Question
Which immune booster pills will decrease my viral load?
11 January 2016. Related: All topics, CD4 and viral load, Changing treatment, Starting treatment.
Which immune booster pills or herbal supplement can i take to decrease my viral load?
Answer
Hi,
Booster pills and herbal supplements will not reduce your viral load.
The only thing that can do this is HIV treatment (ART).
Once someone starts ART, viral load decreases very quickly – within a month or two it should be under 50 copies/mL (called undetectable).
If you have already been on HIV treatment for longer than this and you viral load is not under 50 you should speak to your doctor or clinic.
They can help you work out why the treatment isn’t working so well. They can let you know what alternatives are available.
You can find information about starting treatment and information about changing treatment in our online guides.
Hi Skhalo, i-Base always recommend talking to your doctor about any medical concern. Your doctor knows you very well and knows your medical history, including your viral load.
In many countries, especially low-income countries, the doctor will still probably recommend just restarting the same treatment which is very likely to still work. If it is difficult to see your doctor quickly, then restarting now is also okay – and then telling your doctor at the next visit.
In high income countries (Europe, the US,Australia etc) the doctor might want to run other viral load and resistance tests before restarting, or might use a different combination.
I am Skhalo. I missed treatment for a month. Will resuming treatment assist in maintaining a reqiured load or do I have to see the doctor first.
Hello Isaac and thanks for getting in touch.
ART or ARV are medication specifically developed to fight HIV.
That is what makes them effective when taken in combination of 2 or 3 drugs – often formulated as a single tablet.
You can read more about this here:
https://i-base.info/guides/starting
Which ingredients in Art that help to reduce viral load?
Hello Isaac and thanks for getting in touch.
The only thing that can reduce your viral load is ARV medication.
No supplement can help with that.
Please speak to your clinic and start ARVs if you are not taking them already
Can immulate herbal supplement help to reduce a viral load?
Hello Edna and thanks for getting in touch.
I realise the situation is very difficult right now and your concerns.
A lot of people are monitoring the situation and trying to counteract the restrictions.
I would suggest getting in touch with the local organisations in your area that are working in HIV.
They will know more about getting access to medication and can connect you with available resources.
I would also advise reading the updates on this page as Simon is working very hard to report accurately and as soon as possible with the updates.
https://i-base.info/pepfar/
https://i-base.info/qa/25792
Please stay in touch.
I realised I am postive, I have not started taking drugs and now USAID has withdrawn their support on HiV people. Is there any booster or other advice you can give?