Health Facts - STD FAQS
Back to STD FAQ Home
Glossary
HIV / AIDS
How easy is HIV to catch?
One of the few things we have in our favor with regard to HIV is the fact that it is NOT easy to get. As tricky and confusing as the virus is, it also happens to be one of the weakest and most fragile viruses ever seen. Because of this, certain conditions need to be met in order for transmission to occur. One of the main conditions is that the virus needs to get DIRECTLY into the bloodstream. This is not easy to do in any casual social situation and, therefore, makes it somewhat hard to get.
HIV cannot spread by casual contact such as touching, holding hands, body contact in crowded public places, shaking hands, working or playing together, sharing food, dishes, and clothes; eating food cooked by an infected person, light kissing, mosquito and other insect bites, swimming pools, and toilets.
This question has been viewed 5524 times so far.
Click Here to View all the questions in HIV / AIDS category.
Related Questions
- What is AIDS?
- Who is really at greatest risk for getting HIV?
- Are Semen and Vaginal Secretions the only fluids that can carry the AIDS virus?
- How many people have AIDS?
- What are the symptoms of HIV?
- For additional information about AIDS and HIV
- Is HIV fatal for everyone who has it?
- Are there any morning after pills to prevent transmission of AIDS in the case that a condom has broken?
- How many people have HIV/AIDS?
- I’ve heard a lot of different things about HIV surviving outside the body. What is the truth?
- Can I get HIV from kissing?
- Does having HIV mean my life can never be normal again?
- How can I tell if someone has HIV?
- Can I get HIV from performing oral sex?
- How can I tell if I have HIV?
- Are there medical treatments for people with HIV disease?
- How could I get HIV?
- Does this mean that everyone infected with HIV is going to die from it?
- What medications are available for HIV?
- If I have HIV, can I get another STI?
- Is there a cure for HIV and AIDS?
- What is the best way to prevent sexual transmission of HIV?
- What can a pregnant woman do if she thinks she has been exposed to HIV?
- When are there symptoms?
- How do you prevent HIV transmission among injection drug users?
- Where can I get tested for HIV?
- What tests are available to see if someone is infected with HIV?
- How does HIV lead to AIDS?
- Why are these called “opportunistic infections?”
- Are there other ways of testing for HIV?
- Can I get HIV from a blood transfusions?
- What is a retrovirus?
- Can I get HIV by donating blood?
- What are some of the common AIDS-defining conditions?
- Should I be tested?
- If someone is infected with HIV but they do not get sick from it, can they still transmit it to others?
- Can I get HIV from mosquitoes?
- What if I have HIV?
- How can I avoid getting HIV?
- What is HIV?
- What does HIV do?
- If a woman living with HIV is pregnant, will the pregnancy affect the progression of her HIV disease? What about passing it to the fetus?
- Is there a difference between HIV and AIDS?
- Are any tests available for someone who already knows they are infected with HIV?
DISCLAIMER