Identifying inexpensive and practical methods to delay HIV progression offers tremendous public health benefits. At the present time, highly active antiretroviral therapy is being rapidly scaled up in resource poor settings. The demand for these drugs currently far outweighs the capacity for such services to be provided in many regions. For the millions of people infected by HIV in resource poor settings, delaying immunosuppression for months to years could allow important developments in infrastructure which would permit the maximum number of individuals to benefit from highly active antiretroviral therapy.