New research from Sweden has shown that wives who suffer from domestic violence have a 15 per cent greater chance to be infected with HIV compared to those who do not face domestic violence.
Gothenburg University economists Annika Lindskog and Dick Durevall, who studied data gathered in sub-Saharan African countries, said there is a statistic link between domestic violence and HIV.
Their research showed that women who face domestic violence had a 12-15 per cent higher chance of being infected with HIV than other women. Lindskog added, however, that they found no direct link between sexual violence at home and the chance of being infected by the virus.
The researchers explained that men who can turn violent on their partners often take more sexual risks than the average man. They said these men admit to being unfaithful to their partners, having more sexual partners over the course of their lives, and have normally paid for sex.
The Swedish research duo looked at how HIV and Aids have spread in Sweden and considered how the public health challenge effects the country’s development. They noted that it threatens economic and social development across Africa, so to curtail the spread in Sweden they must understand the “underlying mechanisms”.