I hope I find you in good health. There has been some heated debate in the press recently on whether HIV can be spread through kissing. Beatrice Tonhodzayi started the fire in her "Lets Talk About Aids" column ( I think she is doing a terrific job). I got a flood of e-mails wanting me to confirm, clarify or explain whether this was true or not. So heated has been the debate that the only way to cool it is to let it burn and I'm going to do just that.
HIV has been found in saliva and tears in very low quantities from some AIDS patients. It is important to understand that finding a small amount of HIV in a body fluid does not necessarily mean that HIV can be transmitted by that body fluid. Contact with saliva or tears, has not been shown to result in transmission of HIV.
Kissing someone on the cheek, also known as social kissing, does not pose any risk of HIV transmission. However deep or open mouthed or so called "French" kissing is considered a very low risk activity for transmission of HIV. This is because HIV is present in saliva but only in very minute quantities, insufficient to lead to HIV infection alone. You need a certain minimum concentration of the virus to be able to infect someone.
In theory, kissing in which saliva is exchanged can transmit HIV infection, but in reality, there are no proven cases. Several possible cases have arisen, but were subsequently disproved. There has been a single documented case so far of probable transmission of HIV through kissing. In July 1997 the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) researchers, investigated a case of HIV transmission from an HIV-infected man to his female partner. The couple reported using condoms consistently and correctly during the probable period of viral transmission. After eliminating all other possible risk factors, the investigators concluded that the woman most likely became infected through mucous membrane exposure to her partner's saliva that was contaminated by blood from bleeding gums.

But as it turns out, even the CDC can't really be sure the HIV was transmitted from the man to the woman through kissing. Although the couple claimed they always used a condom and never had anal sex, the claims are unverified. They also claim their oral sex activity did not involve transmission of semen or blood. (I guess we all know how effective the withdrawal method of birth control is?) And the woman denied having sex with others. (How many women or men would admit to cheating?). So there are a lot of holes in this claim.
Saliva contains such low concentrations of the virus, that infection via saliva is unlikely. There is a great deal of evidence to support this fact. In a study of 79 men with AIDS, the virus could be found in the saliva of only one. This man had pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP), oral thrush, and other mouth and throat lesions. Even in this man, the level of virus found in his saliva was 10,000 times less than the level in his blood. To this study we can add the evidence of the countless numbers of people who have had saliva contact with people with AIDS or others who have been infected. This contact has occurred through kissing, sharing food, sharing cigarettes, and many other means. There was no evidence that these activities have transmitted the virus even a single time. Recent findings suggest that saliva contains some germ-killing enzyme which seem effective against HIV. Certainly there is a lot at work in the mouth combining to make the mouth an hostile environment for the virus. They are acids, enzymes, friction, dilution, air, and more.
Another factor that must be considered, however, is blood in the mouth. If a person is infected, his or her blood contains a high concentration of the virus and blood is far more infectious than saliva alone. The presence of blood in the mouth is a common event and sometimes its not obvious. Blood in the mouth may originate from bites, abrasions, flossing, oral sores and bleeding gums. Kissing, if done roughly, can also create bleeding points in the mucous membranes of the gums and cheeks. When both partners have cuts or sores then there is a possibility of blood (not saliva) transmission of HIV in the mouth. If you or your partner have blood in the mouth, you should avoid kissing until the bleeding stops.
However, many infected individuals at high-risk for infection are being told that kissing is totally safe. This advice may not be wise. The risk of catching HIV infection from wet kissing is close to zero, but it is not zero so you still need to proceed with caution

Till next week take care of yourself and each other. And remember, '…in all your getting, get understanding.' (Proverbs 4 verse 7).