Drug Abuse and HIV
The link between Drug abuse and HIV/AIDS has been known since the beginning of the epidemic. The National Institute on Drug Abuse’s (NIDA) public service campaign, Learn the Link, explains that although injection drug use is well known as the cause of many new HIV infections, the role that non-injection drug abuse plays in the spread of HIV is less recognized. Drug abuse by any route can put a person at a higher risk for getting HIV. Many drugs alter judgment and inhibition. Crystal Meth, Cocaine, Ecstasy, GHB, and Alcohol are just a few of the non-injected drugs which lead people to engage in unsafe behaviors that they would not normally choose if it were not for the influence of drugs.
Altering judgment and inhibition is not the only link between non-injected drug use and HIV/AIDS. Drug abuse and addiction often affects a person’s overall health, thereby increasing their susceptibility to HIV. For those already infected by HIV, drug abuse can increase the rate at which HIV progresses to AIDS.
Research has shown that drug abuse treatment is an effective way to prevent the spread of HIV. Drug abusers in treatment stop or reduce their drug use as well as the risky behaviors related to their drug addiction. Tarzana Treatment Centers takes its 35 years of experience in drug addiction treatment and combines it with its expertise in the treatment and prevention of HIV/AIDS, and develops unique and effective drug treatment programs. This uniqueness and effectiveness can be found in TTC’s Medical Detoxification program, Residential Drug Treatment programs, and Outpatient Drug Treatment programs.
More information about the link between HIV/AIDS and drug abuse is available at NIDA’s Learn the Link public service campaign’s website, http://hiv.drugabuse.gov/english/learn/abuse.html.
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