Prior Lake, Minnesota - During the season of giving, blood donors are desperately needed. It is during this time that the number of blood donations declines while the demand continues or even increases. It only takes one hour to give one pint of blood which could potentially save as many as three lives.

To help encourage donors during the holiday season, Memorial Blood Center will donate the equivalent of one pound of food to Second Harvest for area food shelves for every pint of blood donated between November 11, 2009, and January 11, 2009.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community will hold two holiday blood drives in December.

The first will be Tuesday, December 8, 2009, from noon to 7:00 p.m. at Dakotah! Sport and Fitness. The second will be December 11, 2009, for SMSC employees only.

If you would like to make an appointment to give blood during the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s holiday blood drive, please call SMSC Wellness Coordinator Angela Mostrom at 952-233-2965 to register. A limited number of walk-ins will also be able to donate blood at this blood drive.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, as an active participant in the local community, holds several blood drives each year to help save lives. The SMSC has sponsored blood drives for more than 22 years.

In order to give blood you need to be healthy, weigh at least 110 pounds, be at least 17 years old, and not have donated blood in the last 56 days. Other health matters are discussed as part of the health history and brief examination. If you have received a tattoo, then you are ineligible to donate for one year.

If you are planning to give blood, it is recommended that you get a good night’s sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, drink plenty of water (avoid tea, coffee, or pop with caffeine), and eat iron-rich foods like red meat, fish, poultry, liver, beans, raisins, prunes, or iron-fortified cereals. Be sure and wear clothing that can be raised above the elbow. After you donate blood, have a beverage and snack and avoid strenuous exercise for five hours.