Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I am wearing a ribbon to promote awareness of FAS/FAE. Pauktuutit, the national Inuit women's organization, during the week of October 7 to 9, held a very important workshop on the subject in Iqaluit. This workshop, which had been in planning for over a year, consisted of representation from each of the six Inuit regions. The participants included daycare workers, community health representatives, addictions workers, FAS/FAE birth and foster parents, policy makers, RCMP and local community people.
Mr. Speaker, the purpose of the workshop was to bring together people from a wide variety of professional and personal backgrounds to discuss the issues, raise awareness and see what can be done to cope and prevent it.
What is fetal alcohol syndrome? When a woman drinks alcohol during pregnancy, it can damage the unborn baby. FAS/FAE is the name given to the condition caused in the fetus. It can be characterized by physical, mental, social and behavioural disabilities. When drinking alcohol, the alcohol passes directly into the baby's bloodstream. It damages the growing cells of the baby's body and brain.
Mr. Speaker, we often speak about community wellness. The FAS/FAE workshop sponsored by Pauktuutit has put into action the verbiage so often heard that awareness and prevention is one of the corner stones of community wellness. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.