Consumption of even moderate amounts of alcohol may increase people’s vulnerability to the AIDS virus and may cause infected people to move faster into full-blown AIDS, a Philadelphia research team has warned.
“These studies show that even casual consumption of alcohol Stimulates replication of the AIDS vims in cell cultures,” says Dr. Omar Bagasra of Thomas Jefferson University, Bagasra conducted the study with Dr. Roger Pomeriantz of Jefferson, Because the research was based only on studies of blood cells in laboratory dishes, and not in people, some other researchers and spectical, Dr Kenrad Nelson of the Johns Hopkins School of public health says past studies of alcohol use in persons infected by the human immunodeficiency virus show no evidence that the progression to AIDS is faster in those who drink. “Clearly this is interesting and important,” Nelson said. “But so far the results are not impressive. I’m special that alcohol is a very important factor once a person infected. And it’s still an open question whether it is a cofactor for infection . In HIV positive individuals drinking alcohol may accelerate the progression of the virus.
Article extracted from this publication >> April 23, 1993
