In Depth

HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) is a virus that multiplies in the human body, eventually causing AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) in individuals who are not provided effective treatment. AIDS weakens the immune system, making people more likely to die from infections and other causes.

Hunger and HIV/AIDS are inextricably intertwined. Malnutrition compromises the immune system, leaving HIV-positive individuals vulnerable to a more rapid progression of the virus and more susceptible to opportunistic infections. Loss of appetite, intestinal malabsorption, weight loss and malnutrition are common effects of HIV progression. Due to several of these issues, people who are both HIV-positive and undernourished are less able to benefit from life-sustaining antiretroviral drugs, medicines that are already difficult for people living in poverty to access.

HIV/AIDS is equally as prevalent in women as men, and young people (15-24 years old) account for almost half of all new HIV infections worldwide. With 95 percent of HIV/AIDS cases occurring in developing countries, the virus disproportionately affects people who live on less than $1 per day. Of the 33 million cases of HIV, two-thirds of the cases are in Sub-Saharan Africa alone.

HIV/AIDS leaves people more vulnerable to poverty. Families with household members infected with HIV experience increased medical costs, decreased abilities to maintain regular employment and consistent income streams, and have fewer resources for education and family care. In families already living in extreme poverty, these increased costs and loss of income can be devastating. Agricultural communities are particularly hard hit by HIV/AIDS. As a result, food production has fallen drastically in many countries with high HIV/AIDS rates.

Through the Millennium Development Goals, the international community pledged to halt and begin reversing the spread of HIV/AIDS by 2015. There are promising international initiatives to increase the amount of funding to combat HIV/AIDS, such as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, but many donor countries have yet to keep their promises to provide funding for the Global Fund, including the U.S.

Discrimination and stigma based on HIV status complicate an individual's ability to deal with issues of poverty caused by HIV/AIDS. AIDS orphans are highly susceptible to the brunt of stigma and discrimination. In order to improve treatment and awareness about the epidemic, it is vital to overcome the silence and shame associated with HIV infection.

By getting the word out about the facts and myths regarding the pandemic, HIV/AIDS education programs can be highly effective in curtailing the spread of the disease and preventing stigma and discrimination.

Now's your chance to join the fight against the global AIDS pandemic. Organize a global AIDS awareness event, utilizing some of the ideas from the Global Citizen Corps such as running an awareness campaign and mobilizing your peers to take political action.