USA labels warn about the range of cancers that are associated with alcohol consumption, and violence as well as other diseases that have been causally associated with alcohol use. In the USA the labelling system is much more extensive than the system proposed for Australia. This is welcome news and hopefully the first step in a broader range of warnings that should be included on alcohol labels. Increasing awareness of the dangers of drinking while pregnant will hopefully lessen the burden of suffering those affected and their families will have to endure. Unfortunately, we already know that people with FASD are disproportionately represented in those having interaction with the criminal justice system and child protection authorities.įASD is not currently recognised as a disability in Australia meaning access to early intervention programs which have been shown to help psychological development and improved behaviour are difficult to access and not necessarily covered by the NDIS. Not only can alcohol affect the child whose mother drinks, but because it causes a direct and permanent genetic effect, these adverse changes will be passed on to future generations as well. Based on international studies, it has been proposed that Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), affects around 2-5% of the general population but figures as high as 12% have been reported in some high risk indigenous communities. An affected child can have an abnormal appearance with a small head, characteristic facial features as well as intellectual impairment, behavioural difficulties and problems with hearing and sight. For this reason, associated education programs to make young women aware of the potential problems caused by alcohol consumption during pregnancy must become an important adjunct to product labelling.Īlcohol has a number of deleterious effects on the developing fetus. This may well just represent the fact that more than 50% of all pregnancies in Australia are unplanned and women are not aware of their pregnancy status, especially in the first trimester. It is anticipated that the warnings will be in both the written form and diagrammatic representation to make sure the message is easily understood by all pregnant women including those for whom English is not the primary language.Ĭurrently, around one third of all Australian women drink at least some alcohol during pregnancy. Notably, some products like premixed drinks have been slow to take up the recommendations which were previously not legislated requirements. Pregnancy warning labels have been a recommendation since 2011 and the producers of up to 75% of alcoholic beverages are already doing the right thing. Agreement has been reached with ministers from Australia and New Zealand to implement these changes in as short a time frame as is practicable. Changes to the labelling of products containing alcohol to make consumers aware of the dangers to pregnant women will now become mandatory.

Ed karnes warning label expert