Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder in Australia: Prevalence, Effects and Recommendations

State of Victoria
ISSUE COVER SHEET
Issue:
This paper seeks to address the increasing cases of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and its
relation to women drinking during pregnancy. There has been increasing cases in Alcohol
use among pregnant women in Australia. Statistics indicate that the prevalence of FASD is
approximately 7% of the population of Australia. This paper, therefore, analyses the effects
of FASD and provides recommendations on actions that should be taken by the ministry to
tackle this public health concern.
Background: [write here]
FASD occurs as a result of maternal drinking, and it results to severe neurodevelopment
impairments. When a child is born with FASD,they face many social, emotional and
cognitive challenges. The first challenge is that life expectancy for a child with FASD
averages only 34 years globally(Fitzpatrick et al., 2012). FASD affects the fetus and its
effects are also evident during the early childhood of a person. Children who are born with
this disorder have a lower IQ compared to other children. These children may face challenges
in information retention and hence they may have problems when they start going to school.
This disorder also affects the social life of children because they find it difficult to socialize
as a result of this disorder. It is important to come up with strategies to reduce prevalence of
FASD.
Recommendations:
 Reduce access and consumption of health among women in the childbearing age.
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State of Victoria
 The problem of alcohol use can also be overcome enacting laws requiring alcohol
manufacturers to publish information on labels indicating the dangers of pregnant women
using alcohol.
Name: [write here]
Date: [write here]
Readers: Minister for Health, Victorian Government
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State of Victoria
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to analyze information relating to use of alcohol among pregnant
women in Australia. The paper also identifies the prevalence of FASD and also discusses the
impact that FASD has on both an individual, family and community. This document is
therefore meant to bring to your attention the increased prevalence of FASD as a result of
increase in use of alcohol among pregnant women. The paper discusses the background of
this issue and provides recommendations which could be implemented to solve this public
health issue.
Background
Children born with FASD are slower at reflective orienting responses and they have defects
of associative learning. Associative learning is a principle of learning that states that ideas
and experiences reinforce one another and they can be linked to one another mentally. This
associated with the fact that FASD contributes to low IQ for children whose mothers tool
alcohol during their pregnancy (Bower et al., 2018). Research indicates that children
affected with FASD have an IQ which is more than two standard deviations below the
average mean of most people (Elliott, 2014). Previous researches also indicates that children
affected with FASD have verbal and non-vernal defects because their speech was very
incoherent. Children with FASD have clinically been found to have impairment in vigilance
as evidenced by their ability to perform certain tasks.
When children are exposed to alcohol during pregnancy have a learning disability. This
results from deficits in visual and spatial as well as executive functions (Fitzpatrick et al.,
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