CFNI Launches Handbook Conducts Workshop for People Living with HIV/AIDS

The Caribbean Food and Nutrition Institute (CFNI) has organised a workshop designed to highlight the importance of good nutritional habits for people living with HIV/AIDS.
The three-day workshop, which got underway yesterday (Sept. 1) at the Holiday Inn Sunspree Resort in St. James, is targeted at persons living with the disease and their caregivers. The event coincided with the launch of the CFNI handbook on nutrition and HIV/AIDS, entitled ‘Healthy Eating for Better Living’.
Director of the CFNI, Dr. Fitzroy Henry, explained that the handbook was intended for people living with HIV/AIDS and underscored the importance of nutrition in the treatment and care of persons with the disease. He said that a similar publication for health professionals would be launched before the end of the year.
The handbook was first launched in Guyana in 2002 and Jamaica is the 14th of 18 countries in the region where the book will be made available.
Mr. Henry said that the response towards the production has been tremendous, as there was now increased demand for nutritional information relating to HIV/AIDS care and treatment.
Minister of Health, John Junor, who was at the launch, said that the treatment of HIV/AIDS could only be effective if it was coupled with good nutrition.
“Nutrition really permeates all aspects of human life even before we are born, our existence throughout life, and in fact influences issues like how productive we are. We must recognize its importance in the treatment of disease, and particularly HIV/AIDS,” stated.
The Health Minister pointed out that nutrition intervention should take high priority from the moment an individual received a positive diagnosis of HIV, noting that poor nutritional habits would compromise the immune system of the infected person and increase their susceptibility to other infections.
Copies of the handbook are now available at the CFNI at the University of the West Indies or from the Ministry of Health.