Reality Check 2

Karma Sutra · Member

Reality Check 2

Razor · Newbie

The cure would have been found ages ago,like vaccines for TB and small pox, AIDs is considered an african disease at the moment.I don't see enough being done about it considering the amount of people(africans) dying of it.

abre les ojos · Guru

Unlike Malaria which kills far more people, mostly children everyday than AIDS which is preventable by simple virtue of adequate protection. I think foreign pharmaceuticals don't really see the profit in researching new malarial drugs because its a disease of poor people. As for AIDS, it can seriously be controlled and is not a problem in the West like cancer or heart disease. So why should they waste time on these drugs. Surely it makes financial sense to tackle the drugs that bring profit, after all the expensive research.

Drug companies are not in the altruism business. They are not charities.

Same applies to EVERY other industry or foreign investment.

Karma Sutra · Member

What about all other sexually transmitted diseases? Even though they can be avoided in the same way as AIDS. I think that at the moment its not a priority since its an african disease, it will be when it blows up here and I think it will happen soon.

Date: Mar 12, 2006

Karma Sutra wrote:

What about all other sexually transmitted diseases? Even though they can be avoided in the same way as AIDS. I think.

None of the other STIs are as virulent as HIV, the effort (time, money, knowledge etc) required to overcome them was nowhere close to what's needed for HIV.

abre les ojos · Guru

Karma Sutra wrote:

What about all other sexually transmitted diseases? Even though they can be avoided in the same way as AIDS. I think that at the moment its not a priority since its an African disease, it will be when it blows up here and I think it will happen soon.

There is actually a slim possibility of AIDS becoming an epidemic in the west as it is in say Africa for several reasons that I'm not going to go into. Sexual patterns and social structures for one. AIDS in the west is still chiefly a "homosexual" disease because of that very reason. But still the few hundred AIDS cases here in the UK for instance are controlled carefully and medicated that it is pretty much negligible.

AIDS is really a poor man's disease. Only people who can't afford anti-retrovirals be worried about it as such. Namely African folk. I'm sure if it was an epidemic in the west they would find a vaccine a little quicker.

Date: Mar 12, 2006

abre les ojos wrote:

Surely it makes financial sense to tackle the drugs that bring profit, after all the expensive research.

Yeah, why bother with AIDS research when you can make Viagra instead!

Karma Sutra · Member

I think there is a possibility AIDS will beome an epidemic here, there is alot of casual sex and most people don't use protection. The attitude of people towards sex here is shocking, worse than africans.Even now the number of H I V infections is rising fast.

abre les ojos · Guru

Karma Sutra wrote:

I think there is a possibility AIDS will beome an epidemic here, there is alot of casual sex and most people don't use protection. The attitude of people towards sex here is shocking, worse than africans.Even now the number of H I V infections is rising fast.

Actually there isn't. I run HIV statistics all the time for central government and even 'though there has been s slight increase (less that 1%) in HIV reported cases; almost mostly from Southern Africa, there is no sign of an epidemic. That's an NHS fact.

The truth is that the way societies are structured in Southern Africa makes HIV easily spread. You might think that folks here have more casual sex than over there but the truth is they don't. Well, not in the way that is is in Malawi for instance where sex with prostitutes (high risk people) and sex with young school girls are easily linked by sugar daddies or truck drivers who carry it all over the country. That's one example.

In the UK for instance where HIV is "safely" kept within communities, you have to understand 75% of UK born citizens never leave the 10 mile radius of where they are born or grew up. The ones that do don't keep moving and really get fixed in "communities". Same applies to every other foreign born citizen or immigrant. So if there's say a single person with HIV in the Somalian community, chance that that person would end up spreading it outside the community are a little slim.

This of course in overly simplified and I'm not qualified to give all the information on it but after doing some AIDS research that was basically the conclusion.

Pope · Guru

If I may ask a question, where did HIV start from? Secondly I want to agree with abre on our sex styles in malawi for exaapmle.We keep our life exposed to fire deliberately,ask your brother or sister they think the best in life is having fun sex.Even today you will find pipo picking sex workers in our streets and these guys are driving poshy cars a sign that the driver is a chief exutive or a businessman or a man of knowledge.The truck drivers fact is the most biggest fact that we need to look at stopping coupled with the teacher student syndrome.

The other thing is illeterate is high,and I include mbuli zophunzira, and this need to change we need to accept that HIV can be avoided.You will find most of pipo putting on awareness T shirts have no idea of the message itself and the behaviour can prove that.

-- Edited by Pope at 09:27, 2006-03-13

game · Guru

pope

i would suggest compulsory medical checks but unlike the west where they have GP's on every street corner malawi is far way behind,if you ask yourself when was the last time you had a medical check,even for lumps in your balls incase of cancer,we forget that our bodies need servicing now and again just like you do with cars dont wait for last minute hospital dash thats what is killing alot of people.

i also think aids awareness groups in africa are not fully equipped to send the message across,how do you expect an illiterate farmer to read aids hand outs or big posters,this lack of proper channels results in people not getting the education they need to tackle aids.

Pope · Guru

You are right game,its so frightening to go for a normal check in malawi.Thus why we have alot of BP deaths or strokes.We take a doctor as an enemy for reasons I cant understand.

We have to go for a compulsory test to achieve a drop in the rate which am told is at two of every ten Malawian people and its very high in the working class (that is the most productive flock).But will the nation take this?

-- Edited by Pope at 17:01, 2006-03-13