How Can I Prevent HIV?

HIV prevention is not one method. People can combine testing, PrEP, PEP, condoms, sterile injection equipment, and effective HIV treatment according to their lives and circumstances. Abstinence is a valid personal choice, but it should not be presented as the only or universally “best” option.

Know How HIV Is Transmitted

HIV can be transmitted when blood, semen including pre-seminal fluid, vaginal or rectal fluids, or breast milk containing transmissible virus reaches a mucous membrane, damaged tissue, or the bloodstream. HIV is not transmitted by hugging, holding hands, sharing dishes or toilets, or mosquito bites.

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Prevention Options

• PrEP: For people without HIV who may have ongoing exposure. When used as prescribed, it reduces sexual acquisition risk by about 99%.
• PEP: For a recent possible exposure. When indicated, start as soon as possible and no later than 72 hours; it is generally taken for 28 days.
• Condoms and lubricant: They reduce HIV and many STI risks but do not protect every infection or area of skin with 100% certainty.
• Sterile injection equipment: Never share needles, syringes, or preparation equipment.
• Testing: Testing supports PrEP, PEP, and prompt treatment, but the window period must be considered.

U=U

A person living with HIV who takes ART and maintains a viral load below 200 copies/mL does not transmit HIV through sex. That is the scope of U=U. It should not be expanded to “cannot transmit HIV to anyone by any route”; shared injection equipment, pregnancy, birth, and breastfeeding require specific guidance.

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After an Exposure You Are Worried About

Within 72 hours, seek an urgent PEP assessment and baseline testing. After that period, ask a clinic to plan testing for the relevant test type and discuss PrEP for future prevention. Do not wait for symptoms or judge HIV status from a partner’s appearance.

Verified references

Links and relevance to the article’s main topic were reviewed on 13 August 2026. Each source supports only the scope stated in the original document and does not replace personalised medical, legal, or service advice.

1. WHO: HIV and AIDS fact sheet Accessed 13 August 2026