Today is National Women & Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day so I thought I’d take a few minutes and share a few facts. Did you know that:
- Every 47 minutes a woman in the United States tests positive for HIV
- One in 139 women will be diagnosed with HIV in her lifetime
- In 2010, women and girls made up two-thirds of the people who got the disease by having heterosexual sex, with African-American women and girls continuing to be disproportionately affected
How can you help in at least slowing down the rates? Educate others. Tell them that:
- Abstinence from sex or being in a long-term mutually monogamous relationship with a partner who has been tested and she knows is uninfected is the best way to avoid transmission of the disease.
- Correct and consistent use of the male latex condom can reduce the risk of transmission, BUT no protective method is 100% effective and no condom use can guarantee absolute protection against any STD. The more sex partners a person has, the more she (or he) is at risk of getting HIV or other STDs.
- Condoms used with a lubricant are less likely to break, however, condoms with the spermicide nonoxynol-9 are not recommended for HIV/AIDS prevention.
- Many people have been infected with HIV through the shared use of needles or syringes used to inject drugs, steroids, vitamins or for tattooing and body piercing.
- Transmission of the HIV virus or any other STD can occur with a single act of intercourse.
- Get tested!
Resources:
Lisa G. Riley.com 
Excellent post Lisa! In 2013 there are still many people out there who are misinformed and uneducated about HIV/AIDS. Many still believe that this epidemic does not have an impact on their lives. The message you send in your post about awareness and getting tested is so crutial today because many people are infected and they don’t even know it so therefore the epidemic continues to spread. Some people still attach HIV/AIDS to the Gay communities only when statistics show us many new HIV cases are that of heterosexuals. The affect it is having on the black community and black women between the ages of 19-44 is just devastating. So i will piggy back on your message Lisa, by saying Get Educated! Get Informed! and Get Tested!
As usual, A.w., well said, and thank you. The disease is a scourge in too many communities, and it doesn’t have to be. Education about the issue is one of many simple steps that can bring down the numbers.