[lettie]

Originally Posted by Graham Jones

I think there are a lot of good points and HIV is a local issue now. Suffers live within the Hyndburn area as do drug users and the chances of infection are greater.

We need the needle exchange proposed by the PCT and it got planning permission but who leant on the PCT to pull it, Britcliffe.

I would not want my son infected with AIDS with someone else [on the pill for eg?] who may not even know they are infected.

I completely agree that a needle exchange should be available in central Accy. We have our fair share of HIV affected people in this borough. John Moores University in Liverpool publish the exact figures on a yearly basis. These figures are available online.

There are a couple of things that I do disagree with though

Firstly..... your son would not become infected with AIDS. He would become infected with HIV, which is actually different. HIV eventually leads to AIDS but that may take 20-30 years if he's lucky..

Secondly.... by assuming that the person giving him HIV is on the pill, you are assuming that this person is a woman!!!! Current research will confirm that the numbers of women contracting HIV is increasing. They are catching this through sex with infected men. These studies actually show that married women have more chance of contracting HIV because they are in relationships where they feel they have no need to use condoms, and some husbands have extramarital affairs. Many of these women are from minority ethnic groups who traditionally don't have affairs. Many women in relationships involving domestic violence feel powerless to demand the use of a condom within that relationship.

If I were to advise your son on protection against HIV and other STI's, I would advise him to use a condom with every sexual contact, be they female, male or martian....