HIV and AIDS are very closely related. AIDS stands for “Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome”, a disease in which the body’s immune system breaks down. AIDS is caused by a virus called the "human immunodeficiency virus," more commonly referred to as HIV. The HIV virus may live in the body for years before it is even noticed until symptoms begin appearing. It is important to note that although there are no visible symptoms, the virus can still be transmitted. Actually a person can go without having symptoms for up to 10-15 years. An HIV / AIDS awareness program will tell you all about this dreaded pandemic. No other word engenders as much fear, revulsion, despair and utter helplessness as AIDS. Despite increased HIV / AIDS awareness, the terror persists. AIDS is, in fact, rewriting medical history as humankind's deadliest scourge. With 40 million deaths forecast in this millennium, statistics tell their own sordid tale.
In the past people had very less awareness about diseases like HIV and AIDS. But now with increased HIV / AIDS awareness the situation has improved a lot. HIV and AIDS have faced several misconceptions from the day of their discoveries and till date. Some common MYTHS regarding how a person can get HIV are by:
sharing food with an infected person
hugging an infected person
insect bites or
only from gays or drug users
Science has provided us with answers to these myths. HIV is not transmitted through casual contact. A person cannot get HIV by sharing food with an infected person or hugging an infected person. An insect bite will not transmit HIV. On the contrary HIV can be passed to others by
direct intimate contact with HIV-infected body fluids, such as blood, vaginal secretions, or semen
having oral sex with an HIV-positive partner
an HIV-infected mother to her baby during pregnancy, delivery, or breastfeeding
having sexual intercourse without a latex or plastic condom with an HIV-positive partner and
HIV-contaminated needles from drug use, tattoos, or body piercing
It should be remembered that HIV infection is not limited to gays or drug users. It does not discriminate amongst age, sex, race, or sexual orientation. Most of the new cases of HIV and AIDS are due to sexual contact between a man and woman. It is important to realize that people can be infected with HIV and not even know they are infected. Having the right kind of information on HIV / AIDS awareness is extremely important. Check the following for more:
HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
HIV/AIDS Day
World AIDS Day
World AIDS Day,2002 Proclamation
HIV/AIDS Epidemic
HIV/AIDS Information
HIV/AIDS News
HIV/AIDS Training
HIV/AIDS Resources
HIV/AIDS Support
HIV/AIDS Volunteer
HIV/AIDS Education
Sen. Barack Obama's Speech on World AIDS Day 2006
Books on HIV/AIDS
WebMD
Stay connected to know more about HIV/AIDS.
 Post Comment |
|