Milestone reached in 30-year AIDS epidemic as Food and Drug Administration approves Truvada, the first drug that prevents transmission of HIV

The 30-year AIDS epidemic reached a once-unseen milestone Monday as the feds approved the first drug that prevents the transmission of HIV. The Food and Drug Administration okayed Truvada, calling the little blue pill “an important milestone” in the struggle to curb a disease once considered a killer. The FDA’s decision comes less than two weeks after the agency approved the first over-the-counter HIV home test. And such testing is key, activists said, because too many New Yorkers have the virus that causes AIDS yet don’t know it. As a result, the approval of Truvada, manufactured by Gilead Sciences, was greeted with some apprehension. “We celebrate Truvada, [but] we still want to tell people to be sure they use all the tools . . . to prevent HIV,” said Marjorie Hill, CEO of the Gay Men’s Health Crisis. “The reality is this is one good tool, but it’s only one tool. We still need education, education, education.” About 50,000 Americans are diagnosed with HIV every year, and about 1.2 million people nationwide are living with the virus. Truvada has been on the market since 2004, but only as a treatment for people already infected by the human immunodeficiency virus. The FDA backing will allow the Foster City, Calif., company to market the breakthrough drug as an AIDS prevention med. It also sent the company’s share price soaring by 1.5%, up to $51.94 a share — not that the company was celebrating the bump. “Today’s decision is the culmination of almost 20 years of research involving investigators, academic and medical institutions, funding agencies and nearly 20,000 trial participants around the world,” said Norbert Bischofberger, a Gilead executive vice president. Clinical trials showed a daily dose of the compound can cut the risk of infection in healthy gay and bisexual men by 42%. For heterosexual couples in which one partner is HIV positive, the drug is 75% effective in preventing the disease. “It is exciting to consider the potential impact of this new HIV prevention tool, which could contribute to significantly reducing new HIV infections,” said Dr. Connie Celum of the University of Washington, who conducted some of the drug’s clinical trials. But Hill warned the drug should not be construed as a green light to toss the condoms and engage in promiscuity. “There’s always a concern when there’s good news that people will take that good news for more than what it’s worth,” Hill said. “This is not a cure. There’s no cure for HIV and AIDS.” FDA Commissioner Dr. Margaret Hamburg strongly recommended that people with a high risk for HIV continue to get tested and seek counseling for sexually transmitted diseases. “Today’s approval marks an important milestone in our fight against HIV,” Hamburg said. Dr. Debra Birnkrant, director of the Division of Antiviral Products at FDA, said the prevention pill is a giant leap from the 1980s and 1990s when HIV was considered a death sentence. “Medical advances, along with the availability of close to 30 approved individual HIV drugs, have enabled us to treat it as a chronic disease most of the time,” Birnkrant said. “But it is still better to prevent HIV than to treat a life-long infection of HIV.” Gilead Sciences officials said the drug will not be cheap. A prescription will run about $13,900 a year — but that’s cheaper than the yearly cost of a course of anti-HIV medications. Officials said Truvada’s side effects include headaches, nausea, vomiting, muscle pain, weakness, weight loss and a decrease in bone density

Weight Loss and Herbal Remedies

Herbal Remedies helps you in Weight loss

Now a days people are suffering for over weighted health problems, they are founding the suitable ways to weight lose. To lose weight, we can not only dieting or going to the gym, but we can also recruit the help of nature for our better health.

There are many herbs, foods or herbs that help to eliminate those extra kilos, but naturally, without resorting to chemicals that can affect our health and that people with a disease cannot eat.

One of the key advantages of medicinal plants is that we can consume at any time of day. It can be prepared in infusions, detections or eating in preparations. Here are five herbs to lose weight.

Green tea

Green tea becomes more popular in West to lose weight. It is an ancient beverage, very traditional in China. The green tea known as green tea because it’s has a very brief drying process before consumed.

The most popular properties of green tea allied with weight loss. It’s helping to burn more calories and lowers cholesterol levels in our body.

Green tea should place a teaspoon in a cup of boiling water and let stand for three minutes, if you prefer you can also prepare a tea spoonful in a quart of water and go drinking it throughout the day.

There is no known contraindications even green tea, except for those with gastric problems or who have intolerance to caffeine, because if it contains less caffeine than coffee, its levels are high.

Watercress

Watercress is a safe to eat plant of which there are many varieties. Not everyone used to eating watercress, but is rich in all kinds of salads, especially in combination with other green vegetables like spinach.

Watercress are extremely rich in vitamins, like vitamin A, B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, etc. and minerals such as iron, calcium, potassium, phosphorus. Watercress has a lot of specialty for our body, especially it help us to lose weight because it is very low in calories and a powerful diuretic, and entrails accelerator. Which definitely help us to weight loss.

Litchi

Litchi is a fruit very showy, native to China. Outside is pink and wrinkled skin and inside is white and tender, with a large seed in the center. It consists of large amounts of water, which favors its diuretic properties and make it a suitable fruit for weight loss.

Studies in Japan, indicated that people who consumed Litchi during a period of time, reduced their abdominal fat, but in turn obtained other health benefits linked to the prevention of diabetes and hypertension, in turn has great antioxidant properties thanks to its high content of vitamin C.

It is also a very sweet delicious fruit and low in calories, ideal dessert to suppress, which will also help us lose weight.

Onion

Onion is another medicinal plants suited to help us lose weight.

Familiar characteristic of the onion helped with weight loss are: purifying is therefore accelerates the intestinal is diuretic, for which stimulates the renal system, preventing fluid retention, and finally controls the operation of the system tract.

For the onions retain their properties as cash is eaten raw, with it you can make teas, smoothies, salads and juices.

Horehound

Horehound, aka grass frog, is an herb that grows as a bush. Its stems are long and the leaves are off-white and can be recognized by its distinctive aroma similar to that of the apple.

Horehound has great slimming properties, as their consumption reduces appetite, aids digestion and helps eliminate body gases. The most traditional way to eat horehound is brewing in boiling water and drink several times a day.

At the same time have excellent results in treatments for asthma, bronchitis and colds, in these cases it is best to sprays, or even bathing.

Recommendations:

In general, all these herbal plants are harmless, but none of them is recommended without consulting your doctor, especially in children under three, pregnant women or people suffering from illness.

Also remember that weight loss is not sufficient to consume herbal plants, but also have to make a low calorie diet and exercise.