Ever since its discovery in the early 1980s, HIV and AIDS have been treated to various misconceptions and misunderstandings by mainstream media channels.
Its first misconception came as early as 1981, coined as the Gay-Related Immunity Deficiency (GRID) by general media outlets, due to a high number of gay men spoting such symptoms.
Another misconception soon sprang up: one specific individual, Gaetan Dugas, was HIV’s “patient zero”, the first person to bring the HIV virus onto American soil. Promulgated in 1987, it vilified Gaetan Dugas, who had already died in 1984 from AIDS.
This theory was disproven in 2016, where research exposed that similar viral strains to what Dugas possessed was already present in America even before his arrival. The patient zero theory was misguided from the start. Nominally “Patient O”, “O” stood for “outside the area”, this name referred to his status as not native to California. However, it was mistaken for a zero, hence the name Patient Zero.
Fast forwarding to the 21st century, there are still many existing misconceptions of HIV infections and AIDS. A nation-wide survey in the UK, conducted in 2014, identifies misconceptions about the virus and its contagious nature among those who took the survey.
Of those who took the survey, 16% thought that HIV could be contracted by kissing a HIV positive individual. Another 16% thought spitting could spread the virus. 5% of takers also thought coughing or sneezing, or sharing a glass, utensils and toilet seats could transmit the virus.
It is crucial to know that HIV can only be spread by infected bodily fluids entering the bloodstream. Blood, semen, vaginal or anal secretions, and breast milk are guilty body fluids. Saliva can contain the HIV virus, but it can only hold a negligible account such that the infection cannot be transmitted through it.
Physical contact through handshakes, touching, handshakes is not a mode of transmission for the HIV virus, as it cannot survive outside the human body or bodily fluids. Sweat, food and water are also not mediums for the virus to spread and infect others.
As such, sharing utensils, cups and swimming pools are not ways you can contract a HIV infection. Even for HIV positive individuals, they could receive HIV treatment as clinics to control their viral count. If the viral count is undetectable in their body, while they are not fully cured of the infection, it is very unlikely such individuals can transmit the disease.
Misconceptions about the HIV virus cause HIV positive individuals to be shunned by society and those close to them. These stigmas may even discourage from getting screened or tested at HIV clinics in Singapore, even with the option of anonymous tests available. As such, it is crucial to clear these misconceptions and subsequent stigmas about HIV to allow people to take the best care of their health.
