Can I get HIV from casual contact (handshake, toilet, cough, etc.)?
No, HIV is a fragile virus and dies within seconds when exposed to light and air (oxygen). Therefore HIV can only be transmitted when an HIV-negative person comes into contact with one of these four bodily fluids: blood, semen, vaginal fluid or breast milk. HIV is most often transmitted through unprotected sex and sharing needles. HIV can NOT be transmitted from hugging, kissing, shaking hands, sharing towels, sharing eating utensils, swimming in public pools, from a toilet seat, a drinking fountain, a door knob, dishes, drinking glasses, food, or pets. The three main ways HIV is transmitted are • through having sex (anal, vaginal, or oral) with someone infected with HIV. • through sharing needles and syringes with someone who has HIV. • through exposure (in the case of infants) to HIV before or during birth, or through breast feeding. Although contact with blood and other body substances can occur in households, transmission of HIV is rare in this setting. A small number of transmissi
Related Questions
- Can I get HIV from casual contact (shaking hands, hugging, using a toilet, drinking from the same glass, or sneezing and coughing of an infected person)?
- Can I get HIV from casual contact (shaking hands, hugging, using a toilet, drinking from the same glass, or the sneezing of an infected person)?
- Can I get HIV from casual contact (handshake, toilet, cough, etc.)?
