HIV Prevention

We are all aware of the importance of prevention practices. Having knowledge and following through predetermined behaviors can keep a person, and their loved ones, from experiencing costly medical complications. This is true for a variety of medical illnesses including the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

To increase our commitment to HIV prevention we must first dismantle several misconceptions. Perhaps, one of the most unfortunate, is that only certain populations are at risk of acquiring HIV. The thought that a virus would only infect others gives people a false sense of safety that decreases the likelihood of safe sexual practices.The truth is that HIV occurs in people of all ages, genders, ethnicity, socioeconomic backgrounds and sexual orientations.

To stop the dissemination of the virus it is important for everyone to knew 1) How HIV Spreads, 2) Understand the Risk of Different Sexual Activities, 3) Get Tested and Ask Partners About Their Results, and 4) Talk to Health Care Providers About all the Ways to Prevent Dissemination.

1. How HIV spreads? HIV is in blood, semen, pre-seminal fluid (pre-cum), vaginal fluid, rectal fluid, and breast milk. It spreads when the one of these fluids from a person with HIV enters the body of another person through:
   • Anal, oral, or vaginal sex
   • Small amounts of blood that spread during deep kissing or oral sex
   • Needles, syringes, or other injection equipment
   • Pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding
     • Keep in mind:
       • Use condoms correctly whenever you have sex
       • Never share needles, syringes, or other drug injection equipment
       • Do not breast feed if you have HIV
2. Risks involved with different sexual activities:
   • HIV is mostly transmitted through unprotected anal and vaginal sex. Anal sex carries the most risk. Particularly if an HIV positive person is the insertive  partner (top) and a the non-positive partner is the receptive partner (Bottom). Although there is still risk of transmission during oral sex, it is lower than for anal and vaginal sex.
   • Sexual behavior without risk include: Non-sexual massage, Casual or dry kissing, Phone sex, Cyber sex, Masturbation (without your partner’s bodily fluids), Frottage—also known as “dry humping” or body-to-body rubbing.
   • To decrease exposure to the virus:
     • Use condoms consistently and correctly
     • Reduce the number of people you have sex with
     • For people at high risk of contracting HIV, it is important to talk to their physician about pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). By taking a pill every day, their risk will be highly reduced.
       • HIV-negative people and in an ongoing sexual relationship with an HIV-positive partner
       • Individuals in an open relationship with individuals who have not been recently tested
       • Gay or bisexual man who has had anal sex without a condom or has been diagnosed with an sexually transmitted disease (STD) in the past 6 months
       • A heterosexual man or woman who does not regularly use condoms during sex with partners of unknown HIV status who at at very high risk of HIV (e.g. people who inject drugs or women who have bisexual male partners).
       • Talk to your doctor right away (within 3 days) about post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) if you are HIV negative, or don’t know your status, and think you have been recently exposed to HIV during sex.
3. Get Tested and Ask Partners About Their Results.
   • If you are sexually active, get tested at least once a year.
   • Talk to your partner about you HIV status, and ask them theirs. Having this information can help you plan how to reduce your risk.
     • Click here to go to the CDC’s website and learn risk reduction strategies by sexual activity.
   • If your partner is HIV-positive, encourage your partner to get and stay on HIV treatment. ART reduces the amount of HIV virus (viral load) in blood and body fluids. If taken consistently and correctly, ART can keep people with HIV healthy for many years, and greatly reduce their chance of transmitting HIV to sex partners. ART us not 100%, in addition to having your partner follow his medical regimen, proper condom use is also recommended.
4. Talk to Your Health Care Provider