Abstract
Blood has been associated with mysticism and pseudoscience for centuries. The letting of blood of either animals or humans was used by many ancient societies as a sacrificial offering. Transfusion was described by Ovid as a means of restoring youthful vigor. Blood baths were employed by the Egyptians to treat elephantiasis and the drinking of blood of dying gladiators was tried to cure epilepsy [2]. The Bible contains prohibitions against the consumption of blood which continue to be the basis of certain kosher laws for the preparation of meat [3] and which are also cited by certain religious groups as a moral reason to refuse blood transfusion.
‘…for the blood is the life…’ [1]
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References
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© 1985 Martinus Nijhoff Publishers. Boston/Dordrecht/Lancaster
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Conrad, M.E. (1985). Blood and blood components: uses and abuses. In: Das, P.C., Sibinga, C.T.S., Halie, M.R. (eds) Supportive therapy in haematology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-2577-2_13
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-2577-2_13
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