HIV basics
What is HIV?
HIV is a virus that affects the immune system. Effective treatment helps people with HIV stay healthy.
Read guide →UNDERSTAND HIV · 5 GUIDES
HIV basics
The essential ideas to help you read, ask questions, and plan your next step.
FAST FACTS
HIV basics: key facts
A quick, accurate orientation before you open a guide.
1
A test is the only way to know your HIV status.
U=U
An undetectable viral load means HIV is not passed on through sex.
0
No risk from hugging, sharing food, toilets, or insect bites.
INFOGRAPHIC
HIV basics at a glance
Three foundational ideas: understand HIV, test to know, and treat to protect health.
- HIV affects cells that help the body fight infections.
- A test is the only way to know HIV status; symptoms and appearance cannot confirm or rule it out.
- Effective HIV treatment supports a long, healthy, active life.
- HIV does not spread through everyday contact such as hugging or sharing food.
VISUAL SUMMARY
A path through HIV basics
Start with the guide that matches your question. The sequence is flexible—you can enter at any point.
What is HIV?
HIV is a virus that affects the immune system. Effective treatment helps people with HIV stay healthy.
HIV and AIDS: what is the difference?
HIV is the virus. AIDS describes the most advanced stage of HIV when it has not been treated.
Stages and symptoms
Symptoms alone cannot tell you whether you have HIV; some people have no noticeable symptoms for years.
Viral load and CD4
These two tests help a care team understand how HIV and treatment are affecting the body.
U=U explained
A person with HIV who takes treatment and maintains an undetectable viral load does not transmit HIV through sex.
This visual is a guide to the page—not a personal diagnosis or treatment recommendation.
HIV basics
HIV and AIDS: what is the difference?
HIV is the virus. AIDS describes the most advanced stage of HIV when it has not been treated.
Read guide →HIV basics
Stages and symptoms
Symptoms alone cannot tell you whether you have HIV; some people have no noticeable symptoms for years.
Read guide →HIV basics
Viral load and CD4
These two tests help a care team understand how HIV and treatment are affecting the body.
Read guide →HIV basics
U=U explained
A person with HIV who takes treatment and maintains an undetectable viral load does not transmit HIV through sex.
Read guide →DETAILED GUIDE
A quick guide to HIV basics
What HIV basics means for you
The essential ideas to help you read, ask questions, and plan your next step. That short answer is the place to begin; what matters next is how it fits your situation—your reason for reading, the timing of any event, and the support you can reach. Treat this guide as a map: it can help you prepare and ask better questions, while a qualified health professional applies the details to you.
The essentials for HIV basics
HIV is a virus that affects the immune system; it is not the same as AIDS, the most advanced untreated stage. Symptoms cannot confirm or rule it out, so a test is the only way to know your status. HIV passes only through specific body fluids in specific situations—not through everyday contact such as hugging or sharing food—and effective treatment can make the virus undetectable.
Turn it into one next step
You do not need perfect medical words. Note any relevant dates, test names, or medicines, then choose one manageable action. For this page, a useful next step is read what is hiv?—a suggestion, not a rule. If it feels too big, make it smaller: save a phone number, check opening hours, or tell someone you trust. The plan can change as a result or new information arrives.