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SENATOR MURKOWSKI, FORMER SENATOR DASCHLE CO-HOST ANNUAL EVENT TO RAISE AWARNESS ABOUT ALCOHOL AND PREGNANCY
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan and U.S. Surgeon General Vice Admiral Richard Carmona were honored by the National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (NOFAS) at the annual NOFAS Leadership Awards Benefit on June 7, in Washington, D.C.
Senator Dorgan was recognized for his public service in support of women, children and families with special needs in North Dakota and across the country. Former Senator Tom Daschle praised Dorgan for working to prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) among North Dakota tribes and for steadfastly standing with him as they fought to increase attention and investment for FASD for twenty years in the United States Senate.
Vice Admiral Richard Carmona was honored for his 2005 message to the American public about Alcohol and Pregnancy. His advisory emphasized that there is no known safe level of alcohol consumption during pregnancy, and that women should completely abstain from alcohol when they are pregnant or if they could be pregnant, due to the risk of birth defects.
“Senator Dorgan is a leader in the United States Senate for North Dakotans and all Americans, said NOFAS president Tom Donaldson. He added, “NOFAS and FASD families nationwide are thrilled to honor his dedication to the health and well-being of our nation’s women and children.”
Dr. Faye Calhoun, the recently retired deputy director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Dr. Sterling Clarren, a pioneer in the field of FASD research, and Cheri Scott, a co-founder of Stone Soup Group an Alaska organization providing services to families living with developmental disabilities, were each presented with a NOFAS Excellence Award.
NOFAS is a nonprofit public health advocacy organization seeking to prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)--the leading known preventable cause of mental retardation and birth defects--by raising awareness to the dangers of drinking alcohol during pregnancy. As many as 25,000 infants are born each year with this irreversible yet completely preventable health condition. FASD occurs more frequently than Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis and spina bifida COMBINED.
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