PartnersGF - 2005-02-03
Re: Joint Media Release WHO/UNAIDS/Global Fund/US Government (4)
I am always amazed at the figures of people receiving ARV treatment, for
once, could someone give us the number (which increases daily) of those who are not getting ARVs or any other treatment - and are unlikely to get it in the restricted life expectancy that goes with being HIV positive.
Members of the Forum might be interested in how several thousand HIV positive people living with HIV are facing up to this problem when there is very little likelihood that they will receive ARV treatment
mostly [PLHA in developing countries] have just accepted HIV as a death sentence, resulting thousands and thousands of traumatized orphans, sick widows and decimated communities.
ARVs provide an improvement in health because they boost the immune system to keep the HIV virus under control - this extends projected lifespan, which can be by many years as long as there is also a balanced diet to go with it.
So, is there anything else that can boost the immune system?
Yes, a balanced nutritious diet can also improve health and ability to keep the HIV virus under control, and that can be home grown on a very small plot of land. Many people living with HIV are taking responsibility for their own lives, developing a home-grown nutrition garden with everyday vegetables, fruit and herbs thus providing food security and improving their diet: they grow the vegetables that contribute to a nutritious balanced diet, they use medicinal herbs for home treatment for diarrhea, headaches, ulcers, skin problems [opportunistic diseases of HIV], and are improving the quality of their lives by their own efforts. These people [are empowered to help themselves] as they realize that no one else can do it for them; they desperately wish to live and are facing it as their own problem.
In Zimbabwe, there are several small (and some not-so-small) NGOs who are providing assistance in getting the nutrition gardens started, the biggest challenge is to help people realize that they can do it and survive - this change of attitude from total despair to hope and positive action is itself a tonic.
If ten per cent of the money that goes into world AIDS programmes was spent in helping people help themselves to improve their own health, there would be thousands and thousands who can live to tell the tale, see families through childhood, maintain families, and maybe stay alive long enough to benefit from a cure to HIV/AIDS.
We would be interested to hear from others who also have alternatives in dealing with HIV in a positive way.
Stella Greenway
Linkage Trust
kuni@zim.co.zw
[Moderators Note: To know more about an exciting new campaign (AIDS-Care-Watch) that promotes non-ARV treatment and care options (including treatment of opportunistic infections such as TB and an emphasis on nutrition) for people living with HIV/AIDS, please visit: www.aidscarewatch.org.]