Worlds Aids Day

"Today more people than ever before are living with HIV and each year, new infections occur."--WorldAidsDay.org

Every year on December 1st, the entire world dedicates this day to helping everyone understand HIV/AIDS and to give us ways to stay safe.

What is HIV?
---A virus that attacks the body's immune system.

Are HIV & AIDS the same?
---No. When someone is described as living with HIV, they have the HIV virus in their body. A person is consdered to have developed AIDS when the immune system is so weak it can no longer fight off a range of diseases which it would normally cope.

How is HIV passed on?

----infected blood, semen, vaginal fluids or breast milk.

Sex without a condom with someone who has HIV

Sharing infected needles, syringes or other injecting drug equpiment

From an HIV-positive mother to her child during pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding.

People living with HIV

--More than 85,000 people are living with HIV in the UK

--Over a quarter of people with HIV in the UK are undiagnosed

--About 2/3 of people living with HIV are men and a 1/3 are women

 

--Over 1/2 of all people living with HIV are between 30-44 but there are numbers of younger and older people living with HIV.

New HIV cases in 2008

--7,298 new diagnoses

--The two groups most affected are gay and bisexual men and African heterosexuals. 3/4 of people diagnosed were among these 2 groups.

--2,760 new diagnoses among men who have sex with men

--2,790 new diagnoses among people from black & minority ethnice communities.

People living with HIV

--33.4 million people are living with HIV worldwide

--31.3 million adults

--15.7 million women

--2.1 million children under 15

New HIV cases in 2008

--2.7 million people

--2.3 million adults

--430,000 children under 15

HIV-related deaths in 2008

--2 million total deaths

After reading all of that, can anyone truly say that taking chances with unprotected sex is really worth their lives? Do YOU want to become another statistic? If the answer to those two questions are no, then do the smart and safe thing and make sure that you practice safe sex. You can never tell who may or may not have HIV/AIDS nowadays. Treat your lives like the precious jewels they are and cherish them please! GET TESTED AND STAY SAFE!!

**All statistics and information came directly from http://www.worldaidsday.org/**