By Shanichia Henry

World AIDS Day offers citizens of the world a time to reflect on the past and establish a sense of unity in finding a cure for the disease.

In the spirit of optimism and perseverance, the theme for this year’s World AIDS Day is “Getting to Zero”. Recent statistics suggest that due to consistent AIDS awareness initiatives, the rates of worldwide infections are declining—-but it’s not wise to breathe a sigh of relief just yet.

The City of Toronto has seen an unprecedented rise in the number of new HIV cases. In June of 2011, it was reported that there were over 17,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in the city of Toronto. According to ACT (AIDS Committee of Toronto), two people test positive for HIV every day in Toronto, which means that by the end of the year there will be over 730 new cases of HIV. In addition, about a quarter of people with HIV/AIDS in Canada are between the ages of 15 and 29.

Regardless of the fact that some communities are more at-risk than others, health care professionals stress the importance of using condoms in all sexual encounters through which the virus can be spread. That is, all individuals engaging in sexual intercourse and oral sex between two or more persons who have no knowledge of one another’s sexual history and have not been tested for HIV should use condoms and dental dams to decrease the risks of contracting the virus. Knowing one’s status is also incredibly important in the prevention of HIV/AIDS. About a quarter of individuals living with HIV/AIDS, are unaware of their status.

For more information about HIV/AIDS, please visit http://www.actoronto.org/

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