World AIDS Day 2015: 10 Facts You Should Know About The Disease

World AIDS Day is celebrated and honored each year on December 1. According to World AIDS Day.org, "World AIDS Day is held on 1 December each year and is an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV, show their support for people living with HIV and to commemorate people who have died. World AIDS Day was the first ever global health day and the first one was held in 1988." AIDS is a tremendous health problem all around the world and in the United States. Rates of infection in the US are steadily increasing, despite huge campaigns to promote awareness: "More than 25 million people between 1981 and 2007 have died from the virus, making it one of the most destructive pandemics in history." World AIDS Day more than anything else is about promoting awareness, so here are 10 Facts you should know about AIDS.

1. AIDS Is A Global Epidemic: According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "more than 35.3 million people are currently living with HIV, and 2.1 million of these are adolescents (10-19 years)."

2. AIDS Is An American Issue: According to the CDC, "56,300 Americans are infected with HIV each year."

3. HIV/AIDS Infection Is Increasing In Young Men: According to the CDC, "from 2006 to 2009, Young Men Who Have Sex With Men aged 13-24 years had the greatest percentage increase in diagnosed HIV infections* of all age groups."

4. African American Men Are At The Highest Risk: According to the CDC, "African Americans accounted for an estimated 44% of all new HIV infections among adults and adolescents (aged 13 years or older) in 2010, despite representing only 12% to14% of the US population."

5. Know Your Status: According to the AIDS.gov 207,600 (18.1%) people living the US are unaware of their infection. So get tested!

6. HIV Infection Is Still Most Common In Gay Men: The CDC reveals that "Although MSM represent about 4% of the male population in the United States, in 2010, MSM accounted for 78% of new HIV infections among males and 63% of all new infections."

7. Being Straight Doesn't Make You Immune: AIDS.gov reports that 25 percent of all people infected with HIV in 2009 were straight.

8. Signs Of Progress: The World Health Organization reports that "At the end of 2012, close to 10 million people were receiving ART in low- and middle-income countries. However, almost 19 million other people who are eligible for ART under new 2013 guidelines do not have access to antiretroviral drugs."

9. AIDS In Latinos: The CDC's 2009 study found that "Latinos accounted for 20% of new HIV infections in the United States while representing approximately 16% of the total US population.

10. AIDS Deaths: The CDC records that 636,000 people in the United States with an AIDS diagnosis have died since the epidemic began.