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" Children infected with HIV could benefit from zinc supplements, according to new research.  The study by US scientists indicates that zinc supplements reduce diarrhoea and illness in children infected with the disease.  William Moss and colleagues from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health in Baltimore concluded that zinc supplements are a &amp;quot;safe, simple, and cost-effective method of reducing illness in children infected with HIV&amp;quot;.  There has been a question mark over the provision of zinc supplements to children with HIV infection, as the virus needs zinc for its structure and function, and zinc activates lymphocytes that are target cells for HIV-1 replication.  Dr Moss stated: &amp;quot;Few interventions are available to reduce morbidity in children with HIV-1 infection in resource-poor countries. Although UNAIDS, WHO, and their partners are committed to providing antiretroviral therapy to three million people by the end of 2005, antiretroviral therapy and prophylaxis for opportunistic infections are not accessible for many children.  &amp;quot;Consequently, more than half these children die before the age of 3 years, most commonly of respiratory tract infections and diarrhoeal diseases&#133;Zinc supplementation could be a simple and cost-effective intervention to reduce morbidity and mortality in children with HIV-1 infection.&amp;quot;  The results of the randomised trial are published in the latest issue of The Lancet. The study involved 96 children between the ages of six months and five years from Grey&#146;s hospital in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.  UNAids and the World Health Organisation estimate that the number of people living with HIV/Aids rose by five million this year. The number of people living with the disease now totals more than 40 million and three million people have dies of Aids-related causes in 2005. \u00A9 Adfero Ltd "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/healthy-living/news/a13056/zinc-could-help-hiv-kids/>