All about HIV
Print Edition
HOW do people catch HIV?
There are five methods of acquiring HIV worldwide that make up the vast majority of recent transmissions of the virus.
Unprotected penetrative sex
Passed on from mother to child during pregnancy or birth or by breastfeeding
Sharing needles during intravenous drug use
Infected blood donations or organ transplants
Healthcare workers getting blood from an infected person inside their body
Who does HIV mainly affect in China?
Firstly, it’s important to remember that HIV can affect anyone, regardless of gender, sexuality, age, marital status, ethnicity, or class. Having said that, there are four main groups who are acquiring HIV more than others.
Men who have sex with men
Men who have sex with men, whether they identify as gay, bisexual, or straight, are one of the predominant groups among new transmissions of HIV in China, accounting for up to one quarter of new cases each year.
According to a survey of 1,000 young gay males (under the age of 25) in China, nearly 70 percent have had sex, but only half of those have ever tested for HIV or other STDs.
Young people
China’s National Center for STD/AIDS Prevention and Control reported that about 15 percent of new HIV infections in 2015 were among those aged 15 to 24.
People over 60
15 percent of new HIV cases in 2015 were among those aged 60 and over.
Those who inject drugs
About 6 percent of those who inject drugs are HIV carriers, official data from 2014 says.
Busting myths about HIV
There are many myths about HIV that remain from the days when not much was known about the virus more than 30 years ago. Debunking these myths is really important, especially in reducing stigma around those with HIV.
You cannot catch HIV from …
Touching, hugging, kissing, sharing food, sweat, saliva, feces, bathing or swimming, toilet seats, urine, cups, insect bites, performing CPR, coughs, sneezes.
There is risk of transmission if blood is present and if the person giving CPR has open wounds in their mouth or on their lips.
HIV is not just a gay man’s disease
When HIV first hit the news more than 30 years ago it largely affected intravenous drugs users and gay men, but things have changed drastically. HIV can affect anyone, of any age, sexuality, race, marital status or class. In fact, one of the largest growing areas of new HIV infections is amongst heterosexual women.
HIV-positive people can have kids
Many still believe that HIV positive men and women can’t have children, but this is not true. There are many methods available for those with HIV to become mothers and fathers to healthy, negative children.
You can’t tell if someone has HIV or not by how they look
Some people still believe that people carrying HIV all look sick and frail, and that you can therefore judge by appearance who has HIV and who doesn’t — this is absolutely untrue.
People with HIV can live long and healthy lives
It used to be that those with HIV would die within around ten years. That’s not the case now, because antiretroviral treatments today mean that the virus, while still present in the body, is practically undetectable.
The virus, therefore, will be kept at bay, effectively meaning that people with HIV will no longer die — or even become sick — from complications arising from the virus.
People with HIV who are on treatment cannot pass on the virus
Recent large-scale studies have found that those carrying HIV who religiously take their medication and whose virus level has become “undetectable” cannot pass on the virus to their sexual partners, even if condoms aren’t used.
In fact, many couples where one partner is negative and one is positive live normal and healthy lives.
(Source: Avert.org)
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