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HIV/AIDS: A Modern Misunderstanding
By: A. DeAngelis
HIV/AIDS: A Modern Misunderstanding
The arrival of the AIDS epidemic in the 20th Century, brought with it fear, superstition and prejudice. This disease is not the first one where society has imposed social stigmas, political agendas and outright pandemonium. Misunderstandings of other diseases like the bubonic plague, small pox and the Spanish flu also have caused hysteria among populations around the world, but the main difference between these epidemics and that of AIDS/HIV is that AIDS is a modern epidemic staged in a new world of influential media outlets, politics and new social stigmas (Stahnke 2) . Therefore, it is important for people to take a holistic approach when examining diseases like HIV/AIDS instead of reaching out to the modern media to inform them.
What is AIDS/HIV?
In order to combat the societal misunderstandings of AIDS/HIV, one must understand the disease itself. When referring to AIDS/HIV, one is actually talking about two different parts of the same disease. AIDS (Auto Immune Deficiency Syndrome) is the main disease caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) (CDC 4). AIDS attacks the immune system of people causing their immune systems to revolt against their bodies killing off their "good" cells. With this self-annihilation comes the opportunity for other infectious diseases to take root in the victim. Some of these other infections include but are not limited to: the flu, tuberculosis, herpes, staph infections, etc...Once the hosts immunological functions cease to exist they die. There is no known cure for AIDS but there are preventative medicines, known as anti-retroviral drugs, which can slow down the disease (Sadoh 42).
Today, the AIDS pandemic affects about 50 million people worldwide. Sexual activity is one of the main ways that AIDS is transmitted. AIDS is also acquired through the transmission of blood or semen of an infected person into contact with the blood of an uninfected person. Sex involving penetration of the penis into either the vagina of a woman or the rectum of either a woman or a man has a very high risk of transmitting the disease. According to research, It is felt to be about three times more likely for an infected male to transmit AIDS to an uninfected woman than it is likely for an infected woman to transmit the disease to an uninfected male (Murphy 160). This is probably due to the larger area of mucosal tissue in a woman's vagina, and to the likelihood of tearing to occur in that tissue during sex. But the bottom line is that AIDS can be transmitted in either direction in the case of heterosexual sex. Geneticists have discovered that the disease originated in Western Africa around the dawn of the 20th century and has continued to grow and spread consistently. AIDS/HIV is acquired in several different ways. The most common of these ways is through sexual contact with someone who is infected but the other ways include blood to blood transmission and prenatal transmission from mother to child. The first reported case of the disease was in California in 1981, where five homosexual men were exhibiting symptoms similar to immune diseases (Murphy 159). After the initial outbreak of the disease social stigmas and misconceptions began to form ranging from how to contract the disease to how the disease came about.
Misconceptions and Stigmas
Looking back at the start of the AIDS/HIV, one of the first misconceptions formed was how the disease was contracted. Scientists knew that the disease was transmitted sexually and blood to blood but the social media went on a hay day creating rumors about how the disease could be contracted through having any contact with an infected individual (i.e. holding hands, kissing someone or even hugging) (Murphy 154). Eventually these misconceptions died out but there are other fictitious ideas about the disease that have caused a greater impact on society; one of these is about the homosexual community. Being that homosexual men were the first to exhibit recorded cases of the disease, people started to shun the homosexuals, specifically men. Considering that gay rights were starting to become popular, along with the gay population growing in general, the social media outlets had biases about homosexuals and the AIDS/HIV pandemic didn't help. At first scientists named the disease GRID (Gay Related Immune Disease) reinforcing already powerful negative ideas about the homosexual population (Murphy 159). In some places gay people were even shunned from public places causing public outrage in the gay community. One of the most powerful stories related to AIDS is the story of Ryan White who actually got kicked out of school for having the disease (DiClemente 190). The severe social isolation of those with AIDS has had great consequences for all of the people who have acquired the disease.
Effect on Politics and the Economy
After knowledge of the disease settled into people's minds and the social stigmas were in place, the political world had to address the issues that arose. One of these issues was with contraceptives. While contraceptives were used among the general population, many people in the gay community failed to utilize them when engaging in sexual practices (Jennings 178). Public advertisements for the use of contraceptives increased due to the imminent need for them. Overall, the AIDS pandemic led to a re-invention of the medical practices dealing with sexuality. Since the disease can be spread from not only sexual contact but also blood transmission, medical practices need to implement stricter screenings of patients and new guidelines concerning the use of hypodermic needles. Eventually the government had reined in these issues and there was a better knowledge base as to how to deal with infected patients.
One way that the U.S. economy has been affected by the introduction of the AIDS/HIV virus is by providing financial aid to the research and prevention of the disease at home and in other countries. According to the WHO (World Health Organization) around $58 million are used each year to fund the research for a cure (WHO 3). Some of this money also goes into researching new antiviral medications to help slow the rate of succession. An even bigger financial burden on the U.S. economy is the foreign aid (mainly to Africa) to help combat the spread of HIV/AIDS. The WHO also states that there is about $300 million put into the prevention of transmission of the disease in countries like South Africa, Botswana, Nigeria and Kenya (WHO 4).
Cross-Cultural Examination
While the AIDS pandemic gained worldwide fame in the United States, other countries have dealt with the social and cultural pressures of the HIV/AIDS virus, specifically Africa (Herdt 180). As stated previously, AIDS was found to have originated in Africa and they currently have the highest incidence of the virus. Just like the United States, there have been social stigmas placed on the virus yet they seem to follow different cultural lines (Herdt 182).
Many of the countries in Africa are considered third world countries and are in need of economic and foreign aid. This consistent invasion of other countries into Sub-Saharan Africa has caused the people and culture to doubt the medical aid provided to them (Sadoh 42). This ideology has caused mistrust in foreign aid and makes it very difficult to gain control of the AIDS pandemic. Being that many of the people have suspicions over foreign medical aid and are impoverished, it is an important part of African culture to procreate so that families can have more working hands.
Clearly one of the main issues in Africa regarding AIDS prevention is the lack of resources and the poverty of its people. For African countries that have medical facilities able to maintain advanced medical techniques, patents on antiretroviral drugs have made it difficult to get low cost alternatives (Stahnke 2). Therefore, many people are unable to afford the drugs necessary to fight and prevent the spread of the disease. Often times the incidence rates of infection are increased by this lack of resources and infrastructure. Scientists claim that even though drugs are being provided, the lack of caution used when injecting patients with drugs actually furthers the transmission of the disease.
AIDS Today
Over the last few decades major advancements have been made in the quest to quell AIDS and to destroy the social stigmas/misunderstanding surrounding the disease (Stahnke 3). Unfortunately, while the disease is under control in the United States, it still runs rampant in many of the third world countries. As indicated by the graph below, the risk of HIV/AIDS has increased from 2001-2008 mainly among homosexual men
The reasoning behind this increase in risk among men has to do with younger generations and their misconceptions about AIDS. In today's societies most young men are under the belief that if they contract the disease then all they need to do is take anti-retroviral drugs once a day and they will be fine. Education on the prevention of AIDS is out there for people but the main age group that needs the most attention on the subject is children in their teens (DiClemente 1). According to a study done by Anahita Tavoosi, over fifty percent of Iranian high school students believed that you could contract AIDS by sitting on the same toilet as someone infected with the virus. This number is astounding because in today's society there is plenty of opportunity for people to inform our children of the truth about AIDS. Overall, one can see that while the misconceptions about AIDS in the past have died out, there are always new and evolving feelings and ideas towards the AIDS/HIV virus.
Is There a Way to Prevent Misconceptions?
From the data and discussions, it is evident that AIDS/HIV causes different cultures and people to feel somewhat different towards the disease. In the U.S. the common misconceptions are fueled by media, while in Africa the common misconceptions are fueled by cultural differences between foreigners. What can be done to combat all misconceptions across all cultures? My thought was that in order to meet the needs of every culture and fight these misconceptions is to gain the public's trust and to tell the truth. It would be simple in the United States because all that needs to be done is for the social media to channel true facts instead of fallacies. With more education for students about the disease, children can grow up with the proper perception of the disease. In Africa, it is really important for foreigners to gain the trust of the populous by getting leaders in the community to help spread knowledge of the disease. By doing this the public would more likely believe a commoner as to a foreigner. All in all, I believe that these misconceptions can be fixed as long as people try their best to relay knowledge about HIV/AIDS.
Conclusions
The AIDS/HIV pandemic has clearly had a grave impact on societies around the world being a major player in the shaping of cultures, politics and economies. The history of the HIV/AIDS disease is one riddled with social stigmas and misconceptions. Like any major disease or outbreak there will always be people who misconstrue the truths about historical events, leaving us to wonder if it is at all possible to really understand the true stories. When faced with new and mysterious things in culture, every person is going to hold their own opinions on what something is. The basic conclusion is that societies will always have misconceptions about the HIV/AIDS virus because like the virus, people's views and cultural ideas are evolving. The best thing to do is to really understand and educate yourself holistically as to what the virus is and can do!
