More Chinese getting HIV when cases in rest of world are falling. It’s because of ignorance about sex, say experts
- Dating apps make it easier for young people to hook up, old people are turning to each other for comfort – and the number of new cases of HIV is on the rise
- Few Chinese have had any sex education, and many still think it is mostly gay people who catch HIV, while old people view it as something only the young get
The spread of dating apps and increased mobile phone usage have made it much easier for Chinese people to find potential sexual partners. However, given the lack of proper sex education in schools, this has left young people more vulnerable to contracting HIV – the virus that can cause Aids.
“Those hook-up apps accelerate the spread of the disease,” said Xiao Dong, director of Man Wellness Centre, an HIV testing centre based in Beijing.
According to China’s Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of new HIV infections among people over 50 years old rose more than 11-fold between 2007 and 2017, from 2,565 cases a year to 29,860.
Shao Yiming, the CDC’s chief HIV expert, told online news portal Ifeng News this week that one of the oldest patients to contract HIV was 93 years old.
“The person was fine at 91 years old but contracted the disease at 93,” he said.