What Is HIV? To understand what HIV is, let’s break it down: H –
Human – This particular virus can only infect human beings. I –
Immunodeficiency – HIV weakens your immune system by destroying
important cells that fight disease and infection. A "deficient"
immune system can't protect you. V – Virus – A virus can only
reproduce itself by taking over a cell in the body of its host.
Human Immunodeficiency Virus is a lot like other viruses,
including those that cause the "flu" or the common cold. But
there is an important difference – over time, your immune system
can clear most viruses out of your body. That isn't the case
with HIV – the human immune system can't seem to get rid of it.
Scientists are still trying to figure out why. We know that HIV
can hide for long periods of time in the cells of your body and
that it attacks a key part of your immune system – your T-cells
or CD4 cells. Your body has to have these cells to fight
infections and disease, but HIV invades them, uses them to make
more copies of itse