When the body is under attack, anything and everything that can be done to enhance the body's own defenses must be taken. Keep in mind that most physicians receive no educational training on nutrition while in medical school. Common sense will also tell you that if your body is under attack, what can be done to enhance it's immune-fighting capabilities?

Our understanding of the AIDS virus over the years has been vastly oversimplified. It has been defined as nothing more than a deficiency of certain immune system cells, particularly CD4 and T4 cells of the immune system. And while T-cell loss is certainly one of the indicators for AIDS, blood tests of a typical patient reveal a far more complicated picture, a kind of immunological chaos that is commonly referred to as "immune collapse". Some scientists feel it is even more complex than that, and that AIDS is a problem of an immune system gone haywire, perhaps even attacking itself in a process known as "autoimmunity".

Another recent controversy is the fact that many scientists believe that HIV is perfectly harmless without other cofactors present. The cofactors that many scientists believe contribute to HIV progressing to AIDS include the use of recreational and pharmaceutical drug use, recurrent infection, chronic use of antibiotics, poor nutrition, and pollution, as well as many psychoneuro-immunological cofactors, such as stress, fear and despair. When these cofactors are present, the HIV virus supposedly is able to destroy T4 cells, which are a critical part of the immune system. T4 cells scout out and destroy invading pathogens, and at the same time trigger other immune system cells to attack these invaders. As the HIV virus kills off T4 cells, the body is unable to defend itself against even the most minor infections, germs that would normally have no effect on the body become potent enemies.

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a progressive disease characterized by suppression of the immune system and an increased risk for developing a rare type of cancer called Kaposi's Sarcoma. The disease is attributed to infection by a retrovirus that attacks T lymphocytes, although B lymphocytes, macrophages, and other cells in the immune system also are affected. The patient does not die from AIDS, but from secondary infections associated with impaired immunity, such as cancer or pneumonia.

Not every person exposed to the AIDS virus becomes infected, and only a small number of people who are antibody positive for the HIV virus actually develop AIDS and AIDS-related diseases. The development of AIDS depends on a number of factors including the pre-existing condition of the immune system, nutritional status, repeated exposure to the AIDS virus, or abuse of prescription or nonprescription drugs. The immune system is weakened by numerous stressors, including abuse of alcohol and tobacco, poor diet, lack of sleep, or general poor health.

NUTRITION IN THE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF AIDS
Little information is available on the role that nutrition plays in the prevention of AIDS. Malnutrition compromises immunity and increases a person's susceptibility to infection and disease, and proper nutrition probably plays an important role in the prevention of this disease. Intravenous drug users are a high-risk group and also tend to consume nutritionally inadequate diets. In particular, their diets are low in protein, vitamins and minerals, and high in refined carbohydrates. Intravenous drug users generally exhibit a loss of appetite, have sporadic eating habits, suffer digestive problems, and develop malabsorption syndromes. These specific nutritional problems are coupled with the normalnutritional and immunological problems inherent in poor populations.

Nutritional-related defects in immunocompetence are most pronounced for cell-mediated immunity, specifically, T lymphocytes. These cells play a major role in the body's cell-mediated defense against viruses. Malnourished individuals have suppressed T lymphycyte activity and fewer circulating T cells. AIDS is a disease resulting from a defect of cell-mediated immunity and is most prevalent in people with nutritional deficiencies associated with cell-mediated immunity; therefore, a link between nutrition and the prevention of AIDS is likely.

Vitamin and mineral deficiencies have also been linked to immunosuppression. For example, inadequate intake of Vitamin A increases the incidence of bacterial and viral infection. These alteratioins might be orchestrated by cell-mediated immunity. Vitamin E deficiency interferes with lymphocyte proliferation, while deficiencies of several of the water-soluble B vitamins are linked to both cell-mediated and humoral immunity. Copper deficiency reduces the number of antibody-producing cells, and deficiencies in iron and zinc are associated with numerous adverse changes in cell-mediated immunity. In particular, zinc deficiency causes a decrease in antibody response, a deterioration of the thymus gland, and depression in T lymphocyte acitvity.

Overnutrition also might influence risk for viral infection and AIDS. Cell-mediated immunity is suppressed by consumption of a high-fat diet. Polyunsaturated fats alter prostaglandin synthesis and metabolism and might have a negative effect on natural killer-cell activity during the immune response. Cholesterol oxides also suppress immune function and might increase a person's susceptibility to infection.

Once a person is infected with the AIDS virus, the disease might perpetuate a mild-to-severe state of chemical imbalance and malnutrition that increases the rate or severity of secondary diseases.

DIETARY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF AIDS
Limited research has been done on the link between nutrition and AIDS. Until more specific information is available, the best recommendation is to consume a low-fat, high-fiber, nutrient-dense diet that contains optimal amounts of all vitamins and minerals, and little sugar or refined and convenience foods. Calorie intake should be adequate to maintain desired weight; alcohol, tobacco, and all street drugs should be avoided; the lifestyle should be designed to eliminate unnecessary stress; and, of course, AIDS-contaminated partners and blood transfusions should be avoided.

U.S. specialists on nutrition and HIV disease indicate that multiple specific nutritional abnormalities have been documented in patients with early stage (asymptomatic) HIV disease, including frequent low blood levels of vitamins A, E, B6 and B12, along with low plasma levels of zinc and copper. These deficiencies can influence the clinical progression of HIV disease.

At this time, the only clear fact is that the immune system of people with HIV/AIDS are damaged, and that the most important thing is to explore what treatment may restore the immune system, thereby restoring health. Receiving the proper amount of immune-enhancing nutrients is almost always the first recommendation. PAAC (The Physicians Association for AIDS Care) recommends that nutritional assessment with appropriate intervention be incorporated in the standards of care for perons with early-stage HIV disease.

ANTIOXIDANTS FIGHT KILLER VIRUSES
Scientists have discovered that alpha lipoic acid inhibits the transcription of HIV in vitro. The inhibition of HIV occurred after very low levels of alpha lipoic acid were added to the culture. The also found that N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) also inhibited HIV, but it took 50 times more to produce the same inhibitory effect. The activity of lipoic acid against HIV is thought to occur through it's free-radical scavenging ability. Free radicals cause the activation of nuclear factor-B (NF-B), a substance which can "turn on" certain genes.

In another study, researchers reported that a synthetic thiol antioxidant (pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate or PDTC) inhibited the activation of the virus that causes Kaposi's Sarcoma, a type of cancer that commonly affects AIDS patients. HIV-infected patients are known to be depleted of glutathione, a potent natural thiol antioxidant.

It is known that the chemical dioxin activates HIV through two pathways. Dioxin is a chlorine product found in numerous manmade products including polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic products, wood preservative, pesticides, dry cleaning fluid, and paper products. NAC was shown in a study to inhibit dioxin's ability to activate HIV.

It is recommended that anyone with HIV, Herpes virus, Hepatitis B, Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS), or any other condition thought to relate to chronic viral activation, maintain high levels of the antioxidants NAC and alpha lipoic acid.