Proclamation: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Day

WHEREAS there is no safe amount, no safe time, or no safe kind of alcohol that a woman can drink during pregnancy; and

WHEREAS the term “Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder” (FASD) describes the range of disabilities that can occur in an individual who was exposed to alcohol in utero/or during pregnancy; and

WHEREAS prenatal alcohol exposure is the leading preventable cause of birth defects, such as physical and mental disability and behavioural and/or learning challenges; and

WHEREAS the exact number of people who have FASD is unknown, but it is estimated that two to three percent of the population are born with effects of prenatal alcohol exposure annually; and

WHEREAS the estimated cost of FASD is $4 billion per year covering education, health, social services and justice costs; and

WHEREAS about half of all pregnancies are unplanned, meaning developing fetuses are inadvertently exposed to alcohol; and

WHEREAS people around the world began observing International FASD Awareness Day on September 9 each year beginning in 1999, in order that on the ninth day of the ninth month of the year, the world will remember that during the nine months of pregnancy it is important to abstain from alcohol; and

WHEREAS the good health and well-being of the people of Tay are enhanced by the support of a national effort to educate about and prevent FASD through The Simcoe County FASD Prevention Committee, part of the Simcoe County FASD Initiative,

NOW THEREFORE, I, Mayor Ted Walker, do hereby declare

September 9, 2019 as Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Awareness Day

in the Township of Tay to promote awareness of the effects of prenatal exposure to alcohol, to increase acceptance and support for those individuals so affected, to promote awareness of the effects of prenatal exposure to alcohol, to minimize further effects, and to ensure healthier communities in the future.

Ted Walker Mayor