By Stella Mwangi and Mangoa Mosota

Even as Kenya marked World Blood Donor Day on Sunday last week, blood donation remains a phenomenon many are not willing to adopt soon. Some people interviewed by The Standard on Sunday are reluctant to donate blood due to cultural beliefs.

For instance, among the Kabaras community, it is forbidden to donate blood to non family members.

They believe by doing so, you pass on your family character traits to outsiders. Mr Daniel Omwelema says the community believes character traits and talents are in one’s blood.

"If a family is known to have bad luck and a member donates blood to an outsider, he or she inherits the bad luck from the donor’s blood," Omwelema explains.

For instance, if a donor comes from a family of thieves, the person receiving the blood also becomes a thief. Omwelema explains there are also times when one is not allowed to donate blood even to family members.

"We are not allowed to donate blood at the beginning or at the end of a new year as it is believed that if you do so, bad luck such as sickness, accidents or even death will follow throughout the year," he says.

The Kamba community also prefer to give blood to family members only.

Mr Dan Kioko says, at times, convincing someone to even donate to a family member is a hard task.

"People say that if you donate two pints of blood, you lose two years, and for this reason we rarely donate blood," says Kioko. "The donor’s spirit may come back to haunt you."

Among the Maasai, morans are barred from donating blood between August and October — just before completion of classes conducted by their elders in forests.

"During this period, the morans eat a certain herb that is believed to give them strength and stamina and thus anyone taking this herb should not pass his blood to anyone else," says Mr Luka Kerema.

He adds that if any moran donates blood during this period, he has to undergo cleansing to avoid bad luck.

Also, an unmarried man is not allowed to donate blood, as it is believed doing so may lead to bachelorhood.

Among the Kisii, the experience with blood donation is the same.

"Some believe receiving blood will make them lose weight or it can be used for bad intentions," says Charles Osoro, a civic leader in Keroka District.

But Luo Council of Elders Chairman Riaga Ogallo says there should be no restrictions on blood donation.