Battle Against HIV/AIDS Calls for Greater Use of Soy
Soybean Growers Approve Resolutions that Fit with President's Plan

Soybean growers approved policy statements during their annual meeting that support greater use of soy in the battle against HIV/AIDS worldwide.  The American Soybean Association (ASA) members approved resolutions on March 1 that are timely as U.S. and other world leaders ramp up efforts, including providing better nutrition, to respond to the needs of the 42 million people worldwide who currently have HIV/AIDS.

President Bush announced a new Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief in his State of the Union address presented in January. Congress is now considering his request for $15 billion over the next five years to help people who currently have AIDS as well as slow the spread of the disease. This new initiative focuses on 2 million people in 14 African and Caribbean countries. It is in addition to the Global AIDS Fund where the United States and many other countries support programs in 50 countries.

Such programs need to have a nutritional focus. “Good nutrition is one of the easiest ways for the 42 million people worldwide who have HIV/AIDS to live better and potentially longer,” according to the World Health Organization and the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization. The two groups released a dietary manual in February, and at that time, FAO Food and Nutrition Director Kraisid Tontisirin stated that, “the nutritional aspect of HIV/AIDS has been ignored for a long time…The message was always, ‘take two tablets after meals,’ but they forgot about meals.”

Recognizing such needs, ASA delegates approved a resolution supporting U.S. government efforts to address the HIV/AIDS crises. They also expressed support for efforts to combat other devastating diseases, such as malaria and tuberculosis, where good nutrition is also key to improved health or recovery. “Soy offers many important nutritional benefits, and can play a valuable role in helping the President’s new initiative succeed,” said ASA President Dwain Ford, a soybean grower from Kinmundy, Illinois.

Many international organizations are already putting a greater emphasis on nutrition in their HIV/AIDS programs. On February 7, the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) announced they were formally joining forces to cope with the growing links between HIV/AIDS, regional food shortages and chronic hunger. "Food aid plays a pivotal role in responding to HIV/AIDS. The first thing poor families affected by AIDS ask for is not cash or drugs, it is food. And food has to be one of the weapons in the arsenal against this disease," said James T. Morris, WFP’s Executive Director.

Soy is recognized as a key ingredient in nutrition programs for people with HIV/AIDS. According to the Food and Nutrition Technical Assistance (FANTA) monograph on nutritional guidelines in the care of HIV-infected persons, calorie needs may increase 10-15% while protein requirements jump to 50-100% higher than for uninfected persons. In many cases, nutrition intervention may be the primary treatment for people with HIV infection. Even when consumed in small doses, soy may be ideally suited to help nutritional requirements for high-quality protein, calories and more. Soyfoods also come in many forms and concentrations, which makes it one of the easiest ways to increase protein in locally preferred diets.

“We are pleased that our product offers important health benefits to people with HIV/AIDS both domestically and overseas,” said Ford. “This potential for soy in developing countries is why we launched the World Initiative for Soy in Human Health (WISHH) Program in 2000. This program created an important foundation for groups that can use soy in their programs against HIV/AIDS.”

WISHH is working with numerous groups to improve nutrition with soy for people with HIV/AIDS. For example in Africa, WISHH has provided training on use of soy to groups such as Humana People to People that has “soy restaurants” to address the nutritional needs of participants in their integrated HIV/AIDS programs. WISHH is also collaborating on new programs for HIV/AIDS patients in India and Honduras.

Because of soy’s important role in improving nutritional profiles of international diets, the American Soybean Association, the United Soybean Board, and state soybean organizations launched WISHH. The initiative is helping America’s soybean growers build more bridges between America’s bounty and sustainable nutrition programs in countries where rapidly growing populations of all income levels can benefit from soy in their diets.