No, jws are forbidden to give blood but they can accept hemoglobin based products made out of expired donated blood.
Is that sort of like not giving Christmas presents but being able to accept them?
*** w05 3/15 p. 18 par. 8 "You Were Bought With a Price" ***They knew that Elena, one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, would not donate blood or accept blood transfusions.
*** w00 10/15 p. 30 Questions From Readers ***When donating and transfusing blood became common in the 20th century, Jehovah’s Witnesses understood that this practice conflicted with God’s Word.
However, such collecting, storing, and transfusing of blood directly contradicts what is said in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. Blood is not to be stored; it is to be poured out—returned to God, as it were. Granted, the Mosaic Law is not in force now. Nevertheless, Jehovah’s Witnesses respect the principles God included in it, and they are determined to ‘abstain from blood.’ Hence, we do not donate blood, nor do we store for transfusion our blood that should be ‘poured out.’ That practice conflicts with God’s law.
http://www.lawyersandsettlements.com/articles/00122/clinical_trial.html
PolyHeme contains hemoglobin processed from expired blood donations and is designed to be given to trauma victims in place of blood or saline solution. The product is supposed to be used as a temporary measure when there is a large blood loss and no readily available blood supply, according to Northfield.
http://www.kansan.com/stories/2005/nov/11/synthetic_blood/
PolyHeme comes from expired blood that is ready to be discarded from the blood bank, said Suzanne Porras, research coordinator in the trauma department at the Med Center.
*** g 8/06 p. 11 The Real Value of Blood ***
What Are Hemoglobin-Based Oxygen Carriers?Within each red blood cell are some 300 million hemoglobin molecules. Hemoglobin represents about one third of the volume of a mature red cell. Each molecule contains the protein globin and a pigment called heme—which includes an iron atom. When a red blood cell passes through the lungs, oxygen molecules penetrate the cell and attach themselves to hemoglobin molecules. Seconds later, the oxygen is discharged into body tissue, sustaining the life of the cells.
Some manufacturers now process hemoglobin, releasing it from human or bovine red blood cells. The extracted hemoglobin is then filtered to remove impurities, chemically modified and purified, mixed with a solution, and packaged. The end product—not yet approved for use in most lands—is called a hemoglobin-based oxygen carrier, or HBOC. Since the heme is responsible for the rich red color of blood, a unit of HBOC looks just like a unit of red blood cells, the primary component from which it is taken.
Unlike red blood cells, which must be refrigerated and discarded after a few weeks, the HBOC can be stored at room temperature and used months later. And since the cell membrane with its unique antigens is gone, severe reactions due to mismatched blood types pose no threat. However, compared with other blood fractions, the HBOC presents more challenges to conscientious Christians, who seek to obey God’s law on blood. Why? As long as the HBOC is derived from blood, there are two objections that may be raised. One, the HBOC carries out the key function of a primary component of blood, the red cells. Two, hemoglobin, from which the HBOC is derived, makes up a significant portion of that component. Regarding this and similar products, then, Christians face a very serious decision. They must carefully and prayerfully meditate on Bible principles concerning the sacredness of blood. With a keen desire to maintain a good relationship with Jehovah, each must be guided by his Bible-trained conscience.—Galatians 6:5.
Have jws accepted this product and stayed in good standing? Yes, and many examples are found googling on the internet.
*** w79 11/1 p. 32 Questions From Readers***
Also, even if the giver of a gift has a religious belief as a reason for its timing, that does not mean that the recipient is thought to share the religious view. Often a fellow worker or relative will tell one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, ‘I know that you do not celebrate Christmas (or, some other holiday), but I still want you to have this as a gift from me.’ If the Christian’s conscience would be at rest in accepting the gift, he might choose to take it and express thanks without any reference to the holiday. (Acts 23:1) A similar course has been followed by many a Christian when offered a gift by someone who does not know of his belief. Perhaps at another time, when there will be less likelihood of causing offense, the Christian can tactfully mention that he does not celebrate that religious holiday and can kindly, mildly explain that this is why he himself did not give any holiday gift.—1 Pet. 3:15.
