Cheryl Wissick, SC FASD Collaborative

1. O C T O B E R 3 , 2 0 1 7
UNDERSTANDING THE
SPECTRUM OF PRENATAL
ALCOHOL EXPOSURE?
Wissick & Rife, 2017

2. OBJECTIVES
• What do you know? Pre evaluation
• What do you want to know?
• Establish a personal goal for today
• FASD: Just the facts
• Awareness
• Prevention

3. SCFASD.WEEBLY.COM

4. TRUE OR FALSE
• Low to moderate Drinking will not cause
FASD because many doctors say it is ok to
have a drink occasionally, especially in the
third trimester.

5. WE DON’ T KNOW HOW MUCH
ALCOHOL CAUSES FASD
• We cannot predict how much alcohol exposure
will lead to a FASD.
• Surgeon General Recommends NONE.
• What constitutes one drink is much smaller than
what we usually consider.
• Genetics, diet, and vitamins
play a factor

6. WHAT IS A STANDARD DRINK?
• 12 oz. of beer
• 4 oz. of wine
• 1 ½ oz. of liquor
• 12 oz wine spritzer
• NO alcohol in any form is safe during
pregnancy.
• USDA: Moderate alcohol consumption for
women is ONE Drink a day

7. The group most at risk for having a
child with FASD would be young
single women.
TRUE OR FALSE

8. FALSE
• The group most at risk for having children
with FASD are white educated women
over 30, middle or upper class.
• FASD is more prevalent in middle to upper
class situations than lower class.
• Binge drinking has increased for women in
general.
• Not just alcoholics have babies with FASD

9. You know a child has been
affected by alcohol by the way
he/she looks.
TRUE OR FALSE
Wissick, 2015

10. FALSE
•You do not know whether someone
has been affected by alcohol due to
their facial features.
•Facial effects decrease as children
age
•FASD is mostly INVISIBLE

11. Students with FASD can have
average or above intelligence
TRUE OR FALSE

12. TRUE
• Students with FASD can have a range of
abilities from severe intellectual disabilities
to learning disabilities (IQ range 20-110)
• Students with FASD can be labeled as
having ADHD, ODD, Personality disorder,
Learning Disability, Depression but FASD
is the umbrella
• Leading preventable cause of ID but only
25% have an intellectual disability or IQ
below 70

13. Alcohol does the same amount of
damage as cocaine and heroin or
other opiods.
TRUE OR FALSE

14. FALSE
• Alcohol causes more long term
damage as cocaine or heroin.
• Alcohol has long range effects on
behavior and brain functioning.
• FASD is a lifelong disorder.
• The scare of the crack babies was
over publicized.

15. COMPARISON
EFFECTS OF DRUGS
Effects Alcohol Cocaine Marijuana
Low Birth
Weight
X X
Intellect,
Developmental
X X
Organ
Damage
X
Hyperactivity X X

16. FASD IS MORE PREVALENT THAN
AUTISM
TRUE OR FALSE

17. FASD & AUTISM
• Estimates are that more children are affected by
alcohol than the number of students identified as
having autism spectrum disorders- Current estimates
range from 1 in 100 to 1 in 20.
• FASD is not as publicized due to stigma
• FASD 90% NOT diagnosed
• Good data are not collected on the incidence of FASD
– only birth records of mothers “known” to drink are
recorded.
• Both are neurodevelopmental in origin

18. FASD is separate from mental heath
disorder and substance use disorder.
TRUE OR FALSE

19. FALSE
• FASD is the umbrella -- brain disorder
• Treatment of the co-occurring issues must be
different if the person also has FASD
• Misdiagnoses: ADHD, ODD, Conduct
Disorder
• Co-Occurring: Schizophrenia, Depression,
Bipolar, Reactive Attachment, TBI, Borderline
personality disorder

20. The best way to work with children and
adults with FASD is to enable and foster
dependency
TRUE OR FALSE

21. TRUE
• We need to provide them with modeling,
support, coaching
• Use a strength based approach and tell them
what they do right
• Typical rewards/consequences do no work
• Be consistent
• Provide alternatives for behavior
• Support Interdependency

22. FAST FACTS
• FASD – 100% preventable, 0% curable
• FASD lasts a lifetime
• If you are pregnant, don’t drink.
• If you drink, don’t get pregnant.
• Exposure to any alcohol can affect the brain
development at any time during pregnancy.
• FASD leading preventable cause of ID & DD in
Western World