Worldwide 78 million people have been infected with HIV and 34 million people have died of HIV related cause due to AIDS epidemic. In 2015, 36.7 million people were PLWHA; and among those 2.1 million became newly infected and 1.8 million, down from 3.1 AIDS-related deaths [1]. Sub-Saharan Africa remains the region most heavily affected by HIV worldwide, accounts more than 2/3 of all people living with HIV and for nearly three quarters of AIDS-related deaths in 2015 [2].
Ethiopia has one of the largest populations of HIV infected people in the sub-Saharan region of Africa. According to statistics single point estimate and federal HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Office (FHAPCO), the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Ethiopia continues to pose a threat to the lives of its people. It is estimated that 759,338 people live with the virus in 2015 [2&3].
In SNNPR, it is estimated that 169,700 people live with the virus. Whoever enrolled in the program and of which a total of 20,340 PLWHA were started ART since the initiation of the program. The regional adult Population (15–49) age prevalence of PLWHA in 2010 was estimated to be 1.7% [3]. Food security and adequate nutrition are fundamental to HIV treatment. There is emerging evidence that patients who begin ART without adequate nutrition have lower survival rates. Given the importance of adherence in delaying viral resistance to first line drugs, nutritional support becomes even more important in the longer run for sustaining ART [4&5]. Many families throughout the developing world spend more than 50% of their household income on food, and food production and wage earning are adversely affected when an adult has AIDS [6].
Food insecurity and poverty may lead to high-risk sexual behaviors and migration, increasing the risk of acquiring HIV. At the same time, HIV weakens a household’s ability to provide for basic needs [7].
In Hawassa city administration, little is known about the level of household food security and associated factors among adult people living with HIV /AIDS attending ART Clinic. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the level of food security and associated factors among adult people living with HIV/AIDS in case of Hawassa city administration hospitals 2018.