HIV Patients Treated With Exercise at He's Fit

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HIV Patients Treated With Exercise

Posted March 7, 2008 at 12:00 PM by Denise Musumeci

Section: In The News, His Inspiration, Success Stories

exercise HIV started as a devastating epidemic in the 1980’s that now affects more than 40 million people worldwide. Though there have been some amazing advances for treatment of HIV patients, the impact this disease has around the world is overwhelming to doctors and patients alike. Ask Dr. Charles Van Der Horst, MD, an infectious disease specialist who travels around the world helping patients with HIV.

Dr. Van Der Horst travels several times a year to Johannesburg, South Africa; Lilongwe, Malawi; Dublin, Ireland; and Trinidad/Tobago helping out with HIV projects. On top of that, he has countless meetings in the Unites States and Internationally regarding HIV projects. He has been helping patients worldwide since the beginning of the epidemic in the 1980s. At first, people did not know what this disease was, but knew for certain that people with certain symptoms would die. It was always frustrating to see this disease killing people and not knowing how to help them. How did he manage to get through the stress?

Along with his family and friends, the biggest helper for overcoming his stress about his work was exercise. Everywhere he goes, he finds the time to exercise, whether he is swimming, running, or competing in competitions. The rush he gets is enough to make a hard day a little more tolerable. It puts a smile on his face when little African children run along side of him.

Exercising in the aisle of the airplane is the most bizarre part of Dr. Van Der Hurst’s workout. He will change into his exercise clothes in the restroom and do his lunges, crunches, and stretches in the aisle. Afterward, he will ask for a bunch of warm washcloths and take a sponge bath in the restroom.

His workout routine is what pulls the doctor away from thinking about the 3,500 pregnant women in Africa each year that are diagnosed with HIV, the countless infants that die each year, or the suffering each of his patients go through. But regardless of how hard things get, Dr. Van Der Hurst loves his work, is determined to fight this disease, and will exercise to help him escape the stress.

Research sources and for more information: [NY Times]; [picture]