• Avoid alcohol or drugs during sex, you might lose control of your senses and engage in unsafe sex. Stick to safer sex practices at all times and avoid having multiple partners. Practice monogamy. If this is a tall order, serial relationships are a lesser evil than multiple ones.

• High-risk sexual behavior should be avoided at all costs. These include: oral genital sex involving contact with semen or vaginal fluids, oral anal sex, vaginal sex without a condom, anal sex sans a condom (active or passive), fisting or manual anal intercourse, the sharing of sex toys, using saliva for lubrication and blood contact of any kind during performance. If unable to resist oral sex, use a dental dam. If a woman is infected, avoid sex during the menses as menstrual blood is infectious

• For transfusions, use disposable syringes and needles. Ensure you get blood that is screened and certified as HIV-free. Better still, get blood from close family members rather than professional donors whose HeartCare-Info antecedents are nebulous.

• The presence of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) increases the risk of contracting HIV from an infected partner. STDs could cause breaks in the skin of the vagina, penis or anus permitting the virus to enter your bloodstream. If you ever contract an STD of any kind, ensure you get prompt treatment.

• The CDC recommends that an HIV-positive woman should not breast-feed her baby. The infant should be given AZT for the first several weeks to substantially reduce the risk of infection.