Update

Food and nutrition to support people living with HIV are key elements to reach the UNAIDS Fast-Track Targets, according to the participants of a recent consultation on nutrition and HIV held in Geneva, Switzerland.

Coorganized by the World Food Programme and UNAIDS, the event focused on the critical importance of food and nutrition support for the 90–90–90 treatment targets, but also for preventing new HIV infections, especially among adolescent girls and young women.

The participants shared evidence and experience on the impacts of malnutrition and food insecurity on HIV treatment and on how food security and social protection contribute to preventing new HIV infections and to improving adherence among adolescents. The participants also noted that conducting HIV testing alongside child growth monitoring can enable more timely diagnosis and treatment of malnourished children living with HIV.

Lucie Cluver, Associate Professor at Oxford University, noted that in South Africa, adolescent girls who received food at school had a 40% reduction in unprotected or casual sex than those who did not receive food at school. And adolescents on HIV treatment who had enough food were two and a half times more likely to adhere to HIV treatment than their peers who did not.

According to the participants, the new UNAIDS 2016–2021 Strategy should focus on improving the quality of services provided to people living with and most affected by HIV. It should rely on multisectoral approaches that enable the delivery of integrated packages of support, including food and nutrition, social protection, livelihood support and education.