Between 1981 and 1996, between 750,000 and 1 million Americans were diagnosed with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). These people suffered from a weakened immune system, believed to be caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which left them vulnerable to opportunistic infections. The virus is primarily spread through sexual contact or through the sharing of needles among drug users. Despite recent promising advances in drug therapy, AIDS remains the leading cause of death of Americans between the ages of twenty-five and forty-four. HIV infection rates are rising among women, blacks, and Hispanics, as well as in some populations in Africa and Asia where few can afford expensive drug treatments. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that by the beginning of the twenty-first century, 40 million people worldwide may have become infected with HIV.

Some people have argued that the same methods used for...