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Healthy Living November Issue
AIDS AND HIV:The Untold Story
Seriousness of AIDS in the U.S.
The number of people in the U.S. inflicted with this dreaded disease is listed
in Figure 1: Magnitude of the AIDS Problem in the U.S..2
Only 39 percent of those with AIDS have survived at this writing.3 Most of the
deaths are in an age group that is often considered the prime of life.4 AIDS
deaths have outpaced even the classic killers of the young like accidents and
homicides.5 It is now the eighth leading cause of death across all age groups
in the United States.6 Even though it has not reached the yearly death toll of
diseases like heart disease, cancer, or stroke, AIDS is still a major killer in
America.
Along with all the human suffering caused by AIDS, the disease has taken a heavy
financial toll on our nation. Medical costs are shown in Figure 2: Medical Cost
of HIV in the U.S..7,8
Worldwide, HIV has caused many difficulties as well.: HIV Worldwide.9, 10, 11
Over 90 percent of those with HIV worldwide live in developing countries.
In five African countries, more than 10 percent of the population is infected.
The Growing Role of Heterosexual Transmission
Before 1988, heterosexual transmission accounted for only three percent of all
AIDS cases.27 Since 1993, however, the figure has more than tripled. Currently,
11 percent of AIDS cases contracted HIV by heterosexual relations.28 About 13,000
new AIDS cases each year in the U.S. are contracted from heterosexual relations.
Most of these cases are women who have been infected by men. Approximately 40
percent of all AIDS cases among women have been associated with heterosexual
intimacy.29 The AIDS virus transmits much more easily from an HIV-infected
man to a woman than it does from a woman to a man.30
Heterosexual relations account for only six percent of AIDS cases among men.
A comparison of the number of new AIDS cases each year in the U.S. caused by
homosexual and heterosexual contact in men is shown in Figure 6: New AIDS Cases
Occuring Among Homo- and Hetero- Sexual Men.31, 32
Worldwide, when compared with all other means of transmission in both men
and women, homosexual contact is the source of a relatively smaller proportion
of cases. In statistics published in late 1995, homosexual transmission explained
only 45 percent of total worldwide AIDS cases, down from 64 percent earlier.33,
34 However, in the U.S., homosexual transmission remains the major cause of
AIDS infection.
How HIV is NOT Spread
It is also essential to recognize how HIV does not appear to spread. There are
all kinds of theoretical concerns about routes of transmission over which we have
no control. However, worries about these unavoidable contacts are
counterproductive when we consider the ways that we know HIV is transmitted.
This is not just an academic point. If you focus on all the questions that are
not completely answered-and over which you have no control-you are likely
to neglect to take the precautions that can virtually ensure that you will not
become HIV-infected.
Close personal contact (without the type of exposures already mentioned) has not
been shown to transmit the disease. Contact with an HIV-infected person in
the household, the work place, the school, the public restroom, or even the
hospital is of no consequence.35 The reason for this is that the AIDS virus
cannot survive for very long in the normal environment outside of a living creature.
The virus is also easily destroyed by common disinfectants. Furthermore, there
appears to be no risk of transmission from insects such as mosquitoes.36 If we
are going to dramatically decrease the rate of HIV infection in the world, we
need to focus on the known risk factors.
Preventing HIV Infection
It is much better not to contract HIV than to attempt to boost the immune system
once it is diagnosed. What is the most effective way of ensuring that you never
become infected with the AIDS virus?
Note that 97 percent of AIDS patients would not have the disease if it were not
for the personal choices that they made regarding sexual activity or drug use.
Despite what many seem to want us to think, the answer to the AIDS epidemic has
not been nor is it condoms. Condoms are not a reliable barrier against HIV
infection. Since condoms sometimes allow pregnancies to occur, they can much
more easily pass the AIDS virus as well as other sexually transmitted diseases.
The AIDS virus is much smaller than a sperm. So what is the best preventive
approach?
Albert Whiting, M. D., made a bold statement that blends practicality and reality
in a way that few are willing to echo. God’s Solution to the AIDS Problem.61
Monogamous marriage with a lifetime commitment would certainly help us take a quantum
leap toward the solution of the AIDS problem. Who is this physician who expresses
such an unpopular assessment? Dr. Whiting is the Health Director for the entire
Seventh-day Adventist Church. In that position, he has a unique perspective
on world health issues. This is because Seventh-day Adventists are doing
organized medical work in nearly 500 church-owned hospitals and clinics
throughout the world.62 From his involvement with the worldwide work of this global
church, Dr. Whiting has a unique vantage point. AIDS is a global problem, and is
much more prevalent in many other countries than in the U.S.
Is it too much to restrict sexual activity to monogamous lifelong marriages
between two members of opposite sex? I believe Whiting’s words hold the key
to preventing HIV infection. The doctor’s statement, however, is not novel.
It is a clear expression of the Bible’s timeless ideals. Beyond that, from a
public health standpoint, Dr. Whiting’s words make sense. Because of the
importance of this perspective on prevention and its relationship to moral
standards, it is warranted to examine carefully the biblical principles that have
a bearing on HIV transmission. The principles and the spiritual power to implement
them are clearly described in the Scriptures. However, before looking at these
timeless biblical insights, we need to expand our focus. The inspired counsel that
we will examine has a bearing not only in dealing with AIDS but also on a host of
other sexually transmitted illnesses that are taking a tremendous toll.
Worse Than AIDS?
What could be worse than getting AIDS? This Scriptural warning presents the thought
that the eternal consequences of the sexual act that caused AIDS is worse than the
earthly suffering of having AIDS. Consider this: wouldn’t it be better to
suffer and die with AIDS (even at a young age) and have eternal life in the Kingdom
of God than to "live prosperously" for 75 or 80 years but not have the
privilege of enjoying God’s eternal Kingdom? This is the essence of the meaning
of the Scriptural passage. The text spells it out clearly: those who engage in
fornication, adultery, and homosexual acts will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
Continuing in sexual practices that put us at high risk for AIDS has worse consequences
than contracting physical diseases.
Conclusion
Whether you are seeking to avoid HIV infection or deal with an already established
infection, I can point you to no more powerful answers than those found in the Bible.
In fact, when we think of the sobering realities of AIDS, none of us has any time to
waste. Those who are not HIV positive could become infected as the result of just
one incident of breaking God’s commandments. Those with the infection may
already be moving down the slippery slope of AIDS dementia.
I am convinced that God never wanted the disease of AIDS to ravage humanity.
He pointed out a way of living that would have prevented this scourge from ever
gaining a foothold. Yet, it is not too late to rediscover the power of God’s
commandments and God’s promises. We, as individuals, as a nation, and as a
world community can beat the AIDS epidemic. We can beat it whether or not a vaccine
or "magic cure drug" is ever developed. I believe we can stop HIV
transmission dead in its tracks by returning to the Bible, the Bible’s God,
and His inspired rules for living. Not only will HIV transmission be dramatically
curtailed, but 40,000 lives will be saved each year in our nation, not to mention
the diminishing of untold suffering and financial loss from sexually transmitted
diseases.94
Now is indeed the time to take advantage of God’s gracious offer of
forgiveness. Now is the time to rely on Him for the power to live a life that
is in harmony with His commandments. Such a life will enhance our immune systems,
keeps us from high-risk activities, and most importantly, prepare us for an
eternity of joy with Him.
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- 11th International Conference on AIDS in Vancouver British Columbia as reported by Dr. Judith Wasserheit, director of the division of sexually transmitted disease, prevention at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. July, 1996.
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- McGinnis JM, Foege WH. Actual Causes of Death in the United States. JAMA 1993 Nov 10;270(18):2207-2212.
- Extrapolated from. McGinnis JM, Foege WH. Actual Causes of Death in the United States. JAMA 1993 Nov 10;270(18):2207-2212. combined with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC). HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report. 1995 Dec;7(2):19. From 1990 to 1994 the estimated AIDS deaths due to sexual behavior went from 21,000 to 31,000, thus the 1994 updated figure above.
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- 1 Corinthians. 15:52. The Holy Bible. Authorized King James version.
- Romans 12:2. The Holy Bible. Authorized King James version.
- Rubin RH. Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, 1993. In: Scientific American Medicine (CD-ROM), 1995.
- Extrapolated from. McGinnis JM, Foege WH. Actual causes of death in the United States. JAMA 1993 Nov 10;270(18):2207-2212. combined with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC). HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report. 1995 Dec;7(2):19. From 1990 to 1994 the estimated AIDS deaths due to sexual behavior went from 21,000 to 31,000, thus the 1994 updated figure above.
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