“HIV does not cause AIDS” and why we should care about AIDS Denialism

1. “HIV does not cause AIDS” and why we should care about AIDS Denialism

2. Denial means many things

3. Denial… refusal to recognize or acknowledge a problem

4. Denial… assertion that something said, believed, alleged, etc., is false:

5. Denial… defense mechanism to reduce anxiety by blocking intolerable thoughts and feelings

6. Mass Denial – social response to widespread trauma…war, genocide, disaster, plague

7. Denialism Refusal to accept an empirically verifiable reality… propagates denial based on false pretenses and misinformation

8. “Our view is really simple… HIV does not cause AIDS and HIV/AIDS may not exist at all. The burden of proof should rest on the mainstream which is why the most important thing dissidents should be doing is merely asking questions. It doesn't take long to realize that the mainstream can't answer our questions which proves their theories are full of holes.” Source Maggiore, AIDS Myth Exposed, October 19, 2009

9. What are the AIDS Denialists saying? ….in their own words

10. Denialists undermine HIV Treatment

11. Denialists sell “non-toxic” AIDS cures Gary Null, Vitamin Entrepreneur and AIDS denialist “Zinc is necessary for preventing and fighting diseases ranging from the common cold to AIDS.”

12. Denialists propagate pseudoscience Dr. Matthias RathVitamin Entrepreneur and AIDS denialist

13. Denialists try to influence public opinion Earth Day Exhibit, Orlando, 2009

14. Denialists campaign against AIDS Charities

15. Are AIDS denialists really harming anyone? AIDS Denialist Clark Baker with Karri Stokely, 2008

16. Kelly Landis Died December 2007 “a SAME-SEX=SIN=SICKNESS mindset (has) lead to the unquestioned acceptance of the HIV=AIDS=DEATH paradigm”

17. Jerry Collinard Died July 2009 Board member of San Diego HEAL. In 2001 he referred to himself as an ‘AIDS dissident’

18. Michael Bellefountaine Died May 2007 David Pasquarelli Died March 2004

19. Lambros Papantoniou Died May 2009 “Lambros attracted the attention of Andrew Maniotis, a scientist and AIDS denialist. Instead of his prescribed medicine, he was convinced to consume Maniotis-promoted vitamins.”

20. Christine Maggiore Died December 2008 Eliza Jane Scovill Died May 2005

21. Denying the Death of Christine Maggiore “It's horrible! Maggiore should never have watched it. Seeing this made the stress factor a much more stronger contributor to Maggiore's death. I used to think that a psychological stress factor wasn't really necessary to explain her recent death but now it appears inevitable to me that it played a significant role.” Sadun Kal http://forums.aidsmythexposed.com

22. Official AIDS Denialism Report on the Death of Christine Maggiore Performed by Mohammed Ali Al-Bayati, PhD, DABT, DABVT “Christine suffered fatal renal failure caused by antibiotics, antiviral, and calcium received during the 9 days prior to her death.” “Christine did not suffer from any AIDS indicator illness during the 2 years prior to her death and at the time of her death.” Posted December 9, 2009, www.rethinkingaids.com

23. 350,000 South Africans died and 35,000 infants infected as a result of failure to roll out HIV treatments between 2000 and 2005 Chigwedere et al., 2008, JAIDS Former South African President Thabo Mbeki and Christine Maggiore, 2000

24. Reliability of AIDS Denialism’s Impact in South Africa Nattrass, 2009, AIDS and Behavior

25. Why would anyone NOT listen to AIDS denialists? Why would anyone listen to AIDS denialists?

26. “Rex always said Christine was his heroine; she called him in the hospital urging him to stay the dissident course and not take the drugs…Now reality was staring us in the face and he was willing to look at it... I didn’t want to look; I wanted to pretend Christine was right, and HIV doesn’t cause AIDS. I wanted to pretend Rex would live. "Speaking in Tongues": An Essay on AIDS Denial by John Boucher

27. Model of AIDS Denialism Vulnerability HIV-Related Trauma (unacceptable risk HIV+ test result treatment failure network deaths) Effective Coping (engagement in care Informed decision making) Adequate Coping Resources Psychological vulnerability Malignant Denial (encapsulated delusion prolonged escape disengagement misinformed decisions) Initial Coping Response (Denial) Exposure to Denialism Social Context AIDS Stigma, Internet, Medical Mistrust Science Illiteracy

28. Studies of AIDS Denialism Vulnerability

29. Wald et al., 2009 • 149 African-American primary care HIV clinic patients • 17% endorse the belief, “HIV does not cause AIDS.” • Belief that HIV has not been proven to cause AIDS was associated with refusing ARV treatment, t = 2.57, p < .01

30. Kalichman et al., 2009 255 Men & 77 Women living with HIV in Atlanta 92% African-Amerian

31. Does holding AIDS denialist beliefs relate to demographic and health status? Do not believe there is a debate among scientists regarding HIV causing AIDS (n=220, 64%) Believe there is a debate among scientists regarding HIV causing AIDS (n=123, 36%)

32. Health status and believing there is a Debate on HIV causing AIDS Note: * p < .05

33. Reasons why participants are not taking HIV treatments Note: among 150 participants not on treatment; * p < .05

34. Is Internet use related to AIDS Denial beliefs?

35. Demographic and health characteristics of less and more frequent Internet users Note: * p < .05

36. AIDS Denialist Beliefs among less and more frequent Internet users Note: * p < .05

37. Participants read 3 Internet passages; 1 Control + 2 AIDS Denialist. Indicated whether they planned to search for more information from the source. Rated the passages for believability and trustworthiness (0-to-10 scale) Does interest in AIDS Denialist websites relate to AIDS denialist beliefs?

38. Tufts School of Medicine “Choose Snacks that work for you” Rath International: “Micronutrients Help Control AIDS” Jonathan Campbell; “A Cure for AIDS?” “immune enhancing nutrients, vitamin C

42. Model of AIDS Denialism Vulnerability HIV-Related Trauma (unacceptable risk HIV+ test result treatment failure network deaths) Effective Coping (engagement in care Informed decision making) Adequate Coping Resources Psychological vulnerability Malignant Denial (encapsulated delusion prolonged escape disengagement misinformed decisions) Initial Coping Response (Denial) Exposure to Denialism Social Context AIDS Stigma, Internet, Medical Mistrust Science Illiteracy

43. Points of Intervention Highly Resourced Support & Follow-up HIV-Related Trauma Coping Effectiveness Training Psychological vulnerability Initial Coping Response Effective Coping Exposure to Denialism Critical Thinking Skills Builiding Public Health Education Academic Accountability Social Context AIDS Stigma, Internet, Medical Mistrust Science Illiteracy

44. Conclusions AIDS denialist beliefs are prevalent among people living with HIV/AIDS The Internet plays a critical role in disseminating AIDS denialism Interventions are needed to address denialist beliefs and maladaptive coping

45. Denying AIDS All royalties buy HIV treatments in Africa Denying AIDS Conspiracy Theories, Pseudoscience, and Human Tragedy For more on AIDS Denial http://denyingaids.blogspot.com www.AIDSTruth.org