HIV & Weight Loss

People living with HIV may experience severe weight loss in the last two stages of HIV disease: symptomatic HIV and AIDS. This condition is contributed to by both the effects of HIV disease itself as well as by the side effects of medications used to treat HIV disease. The good news for sufferers is that there are positive steps that can be taken to control wasting.

Stages

Wasting is a condition that begins in the third stage of HIV disease, symptomatic HIV, and continues into the fourth stage, AIDS. According to AIDS.org, wasting involves the loss of 10 percent or more of body weight, both fat and lean muscle mass, and is caused by a complex interaction of symptoms and conditions caused by HIV-disease and antiretroviral therapy side effects.

HIV-Disease

The effects of HIV include infections of the mouth and digestive system that cause low nutrient absorption or loss of appetite. AIDS.org also notes that people with HIV disease require more calories than others to maintain weight, but it is difficult to get them because of the symptoms of HIV, including severe diarrhea that sets in during symptomatic HIV, according to HIV-Symptoms.info. Weakness experienced during HIV-disease may also make people less likely to shop for and prepare healthy food.

Antiretroviral Therapy

Side effects of antiretroviral therapy can contribute to wasting. Common side effects of antiretrovial drugs include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, all of which make maintaining proper nutrition difficult. To learn more about the side effects of antiretroviral drugs, see Resources.

Conversely, these drugs are needed to manage the effects of HIV-disease that contribute to wasting and other conditions, so treatment should not be changed or stopped with a physician's advice.

Diet

Although difficult, it is important for people with advanced HIV-disease to maintain a healthy diet; a good diet throughout HIV disease can also help mitigate later wasting. AIDS.org reports that techniques to reduce nausea, vomiting and diarrhea make this easier.

Exercise

Exercise is an important step in mitigating the effects of wasting. In addition to having a positive effect on the body's immune response, the Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC) reports that exercise stimulates appetite and builds muscle mass, which is lost in wasting.