Jehovah’s Witnesses refuse transfusions of both whole blood and its primary blood components plasma, red blood cells, white blood cells and plasma. “Beyond that, when it comes to fractions of any of the primary components, each Christian, after careful and prayerful meditation, must conscientiously decide for himself.

This chart from the new study book “Enjoy life forever” shows that whole blood and blood components are unacceptable but that all minor blood fractions are a matter of personal conscience.

The interesting upshot of this is that while a Jehovah’s witness is not allowed to accept whole blood or any of the four main components, they are free to accept 100% of every smaller fraction, as long as their conscience allows it. But since there is no fraction of blood that is forbidden, it logically means that if their conscience allows it, a Jehovah’s witness can accept all fractions in any configuration, which would include the four major blood components, as well as whole blood.

This alone ahows that the no-blood doctrine is complete nonsense and only a boondoggle for Jehovah’s witnesses to feel special. the Watchtower corporation could drop this teaching today and it would not make any practical difference.

Still, rejecting life saving blood can be an issue of habit or bias, thinking blood is “yucky” or unclean. So in this article we will go through what blood actually contains to let everyone see that it is not so yucky or unclean as they have been lead to believe.

This is also important because there are many important medicines that contain blood fractions. For example fibronogens are used to save the lives of hemophiliacs and interferons and interleukins are used to treat viral infections and cancers. Some critical life saving medicines, such as snake venom serum and rabies vaccines contain blood fractions. So Jehovah’s witnesses must decide how to handle these medicines in case they end up with a serious medical condition or they’re bitten by a snake or rabid animal.

So let’s have a look at what the fractions actually are.

Blood Plasma components

Blood plasma consists of these components:

Water

The largest component of plasma, making up approximately 90-92% of its composition.

Proteins

Plasma contains a variety of proteins, including albumin, globulins, and fibrinogen. These proteins play essential roles in maintaining osmotic pressure, transporting substances, and aiding in blood clotting.

Albumin

Albumin is the most abundant protein in plasma, accounting for approximately 55-60% of the total protein content. It plays a crucial role in maintaining the osmotic pressure of the blood, which helps regulate the distribution of water between the blood and surrounding tissues. Albumin also binds and transports various substances such as hormones, fatty acids, and drugs throughout the body.

Albumin is used as a plasma expander during surgery, and it can also be used to treat burns and edema.

Globulins

Globulins are a diverse group of proteins present in plasma. They can be further classified into three main types:

Alpha-Globulins

Alpha-globulins include proteins such as alpha-1 antitrypsin, alpha-2 macroglobulin, and haptoglobin. These proteins are involved in immune responses, blood clotting, and binding and transport of substances.

Beta-Globulins

Beta-globulins include proteins such as transferrin and low-density lipoproteins (LDL). Transferrin is responsible for transporting iron in the blood, while LDL carries cholesterol to various cells and tissues.

Gamma-Globulins

Gamma-globulins are a class of proteins known as immunoglobulins or antibodies. They are vital components of the immune system and help defend against foreign substances, such as bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens.

Immunoglobulins are used for passive immunization in situations where immediate protection against a particular pathogen or toxin is needed, such as in cases of exposure to certain infections or after a suspected rabies exposure. They can also be used to treat certain immune deficiencies or autoimmune disorders.

Immunoglobulins are also among the components that pregnant and nursing mothers transfuse to their babies.

Fibrinogen

Fibrinogen is a clotting protein that plays a crucial role in the formation of blood clots. When blood vessels are damaged, fibrinogen is converted into fibrin, forming a mesh-like structure that helps stop bleeding by forming a clot.

Fibrinogen, along with other clotting factors found in plasma, is used in the treatment of bleeding disorders, such as hemophilia or von Willebrand disease. It is also used in wound glue, a substance that can be used instead of stitches to close wounds.

In addition to these major proteins, blood plasma also contains smaller amounts of other proteins, such as enzymes, complement proteins (part of the immune system), and regulatory proteins involved in various physiological processes.

Electrolytes

Plasma contains various electrolytes such as sodium, potassium, chloride, calcium, and bicarbonate ions. These ions are crucial for maintaining the body’s pH balance and conducting electrical impulses.

Nutrients

Plasma carries essential nutrients like glucose (sugar), amino acids, lipids (fats), vitamins, and minerals. These nutrients are transported to different cells and tissues throughout the body.

Waste Products

Metabolic waste products, such as urea, creatinine, bilirubin, and lactic acid, are also present in plasma. They are the byproducts of cellular metabolism and are eventually eliminated from the body.

Hormones

Plasma transports hormones produced by various glands and organs. Hormones are chemical messengers that regulate various physiological processes in the body.

Gases

Oxygen and carbon dioxide gases are dissolved in plasma.

Red Blood Cells

Red blood cells, also known as erythrocytes, are specialized cells within the blood that play a crucial role in transporting oxygen from the lungs to the body’s tissues and carrying carbon dioxide, a waste product, back to the lungs for elimination. They don’t even have a nucleus with DNA in them. Apart from the cell membrane they only contain hemoglobin and enzymes needed for their cellular functioning.

Red blood cells are naturally transfused from mother to child in the womb.

Hemoglobin

Hemoglobin is the protein found within red blood cells that enables them to carry oxygen. It is responsible for the characteristic red color of blood. Oxygen binds to hemoglobin when red blood cells pass through the lungs, and it is released to the tissues that require oxygen for metabolism.

Membrane Proteins

Red blood cells possess various membrane proteins that are involved in their structure, function, and interaction with other cells and substances. These proteins include the band 3 protein (anion exchanger), glycophorins (surface glycoproteins), and spectrins (structural proteins). They contribute to the flexibility, shape, and stability of red blood cells.

It is worth noticing that there is no difference between these cell membranes and other animal cell membranes that you consume in a normal diet. Also it is impossible to remove all red blood cells out of meat, so if you have ever eaten meat, you have eaten red blood cells.

Enzymes

Red blood cells contain specific enzymes that help maintain the cell’s metabolic functions and integrity. Examples of these enzymes include carbonic anhydrase, which catalyzes the conversion of carbon dioxide into bicarbonate ions, and glycolytic enzymes, which are involved in the metabolism of glucose for energy production.

White Blood Cells

White blood cells, also known as leukocytes, are a crucial component of the immune system. They are responsible for defending the body against infections, foreign substances, and abnormal cells. White Blood cells come in 5 different varieties:

• Neutrophils (62%)
• Lymphocytes (30%)
• Monocytes (5.3%)
• Eosinophils (2.3%)
• Basophils (0.4%)

Nursing mothers feed their infants with white blood cells through breast milk.

Platelets

Platelets, also known as thrombocytes, are small, disc-shaped cell fragments found in the blood. Platelets are “cytoplasmic fragments of bone marrow megakaryocytes”. This means that they are tiny parts of bone marrow that break off and enter the blood stream. Platelets contain granules that store various substances, such as clotting factors and growth factors, and play a crucial role in the formation of blood clots to stop bleeding. The growth factors and other bioactive substances released by platelets are believed to stimulate tissue repair, reduce inflammation, and enhance the healing process.

Platelets can be used to make platelet gel, which can be applied topically to wounds, surgical sites, or ulcers to promote healing.

Since platelets are bone marrow fragments, what does the Watchtower say about bone marrow?

Animal bone marrow was apparently used for food by the Israelites. (Compare Mic 3:2, 3.) It has a very high nutritional value, being rich in protein, fats, and iron. Jehovah’s banquet for all the peoples, therefore, fittingly includes symbolic “well-oiled dishes filled with marrow.” — Isa 25:6.

The Israelites ate bone marrow. Micah 3:3 describes how they used to do:

Micah 3:3 — Smashing their bones, crushing them to pieces, Like what is cooked in a pot, like meat in a cooking pot.

And in Isaiah 25:6 it says:

In this mountain Jehovah of armies will make for all the peoples A banquet of rich dishes, A banquet of fine wine, Of rich dishes filled with marrow, Of fine, filtered wine.

So if Jehovah offers you platelet-filled bone marrow. Will you accept it? Apparently it is fine with him. Is it fine with you?

Mothers transfuse and feed blood to their babies {mothers-transfuse}

Jehovah has designes humans to naturally transfuse blood to one another. Pregnant mothers transfuse blood fractions directly into their child’s bloodstream. And after birth, she feeds them other blood fractions theough the breast milk.

Plasma components

Immunoglobulins are transfered from mother to child in the womb. Also breast milk contains immunoglobulins, particularly IgA (Immunoglobulin A). These antibodies play a crucial role in providing passive immunity to the newborn, offering protection against infections in the early stages of life when the infant’s own immune system is still developing.

Transfusing red blood cells

Small amounts of red blood cells normally travel from a baby to the mother in the womb.

Feeding white blood cells

All types if white blood cells are transfered from mother to child via the breast milk. Mothers feed their babies this blood fraction for several months. One drop of breast milk contains around a million white blood cells. And this is true for other species as well, cows, goats, you name it. If you have ever drank milk, eaten butter or cheese then you have eaten blood fractions by the trillions.

Understanding the real reason for the prohibition of blood consumption

In ancient Near Eastern cultures, including those surrounding ancient Israel, blood was often associated with ideas of life force, vitality, and power.

Leviticus 17:11 — For the life of the flesh is in the blood…

It was believed that by consuming the blood of an animal or a person, one could acquire some of that life force or power. This concept is known as “sympathetic magic” or the belief in the transfer of qualities or attributes through physical contact or ingestion.

Within the context of idolatry and false worship, blood consumption played a significant role. In many ancient cultures, rituals involving blood were performed as offerings to gods or supernatural beings. These rituals were meant to establish a connection between the worshiper and the deity, often with the intention of receiving blessings, protection, or favor from the divine.

The act of consuming blood in these religious practices was seen as a way to participate in the life force or power of the deity being worshiped. It was believed that by partaking in the blood, the worshiper would establish a communion or union with the divine being, thus gaining access to its attributes or benefits.

However, in the Israelite religious worldview, there was a clear distinction between the worship of Jehovah, and the worship of false gods or idols. The Israelites were instructed to worship Jehovah alone and to reject the worship of other deities. This included abstaining from participating in the rituals and practices associated with those false gods, which often involved the consumption of blood.

By prohibiting the consumption of blood, the Israelite religious laws sought to establish a clear boundary between the worship of Jehovah and the idolatrous practices of the surrounding cultures. It was a way to ensure the exclusive devotion and loyalty of the Israelites to their God and to prevent any syncretism or mixing of religious practices that would dilute their monotheistic faith.

Blood is truly life giving, and as you can see from this brief overview. The Watchtower says “There was only one use of blood that God ever approved, namely, for sacrifice“, but as you have seen, God has even created us to automatically transfuse blood to our offspring, so apparently the Watchtower is drawing a false conclusions. Their previous, more strict view of blood fractions has already cost the lives of thousands of brothers and sisters. Some day you may give your life for a policy that they may change the next day. This kind of needless deaths for religious reasons is no different than human sacrifices. Is Jehovah like Molech, Baal or the other gods who were pleased in human sacrifices?

Sure the eating of blood was a violation of the Mosaic law. But how serious was it?

1 Samuel 14:32-35 — So the people began rushing greedily at the spoil, and they took sheep and cattle and calves and slaughtered them on the ground, and they ate the meat along with the blood. 33 So it was reported to Saul: “Look! The people are sinning against Jehovah by eating meat with the blood.” At this he said: “You have acted faithlessly. Roll a large stone to me immediately.” 34 Saul then said: “Spread out among the people and say to them, ‘Each of you must bring his bull and his sheep and slaughter them here and then eat them. Do not sin against Jehovah by eating meat with the blood.’” So each of them brought his bull with him that night and slaughtered it there. 35 And Saul built an altar to Jehovah. This was the first altar he built to Jehovah.

When the people ate blood, all that happened was that Saul

But notice that the Bible only ever prohibits the eating of blood, so using it’s components for medical purposes would be in line with the principles we learn in Matthew 12:10–12:

Matthew 12:10–12 — and look! there was a man with a withered hand! So they asked him, “Is it lawful to cure on the Sabbath?” so that they might accuse him. 11 He said to them: “If you have one sheep and that sheep falls into a pit on the Sabbath, is there a man among you who will not grab hold of it and lift it out? 12 How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! So it is lawful to do a fine thing on the Sabbath.”

The Jewish people has a principle called “Life before law”, which mean that when life is on the line, you are allowed to break the law.

The Jewish religious leaders tested Jesus by seeing if he would heal on the Sabbath. He said to them: “If you have one sheep and that sheep falls into a pit on the Sabbath, is there a man among you who will not grab hold of it and lift it out?” They could not argue that it was not a good thing to save the life of a sheep on the sabbath. And much more so to heal a man. And even much more so if it was a matter of life and death. They would also agree that it was right to save the life of someone on the sabbath. Jesus concluded: “It’s lawful to do a good thing on the Sabbath.”

In other words Jesus says that it is alright to break God’s laws to save a life. It would be alright to break God’s laws even to just heal, or even to save the life of an animal.

The religious leaders who opposed Jesus would agree with Jesus that it would be alright to break the law by using blood to save a life. Isn’t it then sad that the religious leaders of the Watchtower believes that it is better for you to die than to use blood?

Jehovah is not pleased with such human blood sacrifices.