Bodily Fluids
There are 4 infectious bodily fluids that can transmit HIV: blood, semen (including pre-cum or pre-ejaculatory fluid), vaginal secretions, and breast milk. The only way you can get HIV is to get someone else’s infected blood, semen, vaginal secretions, or breast milk into your body.

Behaviors
When thinking about HIV risk, it is important to think not about types of people, but rather types of behaviors. While it is true that men who have sex with men are statistically a group that makes up a large percentage of HIV infections, just because a man has sex with another man doesn’t mean that he is going to be at risk for HIV. It is what a person does, how they do it and who they do it with that determines their risk—not whether they are gay, straight, bisexual or questioning.

HIV dies pretty quickly once it leaves the body, so the most efficient way to transmit the virus is going directly from one person’s body to another. Today, the two main ways people are infected with HIV is through unprotected sex and sharing dirty needles. It is also possible for a pregnant HIV positive mother to transmit the virus to her baby either during birth or through breastfeeding. Historically, blood transfusions have also been a risk, but no longer is this the case.

Sex: When thinking about sex, it is important to remember that there are 3 kinds of sex that can transmit infections: oral, vaginal, and anal. For HIV risk, anal sex is the riskiest because of the thin layer of skin lining the anus and because of the absence of natural lubrication. The person who is the receptive, or receiving partner is at greater risk of contracting HIV. This could be the woman in vaginal sex or whichever partner is on “bottom” during anal sex. The insertive (or giving or “top”) partner is still at risk, though the risk is not as great as for the receiving person. Using a condom or a latex barrier (for oral sex on a woman) can significantly reduce your chances of getting HIV from sex.

Needles: Sharing a needle, whether it is for drugs, hormones, or insulin, with someone who is HIV positive is a risk for HIV. The risk can be reduced if the needle is cleaned with water and bleach, but this does not guarantee the needle is free from HIV.
Birth/breastfeeding: If a woman has HIV and does not take any medications, her baby has a 25% chance of getting infected. If the mom is taking medications and taking care of herself, the risk is lowered to 1%. In this country, we are good at protecting the babies of moms who know they are infected with HIV. There is currently no needle exchange program in Stanislaus County.

Blood to Blood Contact: Any blood to blood contact with an infected person could transmit the virus. This could happen during a fight, or becoming “blood brothers” or “blood sisters,” or with health care or law enforcement personnel.

Transfusion: The blood industry began screening all donated blood for HIV in 1985. If you get a transfusion today, there is little to no risk of getting HIV from the donated blood.