How to spot HIV/AIDS fraud

[Guest guest]

Fact Sheet 206

HOW TO SPOT HIV/AIDS FRAUD

· WHAT IS HIV/AIDS FRAUD?

· WARNING SIGNS OF AN HIV FRAUD

· COMMON SENSE ABOUT UNPROVEN TREATMENTS

· QUESTIONS YOU SHOULD ASK

· TAKE YOUR TIME; CHECK IT OUT

· THE BOTTOM LINE

WHAT IS HIV/AIDS FRAUD?

HIV fraud is the promotion, advertisement, or sale of products that

are supposed to diagnose, treat, or cure HIV when those products have

not been proven to be safe and effective for those purposes.

Regular medicine does not have a cure for HIV. Because it is a

serious illness, many people with HIV disease are willing to try

almost anything to get healthy. Some unproven treatments may be

harmless, but others can be dangerous. For example, one brand

of " Brain Wave Synchronizer " caused epileptic seizures.

Be careful when you choose treatments for HIV disease. This fact

sheet will help you evaluate treatments and be sure that you're not

dealing with an HIV fraud.

WARNING SIGNS OF AN HIV FRAUD

If you notice any of these warning signs when you consider an HIV

therapy, be very careful! The treatment might still be a good one,

but you should ask extra questions about it. If it sounds too good to

be true, it probably is.

· The product prevents or cures HIV or AIDS. Researchers have been

working hard for over 10 years, but there is not yet any known cure

for HIV or AIDS. The only sure way to prevent AIDS is to avoid being

infected with the HIV virus.

· The product is a quick cure for a wide range of ailments. Most

products are effective only against a specific illness or a few

closely related medical problems.

· Personal success stories are the only evidence that the treatment

works. Of course, if a treatment works, you can find people who will

tell you about it. But testimonials don't prove that the treatment

worked. Look for results of research studies or other evidence.

· Be suspicious if the promoters use key words like miraculous cure,

amazing breakthrough, foolproof, suppressed treatments, or secret

ingredients. These words are often used to make you think that a

treatment is valuable even though there may be no proof that it

works.

· The treatment was discovered and tested in another country, or is

only available outside the US. Certainly, valuable treatments are

developed and tested in other countries. However, many other

countries permit health claims without the kinds of proof required in

the United States.

· The treatment is only available privately, for a short time, or

from only one source; or if it requires payment in advance. If a

product really works, why isn't it advertised and available publicly?

This may be a way to get around government regulations.

· You can only get the treatment by paying to take part in testing an

experimental treatment. When most experimental treatments are tested,

people receive them free of charge.

COMMON SENSE ABOUT UNPROVEN TREATMENTS

You might end up spending a lot of money on treatments that don't

work. If you believe they are helping you, and you can afford to pay

for them, they might be all right. But remember:

· Some unproven treatments might be harmful to your health.

· Health insurance will not pay for them.

· Using unproven treatments could make you delay using other

treatments that really work, giving your illness time to get worse.

QUESTIONS YOU SHOULD ASK

You should be careful about any HIV treatment, and especially if you

see any of the warning signs of fraud. It can be difficult to know

what's true and what's not, because many legitimate HIV treatments

are very expensive and difficult to understand. Here are some

questions to ask about HIV treatments:

· Can you give me some written information about the product?

· Did the Food and Drug Administration approve this product or

treatment? If not, why not?

· Which company manufactures this product? How can I contact them?

· What uses has the product been tested for? Where can I see the test

results?

· What are the side effects, or other risks, of using this product or

treatment?

· Who can my doctor call for more information?

TAKE YOUR TIME; CHECK IT OUT

If you ever feel pressured to make a decision about an HIV therapy

before you feel ready, don't do it! Legitimate health care providers

should not be opposed if you want to get more information about a new

treatment or product.

Take your time to get more information from sources that you trust,

such as:

· Your case manager

· Your HIV doctor

· An HIV/AIDS service agency

· The US National AIDS Hotline at 1-800-342-2437

· The US National AIDS Treatment Information Service at 1-800-448-0440

· Project Inform, a community organization with a national hotline on

AIDS treatment at (US) 1-800-822-7422.

If you think you have found an HIV/AIDS fraud, you can report it to

the US National AIDS Health Fraud Hotline at 1-888-332-1820.

THE BOTTOM LINE

HIV disease is very complicated. No cure has been developed yet.

There are many different treatments and products that claim to help

people with HIV disease. Some of these have not been carefully

tested, and some might even be harmful.

Take your time to evaluate any product or treatment, especially if

you see any of the warning signs of an HIV fraud.

http://aidsinfonet.org/articles.php?articleID=206