|
The purpose of our first trip to Uganda in 2005 was to assist with the trial of a simple vitamin and amino acid supplement for people living with HIV/AIDS. This project was organized by the Victoria-based organization, Friends of Mengo Hospital Canada.
The study, led by Canadian Respirologist Dr. Jim Sparling and Ugandan HIV specialist Dr. Edith Namulema, was an investigation of a nutritional supplement containing selenium, cysteine, glutamine, and tryptophan to see if it could alter the progression of HIV infection.
The research follows the work of the late Dr. Harold D. Foster, who was a Professor of Geography at the University of Victoria. He hypothesized that the HIV virus, which encodes a selenium dependent enzyme called glutathione peroxidase, causes a multiple depletion process reducing body selenium levels along with the levels of the three amino acids. All these factors are constituents of human glutathione which plays an important role in the immune system.
|
|
HIV counseling staff in 2005. Now there are over 50!
|
| We also spent time with the Saturday Club. This is a support program for 4 to 10 year old children living with HIV most of whom have been orphaned by the disease. The program is designed to provide the children with a chance to play in an accepting environment and to learn about their special personal care requirements. These children are often marginalized by their peers and neglected by caretakers who are reluctant to invest precious resources in children considered to be without a future. For these reasons, the club is an important part of their lives. |
|
Saturday Club kids line up to receive new shoes for school
|
| Friends of Mengo Hospital Canada, operating out of Victoria, BC, continue to do meaningful work at Mengo Hospital. Learn more about their current projects at mengofriends.ca. |
|
