AIDS - A Quick Look-

Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, better known as

AIDS, is caused by the incurable HIV virus. AIDS is a

deadly disease that deteriorates the immune system. There

are two groups of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), HIV-1

that occurs throughout the world and HIV-2 that mainly

occurs in Africa. The HIV virus enters the white blood

cells and takes over the reproductive system of that cell

and uses the system to reproduce itself. The white blood

cell dies and the new HIV cells infect other white blood

cells and repeat the process.

If you have become infected with the AIDS disease

you may not have any symptoms of the for the next ten years.

The AIDS disease makes the less serious conditions harder

for your body to control or get rid of because of the loss

of many of the white blood cells in your body. The most

common causes of death for the people with AIDS are

pneumonia and Kaposi's sarcoma, which afflict 70% of the

infected people.

AIDS is transmitted in three ways. Intimate sexual

contact is the most common. While direct contact with

infected blood and transactions to babies from the infected

mother's fetus will also cause the disease. Although some

speculation, you cannot receive the disease from air, food,

water, or insects.

AIDS is a life and death issue. To have the AIDS

disease is a sentence of slow but inevitable death. There

currently is no cure or vaccine for this disease. There are

drugs that have been proven effective in slowing the spread

of this deadly disease.

We know enough about how the infection is

transmitted to protect ourselves from it. But too few

people are hearing the AIDS message. Perhaps many simply

don't like or want to believe what they hear, preferring to

think that AIDS "can't happen to them." Like other

communicable diseases, AIDS can strike anyone. AIDS doesn't

just occur in certain social groups. We must all protect

ourselves from this infection and learn about it in time to

take effective precautions. Given the right measures, no

one needs to get AIDS. Now is the time to take charge

against the AIDS disease. People must remember, that the

most reliable person in charge of preventing you from

getting AIDS, is yourself!