Essay, Research Paper: Aids - A Quick Look-

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!