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Mary
G. Enig, PhD
Dr.
Mary G. Enig, a nutritionist widely known for her research on fats and
oils, is the Director of the Nutritional Sciences Division, Enig Associates,
Inc., Silver Spring, Maryland. She received her PhD from the University
of Maryland, College Park, and was a Faculty Research Associate from 1984
through 1991 with the Lipids Research Group in the Department of Chemistry
and Biochemistry. Dr. Enig is a Fellow of the American College of Nutrition,
and a member of the American Society for Nutritional Sciences. She has
played active roles in food labeling and composition issues at both federal
and state levels.
IS
IT TIME FOR A NEW SUPPORT REGIMEN?
In December 2000 several
announcements were made about the expected changes to treatment protocols
for individuals with HIV infection. These announcements were in opposition
to the previous recommendations from the mid-nineties, which had called
for early treatment with multiple protease inhibitor drug cocktails. This
aggressive approach, even when the HIV-positive (HIV+) individual did not
have active symptoms was done with the hope of the ultimate cure.
It was soon recognized
that these multiple drug cocktails did not produce an actual cure, and
when the drugs were stopped there was undesirable rebound of viral load.
Additionally, the side effects of these multiple drugs were unappealing
to many and of questionable safety. At the same time, many individuals
found that the regimen was too complicated and difficult to balance with
interacting foods and life schedules. Eventually this treatment approach
has been recognized as having too many side effects without real evidence
of potential for cure.
To those familiar with
the history of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, this signaled a time for re-evaluating
the natural history of HIV infection. Several things are now clear. (1)
HIV infection does not always progress immediately to AIDS. (2)
The increase in viral load is one of the major causes of the progression
to AIDS. (3) The decrease in CD4 and CD8 cells T-cells is also
another cause of disease progression. |
