Attention New York City! Now you have access to an innovative, and potentially life-saving new program called “M*SHP minus 36:00” from--you guessed it-- the Men's Sexual Health Project.
"A-list" star and celebrity photographer Mike Ruiz donated his talents to shoot the ad campaign (below) and support was also provided by the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
Here's the official announcement:
“PEP has been recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for high risk sexual exposures since 2006, but very few men in NYC are aware of what PEP is or how to get it. PEP is using HIV medications after a potential exposure to prevent HIV infection.
Study after study has demonstrated that PEP works, but if people are unaware of the intervention (or it is hard to get), PEP doesn’t really have a chance to make an impact. Time is of the essence. PEP has to be started within 36 hrs to have maximal effect and continued for 28 days after exposure. Lack of knowledge and medical barriers (like long, unpleasant ER visits, financial concerns, etc) makes PEP nearly inaccessible. M*SHP will introduce its new program dubbed “M*SHP minus 36:00” to provide instant, free access to PEP drugs and connection to follow up services and care.”
If you're HIV-positive, it's essential to work closely with your physician to maintain your best possible health and wellness.
But what can you do outside your doctor's office to help maintain or enhance your overall health? The answers could be found in your grocery and health food stores, says holistic nutritionist Sally Kravich, M.S., C.N.H.P., author of Vibrant Living: Creating Radiant Health and Longevity.
“Food is medicine, there's no doubt about it,” says Kravich, who's worked closely with many clients who are HIV positive.
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“To support your immune system, arm yourself with the best food containing the highest quality nutrients, along with maintaining a positive attitude. An individual can do a lot to support themselves in addition to their medical treatment."
When it comes to your diet, Kravich suggests four essential tips to enhance your overall health:
Whether you're on HIV medication, or struggle with drug addictions, or even if you're newly diagnosed and medication-free, you must support your liver, says Kravich. “The liver is the hardest working organ in the body. It processes bacteria, viruses, drugs, medications, environmental toxins, along with being a digestive organ” says Kravich, who points to necessary daily supplements like milk thistle, dandelion and beet root to cleanse and strengthen your liver.
In addition, make sure to have plenty of Vitamin B12 (minimum of 2,000 mcg per day). Grape seed extract is a powerful anti-oxidant to add to this combination and much easier on the colon than large doses of Vitamin C.
Sugar lowers the immune system and feeds unhealthy bacteria, fungus, mold, and parasites, which seriously impair your body's ability to defend itself from HIV. “If you need to sweeten, go natural,” with Sugar in the Raw, Agave nectar, Stevia or raw honey, says Kravich.
Take a Probiotic Acidophilus Combination
To counteract unhealthy bacteria (fungus, mold, parasites, etc.), take a probiotic supplement which will help your body absorb essential nutrients from food and enhance and strengthen your immune system.
"It is absolutely essential to take probiotics if you are on any drugs or medications," says Kravich. Unhealthy bacteria flourishes in the small intestine where nutrients are absorbed, so take a daily dose of this friendly probiotic bacteria for intestinal and immune support.
To keep your muscle tone strong, you must have plenty of protein with amino acids. Making a daily protein shake is one of the easiest ways to keep protein levels up, says Kravich.
For a simple shake include:
--A simple protein powder, preferably organic whey, rice or hemp
--L. Glutamine (which aids the digestive system)
--A liquid base of rice mik, almond milk, or carrot juice
--A greens powder (which adds essential minerals)
--Natural fruit such as blueberries and banana OR papaya/mango and banana
--Mitch Rustad
Q: I'm an AIDS patient with CD4 count of less than 100. I haven't started treatment yet but plan to start in coming days. I am experiencing chronic dysentery, some skin related problems and weight loss. I'm most worried about the weight loss. It's the most horrible thing.
Could you suggest some ways to stop the weight loss and get a few extra pounds on my body?
A: If you haven't started treatment yet and have T cells of less than 100 it is not surprising that your symptoms include diarrhea, skin problems and weight loss. I wonder why you are waiting to start meds as your HIV sounds like it is wreaking havoc with your poor body. Your T cells need some help!
Getting on meds will drive down the level of virus in your body, allow your immune system a reprieve and you will start to feel better. Occasionally, in very immune-suppressed people, starting medication might make them feel worse for a brief time. They might experience fevers or exacerbation of some symptoms. This is called immune reconstitution and it is a sign that the immune system can mount an inflammatory response once again. Staying on meds is the key and these symptoms resolve. You may not experience symptoms from immune reconstitution, there's no way to predict. But you are playing a kind of roulette denying your system the help it needs to fight the virus. As far as weight goes, it is almost a certainty that if you get your viral load down you will start to regain the weight you've lost. Please give yourself a chance and start fighting the HIV. Good luck. -- Susan Ball, M.D.
Q: I'm HIV positive and dating other HIV positive guys. I'm open to using condoms, but so many of my dates want to bareback, and I've been told by my doctor to have safer sex. I've been doing very well on treatment and he says I could get a bad strain. Is this accurate?
A: Your doctor is right. It seems there is a lot of anonymous sex going on out there and people are not using condoms, thinking that since everybody's HIV positive there's no risk. But there is a LOT of risk. There is the significant risk of transmitting other STDs, of which there are many and all seem to be on the rise (herpes, syphilis, gonorrhea, warts, chlamydia, even Hepatitis).
The risk in terms of HIV is a bit more vague in that if two people have undetectable viral loads it's unlikely that they are going to transmit virus to each other. But if one person has detectable virus they can transmit it to their partner. The risk is that the transmitted virus could cause problems in the new host, either because of resistance or because of the possibility of slight genetic variance which has negative impact. Even for people with undetectable virus I counsel condom use as we know that there are reservoirs of virus in places that we don't measure (lymph nodes, spinal fluid, seminal fluid). So undetectable viral load doesn't mean no risk, it just means low risk. I hope this is helpful to you.-- Susan Ball, M.D.
