How can HIV be contracted

The first category represents the ways you can actually contract HIV. It is reassuring
to see that almost all EU citizens know that HIV can be contracted by “being injected
with a needle which has been used by someone with AIDS or who is HIV positive”,
“receiving blood from someone with AIDS or who is HIV positive” and by “having sex
without protection with someone with AIDS or who is HIV positive”.
Opinions are more split for all of the other items which are not ways of contracting
HIV.
The second category that we can distinguish in the results represents the statement
for which less than half of the EU25 population knows the correct answer: 40% of
citizens from the 25 Member States believe that HIV cannot be caught by “kissing on
the mouth of someone with AIDS or who is HIV positive”. However, the population’s
knowledge is quite low since 24% replied ‘yes’ and 30% answered ‘possibly’ to this
statement.
The third category represents the items for which awareness is still low but more
balanced. Although, a majority of the interviewees think that “drinking from a glass
which has just been used by someone with AIDS or who is HIV positive” is not a way
to contract HIV (52%), 15% believe it is and 30% say it is possibly a way of catching
the disease. We also notice a split opinion for “giving blood”: 54% of the EU25 citizens
believe you cannot contract HIV this way. Yet 30% of respondents answer that this is a
way to contract HIV and 13% replied that this action could ‘possibly’ lead to
contracting the disease. A majority of the interviewees says that “sitting on a toilet
seat which has been used by someone with AIDS or who is HIV positive” is not a way
of contracting HIV (55%). However, this item also generates 26% of ‘possibly’ and
13% of ‘yes’ answers.
When it comes to “taking care of someone who has AIDS or who is HIV positive”, the
population’s awareness is higher: almost six in ten respondents say it is not possible to
catch the disease in this way. Nevertheless 25% of the interviewees answer that it is a
possible way and 12% of them clearly state that it is a way of contracting HIV.
The last category represents the final statements for which more than two thirds of
respondents in the EU believe are not ways of contracting HIV. Seven out of ten
European citizens think it is not possible to contract HIV by “eating a meal prepared by
someone with AIDS or who is HIV positive”. Nevertheless, a non-negligible amount
replied the opposite: 17% of them still state that it is possible and 7% of them are
convinced of this. This is equally the case for “handling objects touched by someone
with AIDS or who is HIV positive” and “shaking the hand of someone with AIDS or who
is HIV positive” for which respectively 13% and 9% of interviewees answer ‘possibly’
and 5% answer ‘yes’.