http://content.health.msn.com/content/article/90/100694.htm?printing=true
or
http://makeashorterlink.com/?Z59B110D8
Zero percent. That is how much progress the U.S. has
made in meeting its HIV prevention goal. The U.S. had
some 40,000 new HIV infections in 2001. That's when
the CDC set a goal of cutting this number in half by
2005. As of 2004, the estimated annual number of HIV
infections is still 40,000.
"We have not made tremendous progress," David
Holtgrave, PhD, tells WebMD. "HIV is still a major
issue in the U.S., but it is not getting the attention
it deserves...
..."There is some HIV fatigue. People have been
hearing about the story since the early to middle
80s," Holtgrave says. "We are beginning the third
decade of AIDS. And there is some misperception that
there is already a cure for HIV. I think that some
people may believe there is a vaccine already. They
believe the consequences of HIV are not as substantial
as they once were..."
...And fear-based prevention messages are
counterproductive. "There is a lot of research showing
serious psychological consequences from living daily
with the fear of getting a deadly disease," Huebner
says...
...Why haven't HIV prevention programs worked better
in the U.S.? One reason is that there have been missed
opportunities. These opportunities still exist. But
as might be expected in a disease spread by sex and
drug use, they are highly controversial. One of these
opportunities is the idea of allowing injection drug
users to exchange dirty, possibly HIV-contaminated
needles and syringes for new ones -- no questions
asked.
"We found that in the U.S., that one thing alone --
needle and syringe exchange -- could probably prevent
more than 12,000 of the 40,000 new HIV infections each
year," Holtgrave says. "That is a good example of
having a tool you know is quite useful and leaving it
on the shelf rather than using it."
...Another issue is teaching effective condom use.
"Everywhere but California, it is illegal to teach
condoms in public schools," Huebner says. "That is
ridiculous. How do we expect people to protect
themselves if they do not get the information they
need?" Condoms, Huebner is quick to point out,
certainly are effective in preventing HIV
transmission. But they can never be the total solution
to safe sex. "Condoms change sex dramatically,"
Huebner notes. "If we tell people they have to do
something that makes sex less pleasurable forever,
that is a hard message to get across. Condoms are not
a viable solution over the human lifespan."
[me: of course, if one gets AIDS because of
indiscriminant unprotectd sex, that certainly shortens
the lifespan - although not the misery.]
Abstinence -- refraining from sex until marriage -- is
another highly effective means of preventing HIV. But
abstinence, like condom use, is not a lifelong
solution. And at least one part of the U.S. population
has little to gain by waiting until marriage...
[me: but they don't count 'cause they're just
perverts, after all.]
<sigh>
Debbi
And I Didn't Rant, Even Maru
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