Information
for elementary and middle school students
You
may have heard about a disease called AIDS. A lot of people
have been talking about it lately. Many people have gotten
AIDS in the past few years. A lot of them have died.
AIDS is a condition that weakens the body's power to fight
off sickness. It's a very serious medical problem. That's
why people are talking about it. But sometimes people
talk without knowing the facts.
AIDS is caused by a tiny germ. Doctors call a germ like
this a virus. The virus that causes AIDS is called the
human immunodeficiency virus, HIV for short.
The key thing for you to understand about AIDS is that
it is not easy to get through the things you do every
day. You cannot "catch" AIDS like you can a
cold or the chickenpox. You cannot get AIDS from doing
things like going to school, using a bathroom, or riding
in a school bus.
It is important to know the facts about AIDS. You can
be a leader by knowing the truth.
All of the following statements about AIDS are true. Read
them. Remember them. When you hear something about AIDS
that isn't true, speak up. Say that you know the facts.
Tell people the truth.
- You
cannot get AIDS from the things you do every day, such
as going to school, using a toilet, or drinking from
a glass.
- You
cannot get AIDS from sitting next to someone in school
who has AIDS.
- You
cannot get AIDS from a kiss on the cheek, or from touching
or hugging someone who has it.
- You
cannot get AIDS from a mosquito or any other kind of
bugs. The virus that causes AIDS, while alive when it
enters the bug, dies inside of bugs, so there is no
way they can give it to you.
- You
can get HIV either by having unprotected sex with a
person who has it or by sharing drug needles or syringes
with an infected person. Also, women infected with HIV
can pass the virus to their babies during pregnancy,
during birth, or through breast-feeding.
- A
person who is infected can infect others during sexual
intercourse, even if no symptoms are present. You cannot
tell by looking at someone whether he or she is infected
with HIV. An infected person can appear completely healthy.
- You
can play with someone who has HIV or AIDS just as you
can with any of your other friends. This will not make
you sick.
- Many
different types of people have AIDS—male and female,
rich and poor, white, black, Hispanic, Asian, and Native
American.
- As
of December 1993, nearly 68,000 people aged 20-29 have
been diagnosed with AIDS. Because a person can be infected
with the virus that causes AIDS for as long as 10 or
more years before the signs of AIDS appear, scientists
believe that a significant number of these young people
would have been infected when they were teenagers. Some
of these young people were not much older than you are
right now when they got HIV.
- Being
sick isn't fun. Treat people with AIDS the way you want
to be treated when you are sick.
Reference:
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (1994). AIDS
prevention guide: The facts about HIV infection and AIDS
– Putting the facts to use (OHA 8/94 D458). Rockville,
MD: CDC National AIDS Clearinghouse.
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