HIV & AIDS
INFORMATION
DEFINITIONS
HIV stands for:
Human
Immunodeficiency
Virus
HIV is a virus that destroys the body’s ability to fight infections or
illnesses. HIV can lead to AIDS.
• People can be HIV-positive (have HIV infection), but they are not sick.
• HIV can stay in the body for many years before people get sick
with AIDS.
• People who are HIV-positive can look and feel perfectly healthy for
many years. You cannot tell if someone has HIV by looking at them.
It is still possible for them to pass on the virus to other people.
AIDS stands for:
Acquired
Immune
Deficiency
Syndrome
AIDS is the different signs, symptoms, infections and illnesses that
someone might get because their body is weak from HIV. These illnesses
include TB, diarrhoea and other common infections. Because HIV destroys
our body’s ability to protect itself, it cannot fight the illnesses and they
can eventually kill you.
SAFE SEX is:
any sexual activity where semen, vaginal fluid or
blood do NOT enter each other’s bodies, through
the vagina, anus or penis, e.g. masturbation or
penetrative sex using a condom.
UNSAFE SEX or UNPROTECTED SEX
means penetrative sex (penis in vagina or penis in
anus) where the semen, vaginal fluid or blood enters
the body through the vagina, anus or penis, e.g.
penetrative sex without using a condom.
page
68
HOW HIV SPREADS
UNSAFE PENETRATIVE VAGINAL OR ANAL SEX
is the MOST COMMON WAY HIV SPREADS
If you have unsafe sex with an infected person, HIV can enter your
bloodstream through the vagina, penis or anus.
You can also get HIV when HIV-positive blood enters the bloodstream of
another person through:
• SHARING NEEDLES
Sharing needles is a very risky activity and has caused many cases of
HIV infection, mainly through injecting drugs such as heroine.
• TATTOOING OR SKIN PIERCING
HIV can be passed on from one person to another through using the
same needles or knives for tattooing, circumcision and body piercing.
• MEDICAL AND DENTAL EQUIPMENT
Any used needle that has not been properly sterilised or boiled can
carry the virus from an infected person to the next user of the needle.
• MEDICAL TREATMENT
In places where blood is not tested, it is possible to get HIV from
HIV-infected blood or blood products used for blood transfusions or in
other medical treatment.
• PASSING FROM PARENT TO CHILD
An HIV-positive mother can pass the virus to her child during
pregnancy, during labour, or after delivery through breast milk.
The risk is increased if the mother has recently been infected or is
already sick with AIDS, because the amount of virus in the blood
is high. Passing HIV on to the baby can be prevented though, with
medical help. HIV counselling and testing and support from health
professionals can prevent HIV passing from parent to child.
page
69
HOW HIV DOES
NOT
SPREAD
HIV CANNOT BE PASSED FROM PERSON TO PERSON BY:
• Wearing someone else’s clothes or using things belonging to them
that they have touched (e.g. towels, bedding, soap, hairbrush)
• Living with or sleeping in the same room as a person who is HIVpositive
• Hugging or playing with a baby or child who is HIV-positive
• Sharing food, cups and plates with a person who is HIV-positive
• Looking after the children of adults who are HIV-positive
• Blood transfusion, if blood is tested
• Kissing an HIV-positive person
• Swimming in a swimming pool, river or water hole with an HIVpositive person or people
• A person who is HIV-positive coughing or sneezing on you
• Through mosquitoes or other biting insects
• Caring for someone who has HIV or developed AIDS illnesses, when
following basic good hygiene.
HOW TO USE A MALE CONDOM
Either partner can put the condom on the man. Remember to check the
date on the packet. If the date has passed you should not use it, as it
may break.
page
70
1.
Open the packet and
take out the condom.
4.
Roll the condom all the
way down so it covers
the whole penis.
2.
Hold the tip of the
condom between your
fingers to push out
any air.
5.
After ejaculation,
remove the condom
before the penis
becomes soft. Make sure
the semen stays inside
the condom.
3.
Unroll the condom
from the tip downwards
over the hard penis.
6.
Tie a knot to seal the
condom and throw it
away in a dustbin or
bush toilet. Do not put
it down flush a toilet.
HOW TO USE A FEMALE CONDOM
Check the expiry date on the packet (under the flap at the back).
Open the packet carefully.
Push the condom
into the vagina as far
as it will go.
The inner ring will go
inside your body, the outer
ring stays outside. Put the
female condom into the
vagina with your fingers.
Use a finger to push
up the inner ring
until you feel the
cervix. Push it up
- don’t twist it.
To do this:
Hold the condom at the
closed end and squeeze
the ring inside the
condom so it becomes
long and narrow.
With the other hand,
separate the outer lips
of the vagina.
Make sure that the
open end of the
condom always stays
outside the vaginal
opening.
Guide the penis
inside the condom.
To take the condom out, squeeze and twist the outer ring, then pull out
the condom. Put it in the rubbish bin — do not use it again.
Female condoms are gradually becoming more available in the region
and give another option for people (especially women) to protect
themselves.
NEVER RE-USE CONDOMS!
Store condoms in a cool dry place out of direct sunlight.
LUBRICANTS (TO MAKE WET)
You CAN use water based lubricants,
which reduce the chances of a
condom tearing:
✓ saliva
✓ egg white
✓ water
lubricants
✓ bought
such as KY Jelly
that comes with the
✓ lubricant
condom packet
Do NOT use oil-based lubricants as
they can cause condoms to break
down. DO NOT USE the following:
✘ Butter or margarine
✘ Fish oil
✘ Alcohol
Coconut oil, baby oil or
✘ massage
oil
✘ Petroleum jelly (Vaseline)
page
71
HIV TESTING
HOW DO YOU FIND OUT IF YOU HAVE OR DON’T HAVE HIV?
The only way to find out if you do or do not have HIV is to have a blood
test from a doctor or nurse at a clinic or hospital. The test is called an ‘HIV
antibody test ’.
HOW DOES THE TEST WORK?
When germs like a virus enter our body, our immune system reacts by
making ‘soldiers’ (antibodies) that help fight germs. When HIV enters the
human body special antibodies are made, but over time these are killed by
HIV. The HIV test looks for these antibodies.
It takes most people about three months to develop enough antibodies
that can be seen in an ‘HIV antibody test’. The three-month period is
called the ‘window period’. If the test is positive, another test will be done
to confirm the result.
The information you provide and the test result are private and
confidential - only you and the health workers involved need to know the
result. Counselling, or a discussion about the test and what it means for
you, should also be part of the test.
WHERE CAN I GO FOR TESTING?
You can get information on HIV testing from some local health clinics,
hospitals or private doctors. A health worker, like a doctor, nurse or
midwife, may recommend HIV testing to you, but the final decision to test
for HIV should always be voluntary (it’s your decision).
WHY BE TESTED?
To encourage you to stay negative, by taking responsibility and having
safe sex in future.
If you are positive, with a health worker you can keep a close eye on your
health and get treatment when you need it.