HIV/AIDS and Senior Citizens (Video 2:36 mins.)

Did you know that, according to the Centers for Disease Control, one-quarter of the one million HIV-positive people in the U.S. are older than age 50? Half are expected to be older than 50 by 2015. People tend not to think of HIV/AIDS as an illness of senior citizens, but it is. Compared to HIV negative seniors their age, this population is more likely to experience far more health challenges, including memory problems, depression, liver and kidney problems, and a bone disease linked to medications they take.

Any discussion of HIV/AIDS and seniors must include the importance of their using safe sex practices. Because many senior women are postmenopausal, they may not use condoms with the vigilance they would for preventing pregnancy. More sexual experimentation among seniors, including some increased by drugs like Viagra, also promote the likelihood of unprotected sex. Seniors must be committed to not taking sexual risks.

This video titled “Senior with HIV/AIDS” presents more information and insights on this critical topic.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback at many online and offline booksellers and in e-book form at Amazon and Barnes and Noble online stores.

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