January 13, 1999

Facts about HIV & AIDS
___ Transmission: HIV is spread by sexual contact with an infected person, by sharing needles and/or syringes with someone who is infected, or, less commonly, through transfusions of infected blood or blood-clotting factors. HIV is found in varying concentrations or amounts in blood, semen, vaginal fluid, breast milk, saliva and tears. There is no known risk of HIV transmission to co-workers, clients or consumers from contact in industries such as food-service establishments.
___ Kissing: Casual contact through closed-mouth or "social" kissing is not a risk for transmission of HIV. Because of the potential for contact with blood during open-mouth kissing, CDC recommends against engaging in this activity with a person known to be infected. However, the risk of acquiring HIV during kissing is believed very low.
___ Saliva, sweat and tears: HIV has been found in saliva and tears in very low quantities in some AIDS patients. It is important to understand that finding a small amount of HIV in a body fluid does not necessarily mean that HIV can be transmitted by that body fluid. Contact with saliva, tears or sweat has never been shown to result in transmission of HIV.
___ Prevention: Abstaining from sexual intercourse is the most effective strategy for prevention of HIV transmission. For those engaging in sexual intercourse, the most effective strategy is to do so only with one uninfected partner.
___Source: U.S. Centers for Disease Control

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