Impacts Of HIV And AIDS

Since its identification approximately two decades ago, HIV has increasingly spread globally, surpassing expectations (1). The number of people living with HIV worldwide is estimated to be 36 million, with 20 million people having died from the disease, giving a total number of 56 million being infected (1). In 2000 alone, 5.3 million people were infected with HIV and there is potential for further spread. HIV infection rates vary all over the world with the highest rates in Sub-Saharan Africa (1). Responding to this epidemic has been a challenge as infection rates have increased worldwide despite tremendous public health efforts by nations (1). The identification of potential interventions to reduce the magnitude of the problem has

Of the 35 million people living with HIV in the world, 19 million do not know their HIV-positive status. Adolescent girls and young women account for one in four new HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa. Women are much more vulnerable to HIV, tuberculosis and hepatitis B and C than the general public. Which is supported by this excerpt from a recent AIDSTAR-One regional report “Women and girls often face discrimination in terms of access to education, employment and healthcare. In this region, men often dominate sexual relationships. As a result, women cannot always practice safer sex even when they know the risks involved. Gender-based violence has been identified as a key driver of HIV transmission in the region.” (Ellsberg, Betron 2010) Many children are affected by the disease in a number of ways: they live with sick parents and relatives in households drained of resources due to the epidemic, and those who have lost parents are less likely to go to school or continue their education. Studies in the regions of Southern Africa and South-East Asia have found HIV/AIDS to negatively impact both the demand for and supply of education. Orphaned children are either pulled out of school or not enrolled at all due to the financial constraints of

HIV has had a massive impact on children in South Africa as there is almost

HIV stands for human immunodeficiency virus (Avert). It is virus that attacks the immune system, our body’s defense against disease (Avert). Individuals who become infected with HIV will find it harder to fight infections (Avert). HIV is located in semen, blood, vaginal and anal fluids, and breast milk (HIV and Aids). The most common method to become infected is through anal or vaginal sex without a condom (HIV and Aids). Other forms of contraction include using infected needles/ syringes, from mother to child during pregnancy, or breastfeeding (HIV and Aids). If left untreated, AIDS can evolve, this is when a person’s immune system becomes too weak to fight infection and can no longer defend itself (What is AIDS). Despite there not being a cure, an early diagnosis and effective treatment can enable people to live a normal, healthy life (HIV and Aids). This paper will focus on the HIV epidemic. It will compare and contrast HIV in the United States and in Kenya. The paper will review the specific populations affected, testing and counseling centers, funding and economic impact, and prevention programs each country is executing.

On the other hand, HIV, which stands for human immunodeficiency virus, is most prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa, which has 62% of the world’s HIV cases. Because sub-Saharan Africa is home to 70% of the poorest people in the world, people lack the skills and the money they need to survive. Therefore, the only way they can get their basic needs is the risky behavior. For example, women have to engage in sexual transactions for commercial

The target groups that are most affected include orphan children, young women and girls, prison staff and inmates and men who have sex with men. HIV and AIDS in Lesotho extremely affect women. Violence based on gender is found to be one the most significant reasons as to why there is such an increase of HIV/AIDS among women in our country. We do know that our society is generally male-controlled, so often women may not refuse sex with their significant other. In cases where women choose to refuse sex in our country, it may result in our women being brutally beaten or threatened. Women in our country who choose not to refuse sex increases susceptibility to sexual violence and increase the risk for HIV/AIDS. The next affected population is the young people of our community. This target population suffers from a lack of knowledge concerning safer sex practices. It is also important to consider that the younger generations in our community are engaging in sex at earlier with lack awareness about safe sex. Additionally, the increase spread if HIV/AIDS forces children into orphanages and pushes children in our community to become caregivers of older generations. As a result, education for children in our population begins to suffer dramatically. Since education of the younger generation is taking an intense blow, it leads to an increase in poverty levels. Mother-to-child transmission is another risk factor that

The World Health Organization’s Global Health Observatory estimates that 78 million people have been infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) during the course of the epidemic, and that 39 million men, women, and children have died.1 Nearly 1 in 20 adults in sub-Saharan Africa are currently living with the infection. HIV represents one of the world’s most serious health problems.

The HIV and AIDS pandemic remains one the most serious development crises in the world (WHO, 2006). Women and children bear a disproportionate share of the burden, and in many settings continue to experience high rates of new HIV infections and of HIV-related illness and death. In 2005 alone, an estimated 540 000 children were newly infected with HIV, with about

African Americans of different age groups are greatly affected by HIV/AIDS in the South but studies show that there is an increasing rate among adolescent African American males and females. In 2009, young African Americans between the ages of 15 and 29 accounted for 39% of new HIV infections, although this group represents 21% of the US population (Barras et al., 2012, p. 4).

Sub-Saharan Africa has been singled out as having the most serious HIV epidemic in the world. There is need to curb the spread of HIV in the continent by leveraging the knowledge and skills necessary to understand the factors responsible for the spread of the disease. This paper attempts to investigate the risk factors involved in the spread of HIV and how to reduce HIV prevalence regardless of these risks factors. The paper then goes a step further and explains how HIV might may- and might may not - be contained. The paper concludes by proposing measures to help curb the spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa.

Africa is arguably the poorest continent in the world as shown by statistics from World Health Organization, United Nation Children’s Fund and the World Bank. Growing up in Africa, I have been a first- hand witness to abject poverty which I believe is interconnected to illiteracy, higher infant and maternal mortality rates, life expectancy and the continuous presence of diseases. Even though Southern Africa has made some strides addressing some of these issues, the country’s inability to combat one of the deadliest diseases in the world, HIV/AIDS, remains a prominent public health concern. “The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) targets the immune system and weakens people’s

Therefore, the question of interest in this paper is why are the rates of HIV-AIDS suddenly increasing in Uganda? According to the 2011 AIDS Indicator survey, the HIV-AIDS prevalence rates now stand at 7.3% from the previous 6.4%. The number of people living with HIV-AIDS and its related diseases is currently 1.6 million from 1.2 million. (Uganda HIV and AIDS Country Progress report, 2013).

To emphasize this hardships regarding women living in this geographic region, “women are [often] denied equal access to economic resources, housing, health care, legal protection, land, schooling, inheritance, and employment in the formal sector” (Farmer et al., 1996, p. 51). When analyzing cultures and their backgrounds, cultures may vary in what is acceptable in one culture may not be acceptable in another, depending on the culture itself. The belief system in marriages are said to be different between sub Saharan Africa and western societies. When a women marries often at a young age, her husband will take control of the relationship both physical and social, thus this patriarchal view highlights the difficulty for women living in this region to practice safe sex through the use of protection. According to the regional statistics published by UNAIDS, it was reported that in 2013, “there were 24.7 million people in sub Saharan Africa who were living with HIV/AIDS”. This statistic cannot be overlooked because of the 24.7 million people infected with this disease in this region, women actually accounted for “58% of the total number of people living with human immunodeficiency virus” (UNAIDS.org, 2014). Furthermore, of the 24.7 million individuals infected with HIV/AIDS the provision of

The prevalence of HIV is higher among women (30%) than men (19%) (Ministry of Health [Lesotho] & ICF International, 2014). For both men and women, HIV prevalence increases with age and then declines. HIV prevalence is highest for women at age group 35-39 (46%) and for men at age group 40-44 (44%). Taking employment into consideration, employed individuals in Lesotho have higher prevalence of HIV than unemployed for both men and women. The prevalence among employed men and women is 39% and 23%, respectively and among unemployed men and women is 21% and 9%, respectively.

In the year 2012, there were 139 and 520 cases of AIDS among the adolescents and the young adults respectively. Between the ages of 13 and 19,