causes

 
**Aids is not selfish, it affects other parts of your health.**

AIDS is the sixth leading cause of death among people ages 25 - 44 in the United States.The virus i.e( HIV ) attacks the immune system and leaves the body vulnerable to a variety of life-threatening infections and cancers.Common bacteria, yeast, parasites, and viruses that usually do not cause serious disease in people with healthy immune systems can cause fatal illnesses in people with AIDS.HIV has been found in saliva, 

tears, nervous system tissue and spinal fluid, blood, semen (including pre-seminal fluid, which is the liquid that

 comes out before ejaculation), vaginal fluid, and breast milk. However, only blood, semen, vaginal secretions, 

and breast milk have been shown to transmit infection to others.

WHAT IS HIV ????

HIV is a very small virus that contains ribonucleic acid (RNA) as its genetic material.

 When HIV infects animal cells, it uses a special enzyme, reverse transcriptase, to 

transcribe its RNA into DNA. (Viruses that use reverse transcriptase are sometimes 

referred to as "retroviruses.") When HIV reproduces, it is prone to making small

 genetic mistakes or mutations, resulting in viruses that vary slightly from each other. 

This ability to create minor variations allows HIV to evade the body's immunologic 

defenses, essentially leading to lifelong infection, and has made it difficult to make an 

effective vaccine. The mutations also allow HIV to become resistant to medication .

STAGES OF INFECTION

stage -1

The virus is spread through contact with infected blood or infected fluids such as sexual secretions . 

stage -2

Over time, the virus attacks the immune system, focusing on special cells called "CD4 cells" which are important in protecting the body from infections and cancers, and the number of these cells starts to fall ). 

stage-3

Eventually, the CD4 cells fall to a critical level and/or the immune system is weakened so much that it can no longer fight off certain types of infections and cancers. This advanced stage of infection with HIV is called AIDS. 

TRANSMISSION  OF AIDS

 This can be transmitted through

• sexual contact :- includes oral, vaginal and ,anal sex 
• blood :- through blood transfusions or needle sharing .
• mother to child :- a pregnant woman can transmit the virus to her fetus through their shared blood circulation, or a nursing mother can transmit it to her baby in her breast milk.
• other methods of  spreading this virus is rare includes accidental needle injury, artificial insemination with infected donated semen, and organ transplantation with infected organs.

* AIDS is NOT transmitted to a person who DONATES blood or organs. People who donate organs are never in direct contact with people who receive them. Likewise, a person who donates blood is never in contact with the person receiving it. In all these procedures, sterile needles and instruments are used.