HIV in Saliva

Many people live with the myth, that HIV and its harmful components are present in the saliva of a HIV positive person. Hence, kissing or sharing food with the patient can be contagious due to the presence of HIV in saliva. However, this is not true. Though the saliva might carry HIV viral RNA or proviral DNA, they are not harmful, when they reside in the human saliva.

Why HIV is harmless and inactive in saliva?

The saliva does not carry HIV that could be infectious or contagious. This is because; the saliva does not offer a very favorable condition for the sustenance of HIV. In fact, saliva is a good agent of destroying this virus. It carries special antibodies that fight the HIV components. The antiseptic and "hypotonic" property of saliva is conditioned to destroy any foreign cell that is present in the mouth. It works as a natural defense mechanism in our body.

There have been a number of studies conducted to test the presence of HIV in saliva. In a test conducted on 1000 patients, only one was found to be carrying HIV in his saliva and that too in a meager quantity i.e. 1000 times less that than of what he was carrying in his blood. Other tests tried to detect the possibility of contraction of the disease through kissing. No evidence could prove the hypothesis that the disease could be transferred through HIV in saliva.

What does the saliva do?

HIV requires a good quantity of salt for its survival. Therefore, blood gives HIV the most favorable environment for propagation. Saliva, on the contrary, deactivates 90% of the HIV- infected leukocytes, due to lack of salt. Leukocytes or the blood cells, which help in the transmission of HIV to the mucosal surface, fail to succeed in their purpose. The HIV in saliva expands and bursts, due to lack of salt.

Therefore the saliva serves two purposes :

• Its antiseptic property kills the freely moving HIV in saliva and other parts of our mouth
• It destroys those HIV infected cells, which are the main culprits in the transmission of the disease.

Nevertheless, the transmission of HIV through kissing is only possible, if both the partners have deep sore in their mouths, deep cut, or heavily bleeding gums. However, the reason behind this contraction cannot exactly be pertained to saliva. Rather, it would be the blood, that would act as the carrier of the HIV virus from one person into the blood stream of the other.

Other bodily fluids that are free from HIV are sweats, tears and urine. Therefore, one should not panic if he is exposed to these bodily fluids of an HIV positive person. There is no harm in:

• Sharing food
• Eating together
• Using the same toilet
• Sharing clothes
• Sharing the same swimming pool

The fluids that can cause harm are blood, semen and breast milk. Therefore, before coming to contact with these fluids, one must take enough precautions.