About HIV/AIDS
HIV stands for “Human Immunodeficiency Virus”. This is the virus that causes AIDS. HIV is different from most other viruses because it attacks the immune system. The immune system gives our bodies the ability to fight infections. HIV finds and destroys a type of white blood cell (called T cells or CD4 cells) that the immune system must have to fight disease.
AIDS stands for “Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome”. AIDS is the final stage of an HIV infection. It can take years for a person infected with HIV to reach this stage, even without treatment. Having AIDS means that the virus has weakened the immune system to the point where the body has a difficult time fighting infections. When a person gets one or more specific infections (called “opportunistic infections”), certain cancers, or a very low number of T cells, she or he is considered to have AIDS. Only a doctor can diagnose an individual as having AIDS.
How HIV is and is not transmitted:
HIV is a fragile virus that cannot live long outside of the body. Because of this, you cannot get HIV through day-to-day activities such as shaking hands, hugging, or a casual kiss. You cannot get HIV from a toilet seat, drinking fountain, doorknob, dishes, drinking glasses, food or pets. You also cannot get HIV from mosquitoes.
HIV is found primarily in four body fluids: blood, semen, vaginal fluid, and breast milk. HIV is transmitted in 3 main ways:
- Unprotected anal or vaginal sex with someone infected with HIV
- Sharing needles or syringes with someone infected with HIV
- Being exposed to HIV in the womb or through breast feeding
How can you tell who has HIV?
HIV has no symptoms. People who are infected with HIV may look and feel perfectly healthy for many years, and many people who are infected don’t even know it. The only way to know for sure is to get the test. And unless you get tested together, there’s no way to know if your sex partner in HIV-negative. You can never tell by looking, so it’s important to get tested and protect yourself!
Further Resources
To learn more about the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States, click here.
To learn how to protect yourself from HIV, click here.
To learn more about living with HIV, click here.
To find out how to get tested for HIV, click here.
