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The tenth annual International FASD Awareness Day will be observed on Tuesday, September 9, 2008. NOFAS joins the FASD community in reminding everyone to spread the message to abstain from alcohol if you are pregnant or if you could be pregnant and to end the stigmatization of people with FASD and their families.
Founded in 1999 by Bonnie Buxton and Brian Philcox of FASworld [http://www.fasday.com/] and Teresa Kellerman of Fasstar [http://fasstar.com/], International FASD Awareness Day is recognized each year on September 9th. The ninth day of the ninth month was selected to call attention to the importance of abstaining from alcohol during the nine months of pregnancy.
Awareness Day is an opportunity for advocates to speak out collectively about FASD and alcohol and pregnancy. September 9th should serve as only the beginning of a renewed effort to spread the word about the risk of drinking alcohol during pregnancy by any and all means. Equally as important is the message to abstain from alcohol if you are planning a pregnancy or if you could be pregnant, and that the stigmatization and discrimination of children and adults with FASD and their families, particularly birth mothers, must be overcome.
Among the messages that NOFAS is emphasizing in our educational outreach to the public, practitioners and policymakers are:
We believe FASD is a national health crisis. Over 125,000 newborns every year are prenatally exposed to heavy or binge drinking—the highest risk for FASD. Alcohol and pregnancy education must be elevated to a higher public health priority, and medical and mental health systems must better serve all families in need.
We believe society still does not see or understand the magnitude of FASD. Many myths and misconceptions about the risk of alcohol use during pregnancy remain despite over thirty years of research. Broad public education and media outreach must be sustained to teach the facts about FASD.
We believe that to open the minds of those who can make a difference, we must remove the addiction and maternal stigma. Alcohol dependence is a disease that can be treated. Treatment works, saves money and prevents future FASD births. Shaming and punishing birth mothers perpetuate the crisis and the misunderstanding of the issue.
NOFAS has an outstanding publication with strategies for raising awareness about FASD. Check out Making a Difference: The FASD Public Awareness Guide at the NOFAS e-store, http://www.nofas.org/estore/NOFASBooksPublications.htm
Below are excerpts from United States Senate Resolution S.RES. 647, designating September 9, 2008, as `National Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Awareness Day'.
Designating September 9, 2008, as `National Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Awareness Day'.
Whereas the term `fetal alcohol spectrum disorders' includes a broader range of conditions and therefore has replaced the term `fetal alcohol syndrome' as the umbrella term describing the range of effects that can occur in an individual whose mother drank alcohol during pregnancy;
Whereas fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are the leading cause of cognitive disability in western civilization, including the United States, and are 100 percent preventable;
Whereas fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are a major cause of numerous social disorders, including learning disabilities, school failure, juvenile delinquency, homelessness, unemployment, mental illness, and crime;
Whereas the incidence rate of fetal alcohol syndrome is estimated at 1 out of 500 live births and the incidence rate of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders is estimated at 1 out of every 100 live births;
Whereas, although the economic costs of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are difficult to estimate, the cost of fetal alcohol syndrome alone in the United States was $5,400,000,000 in 2003 and it is estimated that each individual with fetal alcohol syndrome will cost taxpayers of the United States between $1,500,000 and $3,000,000 in his or her lifetime;
Whereas, in February 1999, a small group of parents of children who suffer from fetal alcohol spectrum disorders came together with the hope that in 1 magic moment the world could be made aware of the devastating consequences of alcohol consumption during pregnancy;
Whereas the first International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Awareness Day was observed on September 9, 1999;
Whereas Bonnie Buxton of Toronto, Canada, the co-founder of the first International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Awareness Day, asked `What if . . . a world full of FAS/E [Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Effect] parents all got together on the ninth hour of the ninth day of the ninth month of the year and asked the world to remember that during the 9 months of pregnancy a woman should not consume alcohol . . . would the rest of the world listen?'; and
Whereas on the ninth day of the ninth month of each year since 1999, communities around the world have observed International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Awareness Day: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) designates September 9, 2008, as `National Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Awareness Day'; and
(2) calls upon the people of the United States--
(A) to observe National Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Awareness Day with appropriate ceremonies--
(i) to promote awareness of the effects of prenatal exposure to alcohol;
(ii) to increase compassion for individuals affected by prenatal exposure to alcohol;
(iii) to minimize further effects of prenatal exposure to alcohol; and
(iv) to ensure healthier communities across the United States; and
(B) to observe a moment of reflection on the ninth hour of September 9, 2008, to remember that during the9 months of pregnancy a woman should not consume alcohol.
Ms. MURKOWSKI (for herself, Mr. JOHNSON, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. SPECTER, Mr. COLEMAN, Mr. STEVENS, and Mr. HATCH)
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