Is our blood trully blue??

Question

I heard that as soon as our blood make contact with air it turns red but that our blood is really colored blue. Is this true or is it a myth!?

Answer 1

It seems the old misconception that blood is blue when it is deoxygenated will never die.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood

Human blood is red, ranging from bright red when oxygenated to dark red when not. It owes its colour to hemoglobin, a metalloprotein compound containing iron in the form of heme, to which oxygen binds. There exists a popular misconception that deoxygenated blood is blue and that blood only becomes red when it comes into contact with oxygen. Blood is never blue, but veins appear blue because light is diffused by skin. Moreover, the blood inside is dark red and exhibits poor light reflection. From a physiological perspective, veins and arteries appear similar when skin is removed and are seen directly.

Answer 2

This is a myth. Part of my job involves drawing blood from people for lab testing. The tubes used contain a vacuum to draw the blood into the tube. It does not come in contact with the air, and it is never any color other than red. The myth of the blue color came about because where the skin is thin , and veins can be seen, they often appear blue, and this was thought to be the color of the blood showing through.

Answer 3

Blood is red.

As a previous person said, the less oxygenated blood is in the veins, which is why the veins look bluish. Blood in the arteries has been oxygenated by the lungs, and slightly more red. However, the blood extracted from the veins is truly red; just donate, and you'll see.

BTW, blood donation is a truly wonderful thing to do, and, if you're old enough (18) and weigh enough (110 pounds) I recommend doing it. Blood is a resource that can't be fabricated in a laboratory, and is needed by countless people on a daily basis.

Hope this helps . . .

Answer 4

Myth. Blood is red. It's the actual vein that is a blue-green color. Veins are closer to the surface of the skin and easier to see, but we have arteries too, which are red, that are deeper in the tissue. People see the veins, which appear blue through the skin, and think the blood is blue. It's not.

Answer 5

The color of our blood is red. What you heard is a myth. The myth is that the contact with oxygen makes it red. We have oxygen in our lungs and the purpose of the circulatory system is to oxygenated blood from the lungs to the tissues and take the desoxygenated (used) blood from the tissues to the lungs again. Arteries carry blood with oxygen (red) and veins carry blood without oxygen (blue), but the truth is that our veins look blue because of our skin. (a trick of the light)
Remember this.. one component of blood is the red cells, which are made in our bones and are never blue.... hence the name red cells

Answer 6

Blood is a specialized biological fluid (technically a tissue) consisting of red blood cells and white blood cells. By far the most abundant cells in blood are red blood cells. These contain hemoglobin which (when oxygenated) gives blood its red color.

There is no connection between the phrase and the actual blood color of nobility; however, in the ancient agricultural societies of Europe the whole upper class had superficial veins that might be more visible and appear bluish by comparison to the rest of the pale-pinkish skin, as the skin itself was not tanned. In contrast with the working class of the time (mainly peasants), nobility and in general upper class people did not have to work outdoors, and mostly lived sheltered from the sun by dwellings and attire.

Answer 7

No, blood is not blue while it's in the veins. It's a very dark red color, almost black.

When I used to give blood, I'd watch the blood going through the tube and it was black. When I asked the technician if there was something wrong with me, she said no, that everyone's blood is very dark if it hasn't been exposed to the air. Since our blood contains iron, exposure to oxygen causes a reaction that causes it to turn right red.

The "blue blood" saying, which applies to royalty, is thought to have originated back when the mark of royalty was pale skin. Very rich people didn't have to toil outdoors in the sun all day, so to have tanned skin was to a commoner and to have pale skin was to be noble/royal. People with very pale skin have noticeable blue veins. Everyone's veins look blue, but when the skin is extremely pale, it shows up much easier. So it was assumed back then that since the nobility had such noticeably blue veins, their blood must be blue. We now know there's no truth to that because all human beings have red blood, regardless of social class, but the saying remains.

Answer 8

Our blood contains a red blood cells which turn red when they bond with oxygen. As the blood is pumped through the body, they distribute the oxygen thoughout the cells, and lose their reddish color as they go back to the lungs. Then they get more oxygen, and the whole thing starts over again. The reason it always appears red when you bleed is that when it hits the air it picks up oxygen again.

The term "Blue Blood" really doesn't mean you don't have red blood, anyway. It was used to refer to royalty. Since they did absolutely nothing, they didn't get their hearts pumping much oxygenated blood, and their veins ended up showing through their pale skin. It really looked as if their blood was blue.

Answer 9

It is a common misconception that veinous blood (without oxygen) is blue, and arterial blood (oxygen enriched) is red. Veinous blood is only slightly bluish, when compared with arterial blood, and is still bright red (slightly brick red). When we look at the veins in our wrist, they seem blue; but we are looking at the vein itself; not the blood within it. Also, it is not as blue as it seems. Try this simple test: Place a blue pencil alongside the vein. Compared to the blue of the pencil, the vein will then seem red. It only looks blue, compared to the skin of your wrist. When you see the blood in the syringe, you see its true colour.

Answer 10

blood doesn't all look the same. Fresh from an artery, it will be scarlet in color, while blood from veins will be darker red. Further, blood coughed up or leaked from a lung looks pink and foamy. Blood released from an hours- or days-old blister, boil, or blood-filled, bruise-like lump will be thick, almost black, and very viscous.