When HIV enters your body it weakens your body's defences (immune system) making it less able to fight off diseases.

What is AIDS?
AIDS is the name for the group of sicknesses that the body is particularly vulnerable to when it is weakened by HIV.

AIDS stands for:

Acquired - you get it from somebody

Immune - body's defence system

Deficiency - not working properly

Syndrome - a group of signs or symptoms

This means that a person with AIDS can get infections that a person with a healthy body would be able to fight off easily. Antibiotics and other medicines can help people with AIDS to feel better and live longer.

So how is HIV spread?

In most cases HIV is passed on through:

• Having sex with a person who has HIV without using a
condom

• Sharing injecting or body piercing instruments such as
needles, knives or razor blades which have been used on a
person with HIV and not cleaned thoroughly

• A mother who has HIV can pass it to her baby during pregnancy, birth or breast-feeding

• Through blood to blood contact such as receiving
HIV-infected blood, infected blood products or organ
transplants. In the UK, the likelihood of getting HIV in this
way is now extremely low because all blood, blood products
and donors are screened for HIV

You do not get HIV from everyday contact such as:

• Social kissing
• Shaking hands, sneezes, coughing
• Touching and hugging
• Sharing cups, glasses, plates, knives or forks
• Toilet seats and door handles
• Insect and animal bites
• Swimming in a public pool
• Living in the same house

How do you know that you have HIV?

You can find out if you have HIV by taking blood test, known as an HIV antibody test.

• There will be a counsellor there to talk to you and help you to think about how you will deal with the result of the test

• If your test result is positive, it means that you have HIV in your body and can pass it on to another person

• If your test result is negative it means that you do not have HIV now. However this does not mean that you can not get it in the future if you put your self at risk.

To find out more information about HIV tests contact The Greenway Centre at Newham University Hospital on 020 7363 8146.

How can I protect others and myself?

You can protect others and yourself by:

• Using a condom correctly every time you have sex
• Using sterile injecting and skin piercing instruments every time
• Not sharing injecting equipment
• Reducing the spread of HIV from mothers infected with HIV to their babies during pregnancy, delivery and breastfeeding. This can be done by the use of HIV drugs, and safe feeding practices. You should seek information and advice from your doctor.

Positive Vibes

Positive Vibes, a support group for children and young people affected/infected with HIV, meets every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month at Forest Gate Youth Centre, 1 Woodford Road, Forest Gate London E7 0DH from 5pm to 7pm.

There are social education based workshops and activities and trips out. It is a closed group and children and young people need to be referred to the group through the Children's Rights Service.

The group also acts as a consultation group to inform service provision for young people affected or infected.

For more information, please see our section on useful information and contacts for children and young people with HIV.

View our 'HIV is not me' poster.