The HIV/AIDS Epidemic
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| The Virus. |
AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) was first recognized in the United States in the early 1980s. It currently exists throughout the entire world. HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) causes AIDS by attacking T cells, which are central to a healthy immune system. Because this process happens gradually, many people have HIV in their bodies for eight to ten years before they develop AIDS. Signs that AIDS has developed include opportunistic diseases and a T-cell count below 200.
Awareness of HIV/AIDS has decreased its spread in some areas, but some forty thousand new infections still occur each year in America, and epidemic continues to devastate many resource-poor regions of the globe. The epidemic has taken a heavy toll on the health care services, social structures and economies of developing nations that can little afford it, and there is no end in sight.
Women and HIV/AIDS
As of December 2003, nearly fifty percent of people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide were women. The majority of women are infected through heterosexual sex. Overall HIV/AIDS death rates for women have decreased since the mid-1990s, but death rates among African-American and Latina women remain much higher than among white women. Thankfully, physicians, scientists and activists are paying more attention to women's experiences of HIV/AIDS. There are many more clinical trials, women's groups, providers and safety procedures for women now. There are also new treatments that have reduced the number of babies born with the HIV infection. And in many communities, women with HIV infection and AIDS are supporting one another, doing outreach, teaching prevention, getting into recovery from substance abuse and finding hope.
Women may be biologically more vulnerable than men to contracting HIV through heterosexual intercourse because infected semen stays in contact with the vaginal lining and cervix longer than infected vaginal secretions remain on the penis. Intravenous drug use - both directly through shared needles, and indirectly, through unprotected sex with male users - plays a significant role in transmitting HIV infection to women in the United States.
It is crucial that we take care of ourselves and work to change the systems that make it so hard for us to do so. Improving women's experiences with HIV/AIDS in the United States will depend on fundamental social changes that address poverty, racism, and sexism. Too often, public support is lacking for the tools that we need: drug treatment programs, housing, adequate nutrition, health care and child care. We all have a right to be healthy, to enjoy sex without risking our health, to care for ourselves and one another, and to get the medical help we need.
HIV Transmission
Two conditions must be met for HIV to pass from one person to another:1. The virus must be present in sufficient quantity. Five bodily fluids - blood, pre-ejaculate, semen, vaginal fluid, and breast milk - can carry enough virus to cause infection. Saliva, tears, sweat, urine, feces, and vomit (unless mixed with blood) do not contain enough virus to infect you.
2. The virus must have a way to get into your bloodstream. HIV can enter your body through the mucous membrane that lines the vagina and rectum; it can directly enter into the blood via shared IV-drug or tattoo needle; through the skin via any open cut, wound or scratch; or through the mucous membrane in the eyes, the nose and the foreskin and opening of a man's penis.
Protecting Ourselves From HIV
It is possible to live with HIV for many years without any outward symptoms - which is why it's very important to use a condom every time you have sex and to know your status and the status of anyone you have sex with. It's vital to be open with your partner, you do not know their entire sexual past (and I bet they don't either!). They could have been infected long before they met us - scary, I know.
Symptoms and Testing
It's surprising, but many people who are infected with HIV, don't even know it. This is why testing is crucial. Even though it can be scary to get tested, the sooner the HIV is diagnosed, the sooner it can be treated and may protect the immune system from serious damage and extend life by years. Many who are infected with HIV experience a set of flu-like symptoms - such as high fever, sore throat, swollen glands, extreme fatigue, and rash - within one month of infection. If you have these symptoms and think you might have been exposed to HIV, it is important to get tested. After the initial reaction to HIV infection, most people feel fairly healthy for several years. But as immune function begins to break down, symptoms of AIDS start to appear. These include weight loss, fatigue, swollen glands, and skin rashes. Night sweats, fevers, thrush, headaches, diarrhea, and loss of appetite can also occur. Finding out that you are HIV positive is life changing and can be traumatic. Check to see if there are support groups or counselors in your area to help you with testing decisions and find a testing site that provides good counseling.
There are several types of HIV tests avaliable: conventional and rapid tests using blood, oral testing (which uses a small sample of mucosal calls from the inside of your cheek and gum), or urine testing. All methods test for antibodies to HIV, which are produced by the body's immune system in response to the virus. An initial positive result is always confirmed by a more specific test.
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Everyone should know about what HIV and AIDS are and definitely should always practice safe sex. It's important to be aware of your body and health. Ask your partner if they have the disease, if they're responsible they will tell you too. Don't let yourself be infected. For those who have the infection, they're still humans not aliens or lepers. Treat them with respect and kindness; they have a difficult life already without your fears and judgment.
Love,
ALPHA
Information from 'Our Bodies, Ourselves' Chapter 16: HIV and AIDS
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