If albumin is allowed when it's not from blood, could white blood cells from mother's milk be allowed?

by ILoveTTATT 23 Replies latest watchtower medical

• 

  ILoveTTATT

  I think something that would totally "close the gap" with JW's and not accepting blood but accepting it through the fractions of fractions would be to harvest white blood cells from mother's milk (there are already mother's milk banks) and then transfuse them to Witness patients who need WBC's. Since technically they are not from blood, I think it would be an interesting loophole.

  Anyone here know about a disease that can only be cured/treated with WBC's? How about platelets? It would be the last and only thing that JW's cannot accept...

  ILTTATT
• 

  TD

  How is albumin not from blood?
• 

  nonjwspouse

  TD, I know, it is ALL from blood, just a massive amount of it that is then processed and seperated out. Put it all back together again and add back the what, 95% water and voila, whole blood.

  How do the JW rationalize the processing of massive amoounts of peoples blood, and then say it is unscriptural to give any? It's so dublicitious it makes me crazy.
• 

  TD

  Just so my reply above doesn't come across as flipant, albumin is allowed because it is a so-called fractional component. Albumin is a plasma protein and these have been allowed since the late 50's

  Serum albumin should not be confused with similar proteins found in plants. Serum albumin is used either as an adjuvant or an excipient in many preparations including the childhood battery of immunizations most people in developed countries receive.

  Neutriphils found in colostrum and milk are a formed (cellular) element of blood and are forbidden as a 'primary component.' I don't believe JW literature draws a distinction based on the source. (Don't ask me to explain the contradiction involved with milk here -- I can't)
• 

  AndDontCallMeShirley

  How do the JW rationalize

  1. rationality has nothing to do with the doctrine.

  2. WT creates doctrine and JWs blindly follow it. The average JW (and many in authority) cannot explain the blood doctrine other than taking a couple scriptures out of context and twisting the meaning of others.

  There is no explanation in print that I am aware of that explains why it's acceptable for a JW to use someone else's blood to obtain fractions while at the same time banning a JW from returning the favor by donating their own blood.

  I think most JWs have not thought enough about it to realize fractions come from another person's stored blood. But, it is "unscriptural" for a JW to store their own blood for their own use (pre-operative storage).

  You're right...it makes no sense.

  [edit] Keep in mind that WT used to allow whole blood transfusions but banned organ transplants. Then it banned blood transfusions AND all blood fractions but reversed its ban on organ transplants.

  Both contradictory positions had solid "scriptural" backing.
• 

  TD

  How do the JW rationalize the processing of massive amoounts of peoples blood, and then say it is unscriptural to give any? It's so dublicitious it makes me crazy.

  The same reason many, if not most JW's believe it would be okay to collect on a winning lottery ticket if they found it on the ground instead of actually going up to the counter and buying it themselves.

  Rules based systems of morality have loopholes.
• 

  nonjwspouse

  froom those disallowed fractions this part of those very fractions is allowed.

  • Platelet Gel, blood is withdrawn and put into a solution rich in platelets and white blood cells. [ 20 ]
  • Fractions from red blood cells:
    • Hemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying component of red blood cells.
  • Fractions from white blood cells: [ 23 ]
    • Interferons
    • Interleukins
  • Fractions from platelets: [ 23 ]
    • Platelet factor 4
  • Fractions from blood plasma: [ 23 ]
    • Albumin
    • Globulins
    • Cryoprecipitate
    • Cryosupernatant (cryo-poor plasma) [ 26 ]
    • Clotting factors, including Factor VIII and Factor IX derived from large quantities of stored blood
    • Wound healing factor

  This is insanity to prohibit blood transfusions, and sbhunning those who needed them adn allowed them, but then picking apart the enitre whole blood and allowing ALL of these fractions seperatly. It would seem if blood symbolizes such a sacred thing, how is it that by manipulating it repeatedly it theb makes it all ok for the JW to accept?
• 

  AndDontCallMeShirley

  The four main components of blood are banned, but you cannot obtain fractions without the four main components. And, when you reconstitute all the fractions WT allows you are left with whole blood. But whole blood is banned.

  as TD said:

  Rules based systems of morality have loopholes

  This is why the list of "acceptable" fractions keeps growing. WT creates more loopholes to circumvent a self-created, hopelessly flawed doctrinal premise.
• 

  eby

  bookmark
• 

  Marvin Shilmer

  -

  Watchtower’s notion of blood would have people think four components are divided from one another when the fact is all products rendered from blood are rendered from on component: plasma.

  It looks like this:

  1. Whole blood is extracted.

  2. Red cells are separated from plasma, leaving a red cell depleted plasma.

  3. Platelets and white cells are separated from red cell depleted plasma, leaving a platelet and white cell depleted plasma. From this process three distinct products are rendered: platelets, white cells and fresh frozen plasma.

  4. Cryo-rich plasma (also known as cryoprecipitate) is separated from platelet and white cell depleted plasma (fresh frozen plasma), leaving a cryo-poor plasma (also known as cryosupernatant).

  5. This process leaves cryo-poor plasma (cryosupernatant) as a separate and distinct blood product.

  Here's a rudementary illustration of the processes at work using centrifuge to separate blood products:

  

  Marvin Shilmer