DIET & NUTRITION =
Food for Persons on Treatment
What should a person taking ARV treatment do about food?
As for any person with HIV, someone taking ARV treatment should, as far as possible, eat a balanced diet. That means food that includes plenty of green vegetables, proteins, starches and fruit. Some fat is also necessary in the diet to help maintain health and to assist in absorbing some ARVs into the body.
A person taking ARVs should seek advice from a support group, health worker or nutritionist to work out the best diet possible within their resources.
How does ARV treatment affect a person’s eating?
If a person is tired and lacks the energy to prepare meals, they might not eat enough of the right foods. If this happens, they should try to get support, from their family, friends or home based care worker.
Several ARV drugs cause side effects that affect a person’s ability to eat. Some of these effects might disappear quickly, but others might last a long time.
If any side effects continue for a long time, a person should see their doctor or health worker. This is because the effects might be due to another health problem or require a change in the ARV treatment.
Often, a person can take simple actions to combat the side effects of ARVs. For example:
| Side effect | What a person can do |
|---|---|
| Nausea | Eat small meals and drink plenty of liquid to help the food go down. |
| Diarrhoea | Use some anti-diarrhoea medicine and drink plenty of fluids |
| Bad taste | Try other foods; avoid bad-tasting foods |
| Dry mouth | Eat foods that are liquid or wet such as soups, which are easier to swallow. Chew gum, because it can increase the amount of saliva in the mouth. |
| Sore mouth or difficulty chewing | Eat foods that are liquid or wet, because they will be easier to swallow. |
How do ARV treatment and food interact?
- Different ARVs interact with food in different ways.
- Some ARVs must be taken with meals which contain some fat, because this makes them more effective. Some others must be taken before meals so that they are absorbed quickly before food gets in the way. Others have to be taken after meals because they can irritate the stomach. For some drugs, it does not matter.
| Type of ARV | Take with food | Take just before or some time after food | Does not matter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nucleoside/ Nucleotide Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NRTIs) | Didanosine (ddI) (take ½ hour before food or 2 hours after – to ensure stomach is empty while drug is absorbed into body) | Zidovudine (AZT) Lamivudine (3TC) Stavudine (d4T) Abacavir (ABC) Tenofovir (TFV) | |
| Non-nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NNRTIs) | Efavirenz (EFV) (avoid taking after high-fat meals) | Nevirapine (NVP) | |
| Protease Inhibitors (PIs) | Ritonavir (RTV) Nelfinavir (NFV) Saquinavir (SQV) Lopinavir + ritonavir (Kaletra) | Indinavir (IDV) (take 1 hour before or 2 hours after a meal or with a low-fat meal) |
Research courtesy the International HIV AIDS Alliance
Supporting Community Action in Developing Countries
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