Ricki Lake praises ‘brave’ Charlie Sheen

TV host Ricki Lake has praised Charlie Sheen’s “incredibly brave” decision to be open about his HIV diagnosis.
In November (15), the former Two and a Half Men actor appeared on live TV in America to confirm he is HIV positive, bringing an end to weeks of speculation about his health. Ricki is involved with a program called Treatment For All, which aims to raise awareness of the disease and make medication available for anyone who receives a positive diagnosis. She’s spoken about it to coincide with World AIDS Day on 1 December (15), and she took the time to show some support for Charlie.
“It’s staggering we don’t talk about it,” she told ET Online. “It’s not a sexy issue to talk about. Now Charlie Sheen has put it in the news but, you know, it’s still prevalent, it’s still prevalent world wide and we’re at a point now where we can turn it around.
“I think it was incredibly brave of him. Any time you can raise awareness… for him to come out as he did and the fact that he said that he’s been on treatment since the point of diagnosis. It’s very hard to transmit the disease when you’re on medication.”
Ricki hopes to get a conversation about HIV going worldwide, especially as quick treatment can have a dramatic effect on someone who is suffering from it. “If everyone, at the point of diagnosis, is put on these anti-viral meds, they not only will not get sicker themselves, but they will keep from transmitting it to other people,” she stated.
The Treatment For All campaign sees the talk show host working with a number of people who have many followers on social media, in the hope they can spread the message. As the starting point Ricki and the group were flown to Malawi, where they met people whose families had been devastated by the disease. A documentary of their trip was filmed and posted on Facebook on Monday (30Nov15).
Wesley Stromberg, Sammy Wilkinson, Megan Nicole and Melvin Gregg are the digital influences joining Ricki in the campaign.