HIV By: Olivia Zaheer

What it is HIV stands for human immunodeficiency virus. HIV is a virus in the immune system that can not be cured. Your immune system is the system that gets rid of the flu or colds. HIV weakens the immune system so your cells can’t get rid of it. There are certain drugs that can keep the virus controlled. If you don’t keep it controlled it could lead to AIDS. HIV spreads through body fluids. Over 78 million people have been infected by HIV and 39 million people have died because of HIV. At the end of million people were living with HIV.

Where is it HIV effects many parts of the world including East Asia, North Africa, Central Europe, Oceania, Latin America, Southern Asia, North America, Eastern Europe, Caribbean, and Sub Saharan Africa. Most of these continents are very poor which makes it very hard to control it. Sub-Saharan Africa has been most effected by HIV.

What is the Impact on the Global Community?  The impact of HIV is that most people don’t know they have it which can lead to AIDS or spread very easily.  You can’t get rid of it so once you have it, you have it forever.  Because HIV weakens the immune system it is very easy to catch the flu, cancer or many more viruses.

How do Other Country's Help?  Most of these continents are very poor so they depend on other country's like Canada to send them medicines and drugs.  Canada helps prevent mothers with HIV from passing it on to their babies during their pregnancy.  World AIDS day is on December 1 st which also starts aboriginal AIDS awareness week.

How we can Solve it  We can’t solve this global issue but we can keep it in control by using certain drugs. The drugs will not get rid of it but it will keep it in control so it does not spread to AIDS.  Because HIV spreads through body fluids don’t use the same needles as others or share blood.

How Have we Been Addressing This Issue?  “Put a ribbon on it” is a campaign that encourages people to put a red ribbon which is the HIV/AIDS symbol on things like clothing, food, cars, etc. The money from purchasing a red ribbon goes toward buying medicines for the people living with AIDS/HIV.

URL addresses  /jun/08/hiv-aids-gay-healthcare-africa-russia /en/