Outsmarting HIV With Healthy Eating Living with a chronic
illness like HIV can present certain nutritional challenges.
Without effective HIV medication treatment, replicating virus
can tax the body, destroying lean body mass and impairing immune
function and quality of life.1,2 While this destruction of lean
tissue can be controlled with effective HIV antiretroviral
combination therapy, other challenges like fat accumulation and
increases in lipids (cholesterol and triglycerides) and/or
insulin resistance may arise in some patients after treatment
initiation.3 Although limited research has been done on the
effects of nutritional approaches on pre- and post-HAART (highly
active antiretroviral therapy) metabolic issues, general
suggestions can be extracted from studies regarding other
conditions like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity.
These suggestions are aimed at helping the body deal with the
effects of HIV or its medications on metabolism, body shape, and
quality of life as we live longer with H