| | Habits for Years | Aging | HIV/AIDS |
| Lean Tissue and Muscle Mass Loss | Were you active and athletic or sedentary? The more lean tissue you have throughout life, the better you will be. | As we age we tend to be less active, lose muscle and put on fat. Start exercising again today. Testosterone decreases as we age. Menopause raises related issues. | The virus takes lean tissue and fat in weight loss. But more fat is gained back than lean tissue when weight is regained compared to weight gain in an uninfected person. |
| Drug Interactions and Reactions | Did you pop pills (any kind, over-the-counter, prescription, or street)? Did you use dope of any kind? Alcohol? Methadone? What was in that dope you bought in the street? What was it cut with? Does it interact with your medication? Have you told health care provider about your habits? | As we age we tend to use more medication. At what point does the negative drug interaction start? Who is paying attention? Does any one provider monitor all of our medications? | Lipodystrophy, breast enlargement, diabetes, heart disease and osteonecrosis. Can anything help with these horrible disorders? |
| Eating Habits | Were ketchup and mustard your vegetables? Did your vitamin C come from French fries? Were you on the SAD diet (Standard American Diet)? Were you constipated often? Did you have a hard time with certain food, such as milk? Did you know how your food was prepared? Malnutrition impairs immunity. | Idiopathic bowel disease may come from a life-long habit of not eating enough vegetables and fruits. Our stomach acid gets weaker as we get older, making digestion less efficient and preparing the way for H. pylori and reduced amounts of Vitamin B12. Combine this with a loss of muscle tone in our GI tract and we wind up with gastrointestinal problems. | HIV likes to live in our gut. This has a negative impact on digestion. A low T-cell count paves the way for various parasites to become established, and for H. pylori to grow in our stomachs. Combine this with a decrease in stomach acid and one of the results is we have to compete with the bacteria for the Vitamin B12 produced. |
| Vitamins, Minerals and Phytochemicals | Did you eat enough fruits, vegetables and whole grains or take a vitamin pill? Or were you on a junk food mission? Somewhere in between? | As we age we tend not to get enough Vitamin B2, Folate, E, Selenium, protein, calories, calcium and vitamins A and D. Is there enough food at home? Do you skip meals? | If you are HIV+ you need more vitamins B12, Folate, E, Selenium, protein, calories, other B vitamins, C, Zinc and iron. Can you cook? Do you have cooking facilities? Food? |
| Illnesses | Were you ill often? Do you have any chronic illnesses? Any structural problems? Obesity? If you are gay or bisexual, do you feel left out or guilty about being HIV-positive? | Cardiovascular disease, cancer, hypertension, vision, bone and skin problems, diabetes and Kaposi's sarcoma increase as we get older. | Don't confuse AIDS-related dementia with Alzheimer's. Are opportunistic infections age-related, HIV-related, or a combination of both? End-stage liver disease is a top killer today. |
| Medical Issues | Do you have baseline medical measurements such as: cholesterol, triglycerides, PSA, Pap smear, mammogram, sugar levels, liver enzymes, kidney function, bone density, BIA, blood pressure, eye exams, dental care, vaccines? | How have these test results changed through the years? How about macular degeneration? Glaucoma? Did you ever get baseline measurements done? Were they thought to be unnecessary or too expensive? | How does HIV/AIDS alter these test results? Have you been tested for diabetes? Bone density? CMV retinitis? Hepatitis? HIV genotype and phenotype? Ultra-sensitive viral load test? |
| Psycho-Social Issues and Stress | Class, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender, education, neighborhood, and job all impact on how you relate to the world and how the world treats you. Do you love who you are? Do you have enough money to live? | Aging is gentler when you are rich and healthy. Stress and hypertension are exacerbated by racism in people of color. Feeling "old" is more closely related to social attitudes and personal feelings than to age. | Are you depressed? Do you feel like a pariah and expendable in the eyes of society? Do you hide out from others? Do you feel desirable? |
| Sex Drive | Use it or lose it. Practice safe sex all the time. Do you compare yourself or your mate to the false images in our TV commercials and magazines? Do you fall short of perfection? The entire human race falls short. Do you feel guilty about your sexual desire? | We don't describe our elders as sexy. "Dirty old man" or "little old lady" is what we say. Hormone levels do go down as we get older. Other problems may be the cause of impotence or decreased sexual interest in men. Do you feel vital and attractive? | Hormone levels do decrease. Vaginal secretions decrease. Anemia, wasting and liver disease may add to fatigue and lack of sexual interest. Safe sex isn't important only for youngsters or people who are HIV-negative. |
| Smoking | The longer you smoke, the worse it gets. Smoking and drinking alcohol makes the ill effects of both drugs worse. | Smoking is a systemic poison. The list of illnesses made worse by smoking gets longer every day. Stop completely, or at least cut down. | Smoking is a great way to help the virus kill off you immune system. Stop smoking today, or at least cut down. |
