A review of Reviewed by Lon Morgan, DC This small book, first printed in 1987, is Harris Coulter's approach to the topic of AIDS. In the introduction Coulter makes the assertion that "AIDS is unlikely to spill outside the existing risk group"(mainly homosexuals and intravenous drug users). He further claims that "Most AIDS patients show evidence of past and/or present infection with syphilis . . ." Coulter goes on to deny that AIDS is caused by HIV(human immunodeficiency virus), that HIV attacks the immune system, that HIV is lethal, or that HIV accounts for the immunodeficiency found in AIDS. In fact Coulter considers the idea of HIV being lethal ". . . so absurd that deliberate deception of the public may be suspected." Coulter then introduces Syphilis as the recognized health hazard that it is, but then makes the assertion that ". . . the major cause of the present AIDS epidemic is the ongoing epidemic of syphilis, often masked by antibiotic abuse," and that ". . .the drugs used in modern medicine has helped prepare the ground for the modern scourge of AIDS." Coulter also considers "congenital AIDS" is just another name for "congenital syphilis." Coulter approves of the expressions that "HIV-1 is a biochemical marker of syphilis" and "AIDS is not caused by HIV but is a form of syphilis." Coulter is quite clear in his assertions: "This virus (HIV) does not
attack otherwise healthy persons and destroy their immune systems." For treatment of AIDS Coulter advocates homeopathy and/or typhoid vaccine combined with penicillin! (He has already castigated penicillin as the primary cause of AIDS?!?!) REALITY CHECK: * "The cause of AIDS is a virus known as the human immunodeficiency virus or HIV. The evidence that HIV causes AIDS is overwhelming. First, evidence of HIV infection is easily found in patients with AIDS when such evidence is sought. Second, the virus has been isolated and grown in pure culture from persons with the disease. Finally, studies of AIDS cases resulting from blood transfusions have documented the transmission of HIV to previously uninfected persons who have subsequently developed the disease. "(1) * The disease has long since broken out to infect heterosexual, non-syphilitic, non-drug using, healthy individuals.(2,3) * The proportion of all AIDS cases reported among adult and adolescent women has increased substantially.(5) * The future management/prevention of AIDS will include medications such protease inhibitors.(6) * A recent study demonstrates that syphilis is not even in the top 13 most frequent opportunistic infections associated with AIDS. These other infections include tuberculosis, pneumonia, Kaposi's sarcoma, candidiasis, toxoplasmosis, etc.(7) * Another recent study demonstrates that the incidence of syphilis is now at an all-time low: 3.2 cases per 100,000 population. The rate of syphilis declined 84 percent from 1990 to 1997. (8) This is the same time interval when AIDS incidence made huge increases. Decades of research have failed to substantiate Coulter's claims. |