but to be absolutely sure you've got to take a blood type test. If you don't want to visit a doctor, you can use a simple home testing kit.

Steps

Determining Blood Type at Home

  1. Ask your parents for their blood type. If your biological parents both know their blood type, that narrows down the possibilities. In most cases this is only enough to guess, using an online blood type calculator or the following list:[1]
    • O parent x O parent = O child
    • O parent x A parent = A or O child
    • O parent x B parent = B or O child
    • O parent x AB parent = A or B child
    • A parent x A parent = A or O child
    • A parent x B parent = A, B, AB or O child
    • A parent x AB parent = A, B or AB child
    • B parent x B parent = B or O child
    • B parent x AB parent = A, B or AB child
    • AB parent x AB parent = A, B or AB child
    • Blood types also include an "Rh factor" (+ or -). If both of your parents have an Rh- blood type (such as O- or AB-), you are also Rh-. If one or both of your parents are Rh+, you cannot tell whether you are + or - without a test.[2]
  2. Call a doctor who has drawn your blood. If your physician already has your blood type on file, then you just need to ask. However, they will only have your record on file if you've already had your blood drawn and/or tested. Common reasons why you may have already had your blood type tested include:[3]
    • Pregnancy
    • Surgery
    • Organ donation
    • Blood transfusion
  3. Buy a blood typing kit. If you don't want to visit a doctor or donate blood, you can find a home test kit online or at a pharmacy for as little as US $10. These typically instruct you to dampen various labeled patches on a special card, then prick your finger and add a little blood to each patch. Make sure to follow the kit instructions when adding the blood. Note which patches (or vials of fluid, in some kits) cause the blood to clump (agglutinate) instead of spreading out. The clumping is a reaction to substances incompatible with your blood type. Once you've completed the test with all cards or fluids, look up your blood type using the kit instructions or the following list:[4]
    • First check the "Anti-A" and "Anti-B" patches for clumps:
      • Clumps in Anti-A (only) mean you have type A blood.
      • Clumps in Anti-B mean you have type B blood.
      • Clumps in Anti-A and Anti-B: you are type AB.
    • Then check the "Anti-D" patch:
      • Clumps: you are Rh positive. Add a + to your blood type.
      • No clumps: you are Rh negative. Add a - to your blood type.
    • If the control patch (normal paper) causes clumping, or if you are not sure whether the blood is clumping on any patch, try another card.[5] Any test conducted at home is less reliable than a test performed by a professional.

Visiting a Health Care Provider

  1. Request a blood test from your doctor. If your doctor doesn't have your type on file, then you can also ask to get a blood test done. Call or visit your doctor's office and ask for a blood test to determine your blood type.
    • Try saying something like, "I want to find out what my blood type is. Would it be possible for the doctor to order a blood test to check my blood type?"
  2. Visit a health clinic. If you don't have a primary care physician, then you can have a blood test done at a health clinic. Just visit a local health clinic and ask them to test your blood type.
    • You may want to call ahead first to see if this is something that the health clinic offers.
  3. Donate blood. This is an easy way to determine your blood type and help other people, all at once! Find a local donation center or wait until your school, church or community center hosts a blood drive. When you go in, ask the staff if they can tell you your blood type. Your blood is typically not tested right away, so it can take up to a few weeks for them to mail or call you with the result.[6]
    • You might want to call ahead to make sure they'll give you your blood type before you choose a place to donate.
    • Keep in mind that there are some special eligibility requirements that you will have to meet before you can donate blood. There are also some things that may prevent you from donating, such as high risk behavior, travel to a foreign country, illness, or previous treatment of chronic illness.[7]
  4. Go to a blood service center in your country of residence. Blood service centers usually provide people with free resources for getting their blood tested and finding out their type.
    • In Canada, go to onto Canada's official blood website. Find out where the next "What's Your Type?" event is taking place. These are regular promotional events hosted in the community by Canadian Blood Services. Your results are instant and you will find out how common or rare your blood type is, who you can receive from, and who you can donate to. You will learn both your ABO blood group, as well as your positive or negative Rhesus factor.

Tips

  • In addition to the blood types, one should also have their Rh or Rhesus factor tested. If you have your blood typed by the Red Cross or any other professional organization, they'll tell you the Rh factor. This is sometimes called D. You are either D+ or D-. For example, if clumping was noticed in the A field, and in the D field, then that person is A+ blood type.
  • If you only know your parents' blood types, you can Make-a-Punnett-Square to predict the probability of inheriting each one. Three alleles determine blood type: the dominant alleles IA and IB, and the recessive allele i.[8] If your blood type is O, you have an ii genotype. If your blood type is A, your phenotype is either IAIA or IAi.

Warnings

  • There is no evidence that blood type determines your nutritional needs or personality.[9][10] Be skeptical of these claims.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://www.redcrossblood.org/learn-about-blood/blood-types
  2. ↑ http://www.biology.arizona.edu/human_bio/problem_sets/blood_types/rh_factor.html
  3. ↑ http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/1014.aspx?CategoryID=68
  4. ↑ http://courses.kcumb.edu/physio/btypes/blood_typing.htm
  5. ↑ http://craigmedical.com/media/Eldoncard%20insert.pdf
  6. ↑ http://www.uwsp.edu/centers/SIEO/documents/volunteerism/blood-drive/blood-faq.pdf
  7. ↑ http://www.redcrossblood.org/donating-blood/eligibility-requirements/eligibility-criteria-topic
  8. ↑ http://www.biology.arizona.edu/mendelian_genetics/problem_sets/monohybrid_cross/11c.html
  9. ↑ https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140115172246.htm
  10. ↑ http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-20170787
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