CAM and HIV Infection

A recent study of 1,675 HIV-positive men and women using CAM (usually in addition to conventional medication) found that the most frequently reported CAM substances were high doses of vitamin C (63 percent), multiple vitamin and mineral supplements (54 percent), vitamin E (53 percent), and garlic (53 percent). The health practitioners most commonly consulted were massage therapists (49 percent), acupuncturists (45 percent), and nutritionists (37 percent). The CAM activities most commonly used were aerobic exercise (63 percent), prayer (58 percent), massage (53 percent), and meditation (46 percent). The majority of this group of HIV-infected individuals consulted with both conventional and CAM providers and used both conventional and CAM medications simultaneously, yet few reported that their conventional and CAM providers worked as a team.

Similar observations were made in a survey of 180 HIV-infected people. This study found that almost half (45 percent) of this group had visited a CAM practitioner an average of 12 times per year, compared to only 7 visits per year to their conventional physician or nurse practitioner. More than two-thirds (68 percent) of the HIV-infected individuals in the study used herbs, vitamins, or dietary supplements. Eighty-one percent of those who used supplements said the remedies were "extremely" or "quite a bit" helpful. Approximately 24 percent reported using marijuana to treat weight loss, nausea, and vomiting in the previous year, and most (87 percent) said it was extremely or quite helpful.

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		CAM and HIV Infection A recent study of 1,675 HIV-positive men and women using CAM (usually in addition to conventional medication) found that the most frequently reported CAM substances were high doses of vitamin C (63 percent), multiple vitamin and mineral supplements (54 percent), vitamin E (53 percent), and garlic (53 percent). The health practitioners most commonly consulted were massage therapists (49 percent), acupuncturists (45 percent), and nutritionists (37 percent). The CAM activities most commonly used were aerobic exercise (63 percent), prayer (58 percent), massage (53 percent), and meditation (46 percent). The majority of this group of HIV-infected individuals consulted with both conventional and CAM providers and used both conventional and CAM medications simultaneously, yet few reported that their conventional and CAM providers worked as a team. Similar observations were made in a survey of 180 HIV-infected people. This study found that almost half (45 percent) of this group had visited a CAM practitioner an average of 12 times per year, compared to only 7 visits per year to their conventional physician or nurse practitioner. More than two-thirds (68 percent) of the HIV-infected individuals in the study used herbs, vitamins, or dietary supplements. Eighty-one percent of those who used supplements said the remedies were "extremely" or "quite a bit" helpful. Approximately 24 percent reported using marijuana to treat weight loss, nausea, and vomiting in the previous year, and most (87 percent) said it was extremely or quite helpful.