Nutrients play an important role in maintaining the health of the immune system. In a study related to the previously mentioned one, researchers Marianna Baum and Adriana Campa have been studying the the relation between nutrient deficits and immunity for many years. They noticed that some symptoms seen in people with AIDS are similar to those seen in people with severe zinc deficiencies, including:

• weakened immunity
• impaired sense of taste
• reduced appetite
• intestinal dysfunction
• diarrhea
• hair loss
• skin lesions
• lower-than-normal levels of testosterone

These researchers and their associates at academic centres in Miami, Florida, conducted a study to understand the relationship between zinc intake and survival in HIV positive people. They found that less-than-normal intake of zinc was linked to reduced survival.

Study details

Researchers regularly monitored 118 HIV positive drug users between 1994 and 1998. Subjects were interviewed about dietary habits and blood samples were analysed for zinc levels. The profile of subjects at the start of the study was as follows:

• 36% female, 64% male
• average age – 42 years
• 90% earned less than US $10,000 per year

Results

• 85% of subjects consumed less-than-normal levels of zinc from their diet.
• Not surprisingly, a large proportion of subjects – 57% – developed zinc deficiency.
• Low intake of zinc (less than 9 mg/day) was associated with low levels of zinc in subjects' blood samples.
• Subjects with low zinc levels in their blood were at least 10 times more likely to die than subjects with adequate zinc in their blood. This was the case even when researchers adjusted their calculations for those people with low CD4+ cell counts.
• The risk of dying from AIDS-related complications decreased by one-third for every 1 mg/day that intake of zinc increased. This relationship was not affected by CD4+ count or use of anti-HIV therapy.

According to the researchers, a clinical trial of supplemental zinc in HIV positive people is underway.

REFERENCE

Baum MK, Campa A, Lai S, et al. Zinc intake and mortality in HIV-1-infected drug users. XIV International AIDS Conference, July 7-12, 2002, Barcelona. Poster ThPeB7323.

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