Jehovah's Witnesses refuse transfusions of whole blood, of red and white corpuscles, platelets and plasma. They also refuse both natural and recombinant haemoglobin, although positions differ among them regarding blood-derived products such as albumin, immunoglobulin and coagulation factors.
They believe that taking blood into the body through the mouth or veins violates God's laws. Witnesses view the above verses as ruling out transfusion with whole blood, packed red blood cells (RBCs), and plasma, as well as white blood cell (WBCs) and platelet administration.
Many Witnesses accept the transfusion of derivatives of primary blood components such as albumin solutions, cryoprecipitate, clotting factor concentrates (including fibrinogen concentrate) and immunoglobulins.
Multiple transfusion alternatives have been developed, and many are generally acceptable to a Jehovah's Witness patient, including tranexamic acid, prothrombin complex concentrate, and fibrin glue.
Diet. Jehovah's Witnesses reject foods containing blood but have no other special dietary requirements. Some Jehovah's Witnesses may be vegetarian and others may abstain from alcohol, but this is a personal choice. Jehovah's Witnesses do not smoke or use other tobacco products.
CHEMOTHERAPY AND RADIOTHERAPY
Like all patients, Jehovah's Witnesses seek the most effective treatments, but since the nature of malignant disease and the treatment regimens inevitably create (often profound) anaemia, the challenge is to provide optimum treatment whilst avoiding unacceptable levels of anaemia.
BLOOD TESTS - Blood is usually seen by Jehovah Witnesses to represent life itself. Specimens must therefore be treated with respect, and disposed of with care. DIET - Jehovah Witnesses believe it is forbidden to eat blood or blood products.
Jehovah's Witnesses – According to the Watch Tower Society, the legal corporation for the religion, Jehovah's Witnesses do not encourage organ donation but believe it is a matter best left to an individual's conscience. All organs and tissues, however, must be completely drained of blood before transplantation.
If the Jehovah's Witness does receive a blood transfusion either through a lack of informed consent or against his or her wishes, the hospital can become liable for a violation of the person's deeply held religious beliefs.
Thus, if a minor's life is in danger because of a parental refusal to consent to blood transfusion, a court order for the transfusion may be granted, if there are no alternative treatments which may be medically viable and acceptable to the parents.
Abstract. The Jehovah's Witnesses Society (JW), a fundamentalist Christian sect, is best known to laypersons and healthcare professionals for its refusal of blood products, even when such a refusal may result in death.
The use of erythropoietin-stimulating agents and intravenous iron has been shown to restore red blood cell and Hb levels in JW patients, although these effects may be significantly delayed.
Jehovah's Witnesses are not opposed to medicine and they seek out and appreciate quality professional medical care. They have a high regard for life and emphasise a healthy lifestyle.
The denomination requires adherence to a strict moral code, which forbids premarital sex, homosexuality, gender transitioning, adultery, smoking, drunkenness and drug abuse, and blood transfusions.
Thus, Jehovah's Witnesses regularly refuse transfusions for themselves and their children because they believe the procedure creates a risk of losing eternal salvation.
Members are instructed to not even greet shunned individuals. Disfellowshipped individuals can continue attending public meetings held at the Kingdom Hall, but are shunned by the congregation.
By far the largest denomination with objections to medical care is the Jehovah's Witnesses with millions of members. They oppose blood transfusions on the basis of verses in both the Old and New Testaments that prohibit eating blood.
Beliefs & Teachings about Death
Jehovah's Witnesses believe that when a person dies, their existence completely stops. This is because the Bible makes it clear that human beings do not have an immortal soul that survives when the body dies. Witnesses believe that Hell (as traditionally portrayed) does not exist.
Nowadays, a large number of elective surgical and trauma cases involving Jehovah's Witnesses are being performed without blood transfusions. In elective surgery this should rarely be an issue, providing decisions have been made clearly in advance.
Jehovah's Witness Beliefs About Cremation
As Witnesses believe in spiritual rather than physical resurrection, the faith does not have any prohibitions against cremation.
Jehovah's Witnesses scorn these memorial events because they imply that something in a person survives death, which is a patently false notion according to the religion. However, it is acceptable for family and friends to visit the grave of the deceased in years to come, so long as the visit is made for their own sake.
Jehovah's Witnesses have not permitted any active members to smoke since 1973. The Seventh-day Adventist Church also recommends that its members abstain from tobacco use.
However Jehovah's Witnesses have no objections to giving samples of their DNA or even their blood, as long as the blood is only being used for medical or forensic testing. Their only objection would be to receiving a blood transfusion or donating blood that will be used for a transfusion.
Jehovah's witnesses do not celebrate national or religious holidays or birthdays. The only day they do memorialize is Jesus Christ's death around the time of Easter and Passover.