Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in Australia - the future is prevention

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) are increasingly recognised throughout Australia as important, but preventable, disorders that result in lifelong problems with health and learning, mental health, behaviour and substance misuse. The role of this article is to highlight current efforts, which are in their infancy, to recognise and prevent FASD in Australia. A federal parliamentary inquiry into FASD (2011), development of an Australian Government 'action plan' to prevent FASD (2013) and the announcement in June 2014 of government funding to progress the plan and appoint a National FASD Technical Network have focused attention on the need for FASD prevention in Australia. Other welcome developments include the formation of Parliamentarians for the Prevention of FASD (2011), revision of guidelines regarding alcohol use in pregnancy by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC; 2009) and provision of targeted funding for FASD research by the NHMRC (2013). Initiatives by Indigenous communities to restrict access to alcohol and diagnose and prevent FASD have had a significant impact in high-risk communities. The National Organisation for FASD has an important ongoing advocacy and educational remit. Nongovernment organisations such as the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education have contributed to prevention by developing resources to assist health professionals to advise women about the harms of alcohol use in pregnancy; encouraging men to abstain from alcohol during the pregnancy; drafting a national plan; and advocating for pregnancy warning labels on alcohol. Internationally, in 2014, a charter on prevention of FASD was published in The Lancet Global Health, and the World Health Organization released guidelines for identification and management of substance use in pregnancy. Early recognition and support for individuals with FASD is crucial to prevent adverse secondary outcomes; however, primary prevention of alcohol use in pregnancy, and hence FASD, should be our future goal. The causal pathway to drinking in pregnancy is complex and requires a broad social ecological approach. Prevention will take time, must involve all government sectors and should incorporate primary, secondary and tertiary strategies to target both the broader community and populations at high risk of alcohol use during pregnancy.