AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) is a medical condition. People develop AIDS because HIV has damaged their natural defenses against disease. Someone can become infected with HIV through contact with the bodily fluids of someone who already has HIV.
As recently as the 1970s, no one was aware of this deadly illness. Since then the global AIDS epidemic has become one of the greatest threats to human health and development. By 2007 around 33 million people are living with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Each year around 2.7 million more people become infected with HIV and 2 million die of AIDS.1
There is still no cure for AIDS, but treatment for people with HIV has improved greatly.
A recent article titled, “Common ingredient offers AIDS protection” brings attention to the varied approaches to combating the spread of AIDS.
Complicating matters, in the public, are the many myths and outright lies about AIDS, what it is, the way it spreads and possible cures.
- Find an article or web site that discusses a different scientific approach to the battle against AIDS.
- Find an article or web site that discusses the history of the spread of the disease or the medical work done thus far.
- Find an article or web site that explores one of the misconceptions about AIDS.
To complete your extra credit you will need to:
- Read the article “Common ingredient offers AIDS protection” and write 1-2 sentences about how you feel this may offer help in defeating AIDS.
- Link to the source that you have found from one of the three categories above.
- Summarize the material in a paragraph, minimum of 3 sentences.
- Discuss what you feel scientists should take as a next step or ways to combat the false information you have found.
This Blog project will be due by midnight 3/13.
Reminder: If you have difficulty posting send me an email with your completed project and the message you got when you tried to post.
The information in that article would offer help in defeating AIDS because many people don't know that there is any way to help prevent getting AIDS. I think if people knew that there were simple things like that, that would give them even a little advantage they would do it.
ReplyDeleteWomen and HIV/AIDS
This link provides many myths about the spreading of HIV/AIDS and also explains why they are not true. Some of these include, women can not give men HIV, HIV is the same as AIDS and HIV can be cured. The article is based mostly on women, but provides valuable information about this virus and disease.
I think to combat all the false information thats out there about HIV and AIDS scientists should just keep posting information about it online and talk to people about it when they go in for doctor's visits. If people want to know about it, they will ask and research and I think slowly but surely the information will get around.
CMad Green
This information may help to defeat AIDS by providing a way to prevent it, which is the first step. It also provides a way for a male or female not to have to lie to their partner about having AIDS, so they can still have a sexual relationship and both feel comfortable knowing that they are protected.
ReplyDeleteMyths about AIDS
This link leads to myths about AIDS and the HIV virus. One of the ones I thought was most interesting is that if you are tested for HIV and the test comes back negative, it does not necessarily mean that you do not have HIV, and that you will not get AIDS. In all actuality, there is a window period of three to six months when the virus does not show up on a scan.
In order to combat this and all false information about HIV and AIDS, I think that the the doctors who do the tests should let their patients know, and post the information on posters in their offices. Just like with other things, bilboards wouldnt hurt. It would help if the newspapers and the internet broadcast the truth more, like CMad said. Sometimes, the truth is harder to find then the false information, but i think that someone should change that by posting the truth everywhere, expecially where the false information is found.
VM Green
Wow, the article about glycerol monolaurate and HIV/AIDS was very interesting. This almost seems to good to be true, especially, because it is so darn cheap. I kind of feel bad for the monkeys though, too bad for them.
ReplyDeleteThere is not much that we can do about all that false information out there. Scientists have already posted the correct info on the internet and there are plenty of books and such that tell about the myths and how to prevent AIDS. So, I personally don’t know what to do. Some people just don’t want to listen and will only believe in what they want to. You can’t force people to reason. So, for now I think that scientists should just keep posting information about it online and do what they are already doing.
The article below that I have chosen is about the origin of AIDS and HIV. I found it interesting that they think that the disease originally came from a different species completely. I also found it amusing that some people think that the disease is man made and that it was made for a biological war-fare program. People are CRAZY.
The Origin of AIDS and HIV
CMMei GREEN
I think if there was a cure for AIDS and it
ReplyDeletewas cheap, and convienent then people would
use it. Too many people are infected by AIDS
and it just keeps spreading killing thousands
of people each year. Hopefully they can get
this cure to work and make is avalible to
people soon.
I was very intrested when I saw this atricle.
I couldn't believe someone had their AIDS cured
by having a bone marrow transplant for
leukemia. Although they said it's rare and
hard to find people with the right genes from
each parent I think it's still amazing that he
walked out of surgery AIDS free. I also however think if scientists can figure out an easier way like rubbing a jelly on your affected area would
be alot safer. They were saying how it'd "inspire
researchers to pursure gene therapy. I personally
think that'd be worse then having it on shelves
and avalible at any time. I personally think
scientists should further there studies
and keep posting information until we can find
the best way to cure AIDS.
Fox News.
I forgot to post my name...
ReplyDeletekg-red
In my opinion this new research is bringing hope to a better future. If we can help to prevent diseases such as aids, hopefully this can lead to the prevention of other illnesses such as cancer. Scientists have been and should keep working hard toward these advances.
ReplyDeletecommonmisconceptions
This link lists just some of the common misconceptions people have about the aids virus.The main being how you can get aids. For example you can not get aids by touching or kissing or shakinh hands with someone who has aids. the way you can get aids from another person is by sexual contact.I belive that scientist are on a pretty good path to discovering a prevention to aids and should keep working hard.
cb-green
This new gel helps because it is a cheap and easy to protect against HIV and you don’t have to worry getting pregnant. Many people become infected through sexual contact, but using a condom is the only way to be safe, which keeps you from getting pregnant. By using this gel, people can still try to get pregnant and not worry about HIV.
ReplyDeleteMyths and Misconceptions
This web site tells about 6 different misconception about AIDS/HIV. Each of the misconception comes with its own answer. 2 of them are that “people with HIV/AIDS look sickly” and “AIDS is a ‘gay’ disease.” These are incorrect because you can not tell if someone has HIV by their looks and anyone can get AIDS if they engage in unsafe sex or share needles.
The next step that scientists should take is that they should work on find a cure for HIV this way no more people will die from the disease and those with it would be cured.
Cw green
1.) This discovery is really amazing. I mean, if GML can become a gel or something to help prevent AIDS, it could change the world in a huge way. Not many people would be getting AIDS so less people would be dying and there wouldn't be as many people in the hospitals.
ReplyDelete2.) article.
3.) This article tells about how there are tons of misconceptions on AIDS. Most of them are myths such as you can get it by being around someone who has it, you can get it by breathing the same air as someone that has it, if you have AIDS you're definitely going to die, and that you can get it from mosquitoes. In our time, there are medicines that can help keep you live your life up to 30% longer. People spread all kinds of myths to get you to stay away from people with AIDS but most of the time, they're lying.
4.) I think that scientists could prove that these are myths by making it more aware and telling people more about AIDS. Also, they could try to keep working on ways to either cure or help prevent AIDS.
*let me know if this article isn't okay*
AW Yellow
Although this article was mainly about women and how the AIDS virus affects them, it was very insightful regarding the potential treatment in the spread of the disease. The research with the monkeys indicated a potential link to help the immune system fight off the opportunity for the AIDS virus to take hold. As stated in the article, even if the gel was only 60% effective, 2.5 million HIV cases could be prevented over three years which is a significant number in the battle to fight the AIDS virus.
ReplyDeleteChinese Herb Theory
I found this article to be very informative. The Chinese herbal remedy Syzigium Claviflorum has been used in Taiwan to treat other medical problems. Now scientists have created a derivative to help fight the AIDS virus. The new drug is called Bevirimat. Bevirimat can interrupt the cycle the HIV virus uses to replicate itself. I think it is amazing that an herbal remedy that has been around for years can find a new purpose in the fight against AIDS. Although it is not currently FDA approved, it is undergoing clinical trials. Perhaps this herbal remedy can be used in combination with other drugs to slow the progress or eliminate completely the ability of the virus to spread in human cells.
AT Yellow
This is a brief summary of the article "Common ingredient offers AIDS protection":Medication to treat HIV to prevent AIDS is very expensive. Just recently, a cheap ingredient that is used in ice cream and cosmetics was found to may be protect women against the virus. Tests were done on monkeys by applying the gel to their vaginas and infecting them with SIV, which is the monkey version of HIV. Four out of five monkeys were never infected.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite article is found on WebMD - The Top 10 Myths and Misconceptions about HIV and AIDS. Here is the link
http://www.webmd.com/hiv-aids/top-10-myths-misconceptions-about-hiv-aids
AIDS and HIV are around for about 30 years now, but many people still hold on to wrong ideas how HIV and AIDS can be spread: Here are just a few of them:
I can get HIV by being around people who are HIV positive. That is WRONG. You can only get it by coming into contact with infected blood, semen, vaginal fluid or mother's milk. Another common one is: I can get HIV from mosquitoes. That is also wrong. Mosquitoes don't inject blood when they bit, but their saliva. Probably one of the most important wrong idea is that one could tell if a partner is HIV positive. That is absolutely not true because it can take years for any symptoms to show up. The only sure way to know is to get tested. Otherwise, protection is always necessary.
Schools and doctors should have written information available for students and patients. More TV programs should be scheduled to talk about the continued threat of AIDS in more detail. People have almost forgotten about AIDS because the news has so many other tragedies to report. Parents and teachers have to work together to make students aware of the threat of age to their health from a very young age.
RED JW
The information said in the article would help defeat AIDS because it’s a non-expensive way to prevent this disease. Many people are infected with AIDS and if it is cheap than it is more likely more people will use it. Therefore more lives would be saved.
ReplyDeleteMyths and Misconceptions
The link shown above talks about the myths and misconceptions about AIDS and HIV. The myths and misconceptions that the article talks about are about how certain behaviors are developed when someone is around a person who has the disease. For example some people thought that you could get HIV/AIDS from breathing the same air as someone who is positive for the disease. This statement is obviously not true. Scientists should continue their studies and regularly update people on their new discoveries so that the topic can be well known.
LA yellow
I think that it will effect many peoples lives because prevention of AIDS is a major advancement that we have not found. If there was a prevention for AIDs it would save a lot of lives and protect many people.
ReplyDeleteclick here.
The article tells about how scientists in some states are finding new vaccines to help cure AIDS. They are not sure if it will be helpful because there may be serious side effects. They still have trouble creating this because there is a lack of knowledge on AIDS and not any effective animal models.
I think scientists should form medicines to decrease your chances of getting AIDS and should make people more aware of the dangers of it. There should also be available tests so that people can be checked often for AIDS.
JE Red