News Release                   For Immediate Release

May 7, 2004

Alcohol and Pregnancy Don’t Mix

Provincial Campaign Encouraging Alcohol-Free Pregnancies

The Public Health Unit is partnering with Best Start: Ontario’s Maternal, Newborn and Early Child Development Resource Centre to launch a campaign to increase awareness of the dangers of drinking alcohol while pregnant.

Prenatal exposure to alcohol is the leading known cause of preventable brain damage in Canada,” says Wendy Burgoyne, Health Promotion Consultant, Best Start.  “We want to help spread the word about the dangers of drinking alcohol while pregnant.” To be completely safe, women who are pregnant, or planning to get pregnant, should abstain from drinking alcohol.

One in 100 births, that’s approximately 3,000 babies born each year in Canada, is affected by prenatal exposure to alcohol.  Drinking alcohol during pregnancy can cause permanent birth defects and brain damage to a baby.  Prenatal exposure to alcohol can also cause:

·        Vision and hearing difficulties

·        Bones, limbs and fingers that are not properly formed

·        Damage to heart, kidney, liver and other organs

·        Slow growth

Brain damage caused as a result of prenatal exposure to alcohol can result in learning disabilities, hyperactivity, difficulty paying attention, difficulty remembering, difficulty managing anger, poor judgement and difficulties with problem solving.

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is the umbrella term used to describe the range of defects and disabilities that are caused by prenatal exposure to alcohol.  But Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder doesn’t only affect the baby and the baby’s immediate family.  It is a lifelong problem that affects all of us, everyday.  FASD occurs in all cultures and levels of society.  “Whether you are a parent raising a child with FASD, a teacher struggling with trying to reach a young student who is struggling with simple concepts, or a social services working trying to offer assistance, we all have a price to pay for this costly and preventable condition,” says Burgoyne.

In fact, a recent study by Dr. Brenda Stade, R.N. for St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, estimates that the cost of FASD annually in Canada for those 1 to 21 years old is $344, 208, 000.  “That dollar figure does not account for the emotional and psychological cost that the victims of FASD and their families have to pay every day,” says Dr. Stade.

During the month of May 2004 look for awareness campaign activities including local radio ads, newspaper articles, posters and pamphlets in health and service providers offices throughout Grey-Bruce.  A number of restaurants/bars in the area will be displaying tabletop information cards to help support the campaign message that no alcohol use is advisable both before and during pregnancy.

For further information on alcohol use and pregnancy, contact the Public Health Unit at 1-800-263-3456 or visit www.alcoholfreepregnancy.ca.

- 30 -

For more information:

Marilyn Lemon

Public Health Nurse, Reproductive Health Program

Grey Bruce Health Unit

(519) 376-9420 or 1-800-263-3456