A Candid Look at Black Women and AIDS for World AIDS Day

ByRuth Houston

World AIDS Day (December 1) is a good time to take a candid look at the frightening statistics on Black women and AIDS. According to the Center for Disease Control, Black women are infected with HIV/AIDS in numbers grossly disproportionate to their demographics. Since World AIDS Day is about awareness and education, let’s look at the hard, cold facts.

Facts About Black Women and AIDS

Black women, who comprise only 12 to 13 percent of the U.S. population, account for approximately 70 percent of new AIDS cases.

One out of 160 Black women is HIV positive, compared to one in 3,000 white women.

Approximately 20 Black women in America become infected with HIV every day.

67% of black women with HIV contracted it from heterosexual sex.

Black women are more than a dozen times as likely to be infected with HIV than their white counterparts.

AIDS has become one of the top three causes of death for Black women aged 25-34.

At the 2005 National HIV Prevention Conference, CDC researchers reported that new HIV infections are rising among blacks, women, and people who get the virus through heterosexual contact.

Many health care professional believe the rise in HIV/AIDS among Black women is directly related to Black men "on the down low"— gay or bisexual men who secretly engage in sex with other men while they’re in relationships with women. A man on the down low who has unprotected sex with other men puts his unsuspecting female partner at risk for HIV/AIDS.

Black Women Being Misinformed About AIDS and Same Sex Infidelity.

The HIV/AIDS problem is compounded by the fact that Black women have been misinformed about how to tell if their husbands and boyfriends are on the down low. They’ve been told that there are no telltale signs. As an infidelity expert who has spent 11 years studying and documenting signs of infidelity, I strongly disagree. The down low is basically another form of infidelity, the difference being that the "Other Woman" is actually another man. Since this is the case, many of the same signs of infidelity apply. They are covered in detail in my book, Is He Cheating on You? - 829 Telltale Sign. . (Lifestyle Publications, $29.95)

There ARE telltale signs when man is on the down low. In order for a Black woman to protect herself against HIV/AIDS, she needs to know what these signs are. World AIDS Day is about awareness and education. So as a public service, I’ve compiled a 2-part tip sheet called the Down Low Dozen to give Black women the information they need about the down low.

The Down Low Dozen Tip Sheet Helps Black Women Protect Themselves.

Knowledge is power. The purpose of the Down Low Dozen tip sheet is to provide Black Women with practical ( and accurate) information they can use to help protect themselves against heterosexually-contracted HIV/AIDS.

Part 1 of the Down Low Dozen tip sheet outlines a 3-step process for finding out if a man is on down low. It also lists 12 specific telltale signs -- the down low dozen -- which in conjunction with other signs of infidelity, indicate that his partner is probably another man.

Part 2 of the Down Low Dozen tip sheet contains two dozen practical suggestions for the woman who suspects or finds out that her man is on the down low. It includes advice on what to do, how to confront a man about his down low status, how she can protect herself, and where to get help. For a FREE copy of the Down Low Dozen tip sheet, send an e-mail to downlowdozen@gmail.com with "down low dozen" in the subject line.

About Ruth Houston:

Infidelity expert Ruth is the author of Is He Cheating on You - 829 Telltale Signs. which documents practically every known sign of infidelity, including the subtle signs most women overlook. Ruth has been quoted in the New York Times, the New York Post, Newsday, the Toronto Sun, the Houston Chronicle, Cosmopolitan, the Christian Science Monitor, MSN Lifestyle, iVillage, AOL Black Voices. and numerous other print and online media. She has been a guest on The Today Show, Good Day New York, BBC, CBC, TalkAmerica, 1010 WINS and over 150 radio and TV talk shows in the United States, Europe, Canada, South America, New Zealand, and the Caribbean.

For more information, visit http://www.InfidelityAdvice.com

To schedule an interview with Ruth Houston, call 718 592-6039 or e-mail InfidelityExpert@gmail.com

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