AIDS Prevention

Since many people have the HIV virus or at least heard of it, everybody should

know what it is and what it does. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS. HIV is not spread

through kissing, sneezes, sweat, mosquito s, eating utensils and drinking fountains. HIV

is spread by having vaginal, anal, or oral sex, sharing needles, and through the contact

of body fluids from an infected person. HIV infected people usually look and feel healthy

and may not even know that they are infected. Only a blood test can tell if someone is

infected with HIV or not. It can take up to 10 years for symptoms to appear and the

symptoms are like many common illnesses: swollen glands, coughing, and fevers. It s

not who you are, but what you do that puts at risk for HIV. There are many ways to

reduce the risk and try to prevent yourself from being infected with HIV.

One way to prevent yourself from getting HIV is to not use needles. Many people

injects drugs into themselves by means of needles. Drugs are very dangerous, and

using needles carries the chance of being infected with HIV from someone else who

used the needle. There is a chance of getting HIV from blood transfusions, too, but the

hospitals disinfect needles for the safety of their patients. Although it's not safe to do

drugs, if using needles, do not share them with anyone. If you were to let someone else

use a needle that has been used already by another person, you are just putting them at

risk to be infected.

Another way you can be infected by the HIV virus is by vaginal, oral, or anal sex.

One way to keep yourself from not getting HIV is abstinence. You can also help prevent

the transmission of HIV with a condom. Although condoms are not 100% effective, they

can be safe to help reduce the risk of giving or receiving HIV to or from your partner.

Even if condoms aren't 100% effective, it is a lot better than using nothing. When you

use condoms you are respecting your partner and yourself, trying to prevent both of you

from getting a deadly disease. There are many different kind of condoms, rubber or

polyurethane, for example. Condoms are sold at most pharmacies and many stores.

They can also be found in some restrooms in dispensers.

There is also a chance of getting infected with HIV if you come in contact with

another person's bodily fluids. You should be careful to come in contact with other's

bodily fluid. If somehow you touched someone's blood, there is chance that their blood

can get in your body, and if they have HIV then you could become infected. The same

way with coming in contact with any other bodily fluid, there is always a chance of getting

infected.

A very important way to prevent people from getting HIV is by teaching about

AIDS in school. By teaching the youth about HIV and AIDS, we can prevent people from

getting it. If you can teach young people about AIDS, there will be a better chance that

they won't get AIDS. Students should have the chance to learn about how to prevent

AIDS, so they know what they are up against and what it can do to their life. It can show

what can happen to them if they are sexually active.

In conclusion, there are many ways to prevent yourself from HIV and AIDS. A

condom is one way to prevent yourself from being infected, but what works even better

is abstinence. Also, if someone would do drugs with needles, a very important way to

keep yourself from getting AIDS would be to not share needles, and not reuse needles

either. Also, another big way to prevent the transmission of HIV and AIDS would be to

teach students in school, so they knew what it was and how to prevent themselves from

getting this life-threatening disease. If people could just be careful wherever they are,

and know how they can prevent themselves from the disease, there could be a

decrease in the number of people infected with HIV. The thought of that can make a lot

of people feel happy, and maybe after a many years, AIDS could be gone for good or

there will be a cure.

Work's Cited

Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia, 1995.