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UM STUDY SHOWS THAT GAY DISCLOSURE TO FAMILY AND FRIENDS IS PROTECTIVE OF HEALTH IN HIV/AIDS | |
| Contact: Elizabeth Balbin Phone: (305) 284-5299 Email: ebalbin@miami.edu Embargoed until: March 3, 2004 |
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Not sure who to tell your secrets to? Does divulging your secrets have an impact on health? These are some of the questions that a team at the University of Miami are investigating as part of a study of long survival with HIV. The substudy, lead by researchers Elizabeth Balbin and Gail Ironson, follows HIV positive gay men over time and seeks to determine whether disclosing one's sexual orientation to family, friends, or coworkers has an impact on disease progression. The results of the study are being presented at the American Psychosomatic Society Annual Meeting, held March 3-6 in Orlando, FL. In order to determine if there was a link to their health, a study involving 84 HIV positive gay men whose T-cells were in the mid-range (150-500) at the beginning of the study, were assessed for both T-cell counts and viral load as indicators of disease progression two times, six months apart. No prior studies have investigated the differential impact of who the disclosure was made to, or the relationship to viral load. Disclosure of gay orientation had most frequently been made to friends (56%), followed by family (50%); and coworker (25%). A third of people had not disclosed their gay orientation to anybody. Interestingly, disclosure of HIV status appeared to be easier than disclosure of gay orientation (85% had disclosed their HIV status to friends, 69% to family and 31% to coworkers). Disclosure of gay orientation to family and friends were both related to better maintenance of health and slower disease progression (less T-cell decline and better control of viral load). In an era of "don't ask don't tell" the role that emotional disclosure plays in an individual's health, especially in regards to HIV is quite significant. As difficult as disclosing one's sexual orientation may be, honesty with those closest to us seems to lead to better health. | |
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Psychosomatic Medicine is the official peer-reviewed journal of the American Psychosomatic Society, published bimonthly. For information about the journal, contact Vicki White, Managing Editor for Manuscript Production,
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