VivirLatino

National Institutes of Health released a statement to note National Latino AIDS Awareness Day, which will take place on October 15th. Among some of the more startling statistics:

Latinos are diagnosed with HIV/AIDS at a higher rate than every other racial or ethnic group in the United States except African-Americans. The HIV infection rate for Latinos in this country — 29.3 new cases per 100,000 people in 2006 — is nearly three times higher than for whites. Since the epidemic began, an estimated 80,690 Latinos with AIDS in the United States have died. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), joins the Latino community in mourning those who have succumbed to this terrible disease.

Furthermore, according to the press release, “four every 10 Latinos in the United States who test positive for HIV develop AIDS within a year of learning they are infected.” (I think that means four *of* every 10 Latinos) This statistic is important to know because it means that Latinos are being tested late–that is, after the disease has already progressed significantly. Which means that many of the cocktails that are available now that keep a person’s status at HIV rather than full blown AIDS, simply aren’t effective–even when they’ve been shown to extend life for many years when the disease is caught early enough.

So, what this all means is-GET TESTED! And don’t wait to get tested until you feel sick or suspect something is wrong–get tested NOW because you and your health deserve it!