Posts
A study by researchers at Simon
Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada, found that food insecurity increases
risk of death among injection drug users (IDUs) with HIV/AIDS, even if they are
receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART).
Robert Hogg—senior author, Simon
Fraser University health sciences professor, and director of the HIV/AIDS Drug
Treatment Program at the British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS—and
colleagues investigated the impact of food insecurity and hunger on survival
among IDUs. The researchers followed 254 IDUs from across British Columbia. Of
the 254 participants, 71 percent reported food insecurity when they began ART.
In 13 years of follow-up, researchers found that participants who were food
insecure were twice as likely to die compared to those who were food secure.
Analysis showed that hunger (food insufficiency) was not the primary cause of
death.
The researchers concluded that the
quality of food available to the public needed improvement and suggested that
drug users could benefit from greater access to education and counseling about
healthy eating , nutritional screening, and referral for appropriate a clinical
care. The researchers reported that they were collaborating with the United
Nations World Food Program and other international agencies to identify
evidence-based practices and policies for prevention and management of food
insecurity for people living with HIV/AIDS.
The full report, “Relationship
between Food Insecurity and Mortality Among HIV-Positive Injection Drug Users
Receiving Antiretroviral Therapy in British Columbia, Canada,” was published
online in the journal PLoS One (2013; 8(5): e61277.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0061277).
The Friends of AIDS Foundation is
dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and
empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV
virus. To learn more about The Friends of AIDS Foundation, please visit: http://www.friendsofaids.org.
TOGETHER WE REMAIN STRONG!
