World AIDS Day

Worlds AIDS Day is taking place on December 1st and this year I am asking local people to show their support for people living with HIV, improve their understanding of the condition and demonstrate their commitment to tackling HIV in Lewisham Deptford.

Despite the growing number of people living with HIV and improved treatment, public knowledge and awareness of HIV haven't kept pace and are actually declining.

I believe that only by educating people about the reality of what it is like to live with HIV will we reduce the stigma that many people living with the virus still face.  Stigma also leads people to fear getting tested, which can have an impact on their health and increase the risk of HIV transmission.

I am so proud to wear a red ribbon to mark this year's World AIDS Day.  With around 100,000 people living with HIV in the UK, we must do more to improve HIV prevention and testing, especially given 1 in 5 people with HIV remain undiagnosed and almost half of people are still being diagnosed late.

For people living with HIV in the UK one of the biggest challenges is still stigma, which is often the result of ignorance about HIV and unnecessary fear.  Stigma also stops some people from taking an HIV test.

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5 facts about HIV:

1. If diagnosed and treated in time, people living with HIV have a normal lifespan.
2. There is no job someone with HIV cannot do.
3. Treatment can mean that people living with HIV are no longer infectious.
4. Men and women living with HIV can become parents of an HIV-free baby.
5. People living with HIV still face stigma and discrimination.