Is it true that...bare in mind that i saw it on tv?

Question

you cannot give blood if you are g*y?

also are L*****n allowed to give blood?

and why do they say g**s are at a higher risk of contracting diseases? would'nt it be the same no matter what sexuality you are?

Answer 1

That is definitely not true.

Yes no matter what the sexuality of the person contracting diseases, people just say things like this all the time for no reason. Heterosexuals can get as many diseases as Homosexuals, Bisexuals, even transsexual's.

Don't believe everything you see on T.V. =)

Answer 2

It's true, but dumb.  The rule is that a man who has had s*x with a man even once since sometime in the 1970s can't give blood.  Also, a woman who has had s*x with a man who has had s*x with a man even once... No joke, that's what the wording is like.  So if someone has only has s*x with women (like a L*****n) then they can give blood.  

I just lie though.  I know I've slept with a man who's slept with a man but I've been HIV tested and that's why they have that rule.  Back when the rule was made people didn't get tested as much as they do and people really thought that only g*y men got AIDS.

Answer 3

Yep, it's true. It's because of HIV. It's very ignorant, because straight people can also contract HIV (though not as effective as through anal s*x). It's one of the notions that spread ignorance of HIV, like "g*y men are the only ones that can contract HIV".

You also can't donate blood if you've ever visited Africa in your life, even if you just visited once a very long time ago.

When you donate blood, you're supposed to fill out a very large form that asks about many aspects of your life, including which countries you've visited throughout your lifetime and your s*x life.

There's nothing that says lesbians can't donate blood. So if you're a lasbian, go ahead.

But I donate blood anyway, I always test myself for HIV and I know I'm negative. It's one of my little white lies :).

Answer 4

did you see it on degrassi?

And its only if a guy has had s*x with another guy.

Answer 5

sadly yes g*y men cant give blood i dont know about lesbians though but i think they still can...http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18827137/

Answer 6

kind of true:

the rule is usually any man who has had s*x with a man in the previous six months cannot donate blood. along with any woman who has had s*x with a man who has had s*x with another man in the previous six months.

its basically because it can take six months for a person exposed to HIV to test positive. basically they are being rediculously over-cautious and trying to save money (other more expensive forms of tests are reliable more quickly).

truethfully, unprotected anal s*x is more risky than unprotected vaginal s*x, but the difference isn't that great. so they are being slightly homophobic and paranoid.

lesbians are permitted to donate blood.

Answer 7

i saw that on emmerdale.

And yes it is true because aids is passed on by blood but im also not sure why that affects g**s more.

Answer 8

In the UK, in a way yes. If you have ever had anal s*x with another man you cannot give blood. It doesn't apply to lesbians-lesbians are at extremely low risk for HIV/AIDS, which is what it's all about.

There have been petitions to the prime minister to allow g*y men to donate blood, but they insist that it remains as it is because g*y men remain the highest risk group for HIV/AIDS.

Personally I think that stupid. It shouldn't matter who you have s*x with; it should depend on your sexual practices. Why should a promiscuous straight person who doesn't know their HIV status be allowed to donate blood, but a faithful g*y person who knows they're negative not be allowed to? It's outdated and discrimatory.

Answer 9

It varies by country.  In America, you can give blood if you're g*y.  The previous disqualification was for men who have s*x with men, so lesbians were never excluded since they are a very low risk population for HIV.  That's where the disease thing comes in - HIV infection rates are higher in g*y populations.  If I had to guess why, I'd think that maybe it's because g*y men can't get pregnant so the condom thing might have seemed a bit silly before there was so much media attention focused on safer s*x.  

In Ireland, where I live now, the blood bank excludes g*y men still, or any men who have had s*x with men even if they don't call themselves g*y (more often than you'd think) because they had a lot of people to get bad blood in the 80s and they're still paranoid.  Its a bit discriminatory if you ask me, especially since they test the blood anyhow, but I'm not the one to try to change that one.  You also can't give there if you lived in England between certain years because of BSE (mad cow) or if you've gotten blood transfusions in Germany.  

Answer 10

It's not true.

Answer 11

it effects g**s more that have anal s*x. And girls that have it also. Because it is easier to rip the skin and thus makes it more vulnerable to things getting into your system.

Answer 12

Yeah this true. g*y men can not give blood. Well on the qualifications it doesn't specifically say g*y men instead it says "If you are a male have you ever participated in any sexual activities with another male after 1970?" And if you put yes you cannot donate blood. Thats why when I was about to donate blood I read that and got mad and stormed out of there because it was so unfair. I can still donate blood because I am still a virgin but I was so mad that they would discriminate so blatantly. Im not sure about other countries but in the US g**s cannot donate blood. Lesbians can because on the qualifications it does not mention anything about ladies.

Oh and I live in San Francisco so don't think this was like in some very rural and conservative area.

Answer 13

First of all, this is NOT true.

g**s tend to share accessories that are supposed to be private (i.e shaving blades etc'), that's why they are at higher risk of getting an STD.

You can give blood if you are healthy NO MATTER WHO YOU ARE. g*y/lsebian, doesn't matter. If you have STD, you can't give blood even if you are not g*y/not L*****n...

Answer 14

It is true that you cannot give blood if you are a  g*y MAN.  There's no  restrictions on lesbians.   There's also many other restrictions on giving blood.  It's set by the FDA, blame them.  I personally am very torn when it comes to allowing g*y people to give blood.  I'm a medical laboratory scientist student at the moment, but I do internships in hospitals at the moment.  I also am currently working in a blood bank as part of my rotations.  

One of the main reasons why is that the ban on g*y men giving blood was set back in 1977, just before the big AIDS scare.  It hasn't changed since, even though the highest group of HIV infection is currently among African American women between the ages of 18-27.  It's true. They still consider g*y men a high risk group.  One of the reasons is because blood goes through an EXTENSIVE testing process.  It is tested for HIV.  Now here's the catch.  HIV testing is based off an immunoassay that detects antibodies to HIV in the blood.  Sometimes a person who has been exposed to HIV will not produce enough antibodies in time to be tested. It's usually a 2-4 week window.  So if a person has been exposed, they can still carry the virus but not test positive.  Since we are giving blood to another person, we want to be extra sure that there are no contaminants in it.  This is why we also ask all the other personal questions.  We screen out people who have traveled to other countries recently, due to parasites, people who have been in jail due to a higher risk of tuberculosis, people who have had unsafe s*x, people who have recently had a blood transffusion due to development of host vs. transfusion disease and the development of new antibodies in the blood, etc.  It's VERY stringent.  As a medical laboratorian, I can tell you that there is ZERO room for error in blood bank.  It's just a "better safe than sorry" practice that hasn't been updated in years.  

Answer 15

omg i didnt even no this was true i must have missed that eppisode of hollyoaks i cant believe its true how ignorant and biggoted is that gezz

Answer 16

Because the HIV virus was seen as a largely 'g*y' persons infection. Back in the 80s when it all started going wrong there were a number of groups excluded.

And it might well be the case that g*y people have a higher infection rate.....

Answer 17

I cannot give blood any longer because my sister-in-laws aunt who 'thought' I was g*y told the Red Cross (where she worked) and they sent me a letter telling me not to try any more...  She wasn't even 'sure' at the time...

Answer 18

You can't give blood if you're (openly) g*y. In other words I'm a dirty s**t with HIV if I'm (openly) g*y =/

How about straight people?? They can get HIV and any STD too for fcuks sake!