FRIDAY, Nov. 25 (HealthDay News) -- Zinc supplements, which can reduce childhood diarrhea and pneumonia, are safe for children infected with HIV, according to a study conducted in South Africa.

The study clears up the question of whether zinc supplements would increase viral load in children with HIV and result in more rapid progression of the disease.

Reporting in the Nov. 26 issue of The Lancet, researchers tracked the health of 96 HIV-infected children who took either 10 milligrams of zinc or a placebo a day for six months.

The children who took the zinc showed no increase in plasma HIV-1 viral load. They were also less likely to get watery diarrhea.

"Not only did we learn that zinc is safe for these children, but we also realized that this may be a low-cost intervention to reduce morbidity in HIV-infected children who don't have access to antiretroviral therapy or are not eligible for treatment," study senior author Dr William J. Moss, an assistant professor in the department of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said in a prepared statement.

"Programs to increase zinc supplementation in populations with a prevalence of HIV infection can and should be implemented, and can be done, so now that we know zinc does not have an adverse effect on HIV replication," Moss added. "Also, in light of the fact that zinc is known to reduce episodes of diarrhea and pneumonia, zinc supplementation should be used as an adjunct therapy for children with HIV infection."

More information

The U.S. Office of Dietary Supplements has more about zinc.