World AIDS Day: December 1 is observed as World AIDS Day. The world has observed this day since 1988 to show strength and solidarity against HIV stigma, and to remember the lives lost, but most people know very little about what HIV is and what AIDS is — and why World AIDS Day is important.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is the virus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). HIV weakens your immune system by destroying your T-cells.
Just as sensitive locations are fortified by sentry trained to fight off infiltrators and terrorists, our body's immune system has T-Cells that guard this precious asset. The role of T cells in the immune system is twofold, says a Harvard report. One is attacking illness-causing cells like bacteria, viruses and cancer and the second is “remembering” past invaders — the body's way of ensuring that it can spot a threat and mount a rapid defence during subsequent encounters with the same pathogens.
It is these T-Cells that the HIV virus goes for as soon as it enters the body. Over a period of time, the infected person is unable to fight off even minor illnesses. One can have HIV without any symptoms. Getting tested and starting treatment early gives a potential patient the best chance of living a long life.
As stated earlier, the acronym HIV stands for human immunodeficiency virus. This invasive virus infects and destroys cells of one's immune system, making it hard to fight off other diseases. But it does not take the infected person's body to full-blown AIDS stage immediately. When HIV has severely weakened one's immune system, it can lead to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Because HIV works backward to insert its instructions into the affected person's DNA, it is called a retrovirus.
Without treatment, HIV infection advances in stages, getting worse over time as it tramples over the body's defence mechanism — the immune system — and eventually causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). The three stages of HIV infection are (a) acute HIV infection, (b) chronic HIV infection, and (c) acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). AIDS is the final and most serious stage by which time the patient has very low counts of certain white blood cells and a severely damaged immune system. At this stage, additional illnesses such as opportunistic infections like Tuberculosis, Hepatitis, infection-related cancers, etc. may creep in.
Once the HIV virus has entered a person's body, the patient may initially feel sick with flu-like symptoms. The virus can hide in the human body for a long time without causing noticeable symptoms while slowly destroying the T-cells. When the T-cells get very low or when the patient begins to get certain illnesses that people with healthy immune systems don’t get, HIV has progressed to AIDS.
According to the World AIDS Day official website, the red ribbon is the universal symbol of awareness and support for people living with HIV. First devised in 1991 by twelve artists who met to discuss a new project for Visual AIDS, a New York HIV-awareness arts organisation, the red ribbon has become one of the most recognised symbols of the decade. It is worn to signify awareness and support for people living with HIV — as a visual expression of compassion for people living with HIV. The red colour was chosen for its striking boldness, and for its symbolic associations with passion, the heart and love.
HIV is spread — among other processes — via unprotected sexual intercourse between an infected person and a non-infected person. It spreads through contact with genitals, such as during sex without a condom, says the Mayo Clinic website. Such a sexually transmitted infection is also called an STI. HIV can also spread through unsafe blood transfusion where the donor's blood is contaminated, or with other modes of contact with blood — such as when people share needles or syringes. An untreated HIV infected mother can also spread the virus to a child during pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates say that globally, 39.9 million (36.1–44.6 million) people were living with HIV at the end of 2023. As for the figure in India, as per the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), the number of People Living with HIV (PLHIV) are estimated at around 24 lakh. According to the United Nations, with human rights at the centre and with communities in the lead, the world can end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030. Over the years, substantial progress has been made in the HIV response while still protecting human rights, by recognising each individual's right to health and by strengthening health systems globally. The UN says that ending AIDS requires that we reach and engage everyone who is living with, at risk for or affected by HIV — especially including people who have been most excluded and marginalised.
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