Insight

Nutrition no substitute for HIV/AIDS and TB drugs

An exhaustive analysis of all scientific research on the links (if any) between improved nutrition and the treatment of both HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis has found no evidence that healthier eating is any substitute for correctly-used medical drugs.

The detailed report by a 15-member consensus panel of the prestigious Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) has been given to government and is now available online.

''The panel has concluded that no food, no component made from food, and no food supplement has been identified in any credible study as an effective alternative to appropriate medication,'' said Wits professor and National Health Laboratory Services pathologist Barry Mendelow, a specialist in blood disorders who chaired the study.

In October 2005, the Academy of Science of South Africa appointed the study panel, which included people such as Dr Mohamed Ali Dhansay of the Medical Research Council, Dr Clive Gray of the National Institute for Communicable Diseases and both Dr Helen Rees and Dr Francois Venter from the Reproductive Health and HIV Research Unit in Johannesburg.

The diverse panel included nutritionists, immunologists, biochemists, infectious disease physicians and paediatricians, policy experts, epidemiologists and generalists, according to Professor Robin Crewe, president of the Academy.

''There are many important issues in the report. One of our most important findings has been that nutrition is important for general health but is not sufficient to contain either the HIV/AIDS or the tuberculosis epidemic,'' panel member Dr Dan Ncayiyana, editor of the South African Medical Journal, said. ''We need a well-nourished nation. But a well-fed population on its own is not going to resist HIV/AIDS without anti-retroviral drugs.''

Professor of nutrition Esté Vorster, director of the Africa Unit for Transdisciplinary Health Research at North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus), said that malnutrition and poverty remained a contributing factor in many infections, including HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.

''Neither poverty nor malnutrition is the cause of HIV/AIDS or tuberculosis,'' she emphasised. ''South Africans need to eat a healthy diet with a variety of daily fruit and vegetables. But if you've been tested for HIV/AIDS and you know your status, you need to also know that supplements cannot compensate for eating healthily. In the same way, eating healthily cannot compensate for anti-retroviral drugs when indicated by a doctor. For both HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis, we have to rely on the appropriate medical drugs.''

More information:

 The full report or a condensed version can be viewed at http://www.assaf.org.za 

* The Academy of Science of South Africa, based in Pretoria, is a statutory body which concentrates on generating evidence-based advice to government and the nation in general. It is multi-disciplinary and independent, and has 276 Members drawn from top academics working in many institutions. It forms part of an international network of science academies spanning the globe, including the Royal Society in Britain of the National Academy of Sciences in the USA. The president of the Academy is Professor Robin Crewe and the Executive Officer is Professor Wieland Gevers.

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