Understanding FASD
September is Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) awareness month here in the UK, where we highlight the impact of this widely misunderstood condition which disproportionally affects looked after children. Let’s learn more about the science behind FASD and how best to support children living with the effects of fetal alcohol exposure.
What is Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder?
FASD is an umbrella term for a range of conditions which are caused when a foetus is exposed to alcohol in the womb. When a pregnant woman consumes alcohol, the ethanol in her blood passes into her child through the placenta, causing damage to her developing baby.
Alcohol exposure in the womb can lead to miscarriage, premature birth, or to a baby being born with a FASD. Alcohol exposure can have a severe effect on a child’s overall health and wellbeing. The damage caused by prenatal alcohol exposure is irreversible, and people effected by FASD will live the effects of the condition for their whole life.
Preventing FASD
It is unsafe for a person to consume alcohol during any point in their pregnancy. FASD is completely avoidable if alcohol is not consumed, and it cannot be inherited from a parent who was born with FASD.
Alcohol can effect babies at any point during their growth in the womb, from conception to birth. It is not known how much drinking causes fetal alcohol syndrome or any other type of FASD, so doctors recommend that people who are trying to conceive or who may become pregnant avoid alcohol altogether.
While many assume that only the behaviour of a baby’s mother can contribute to FASD, recent studies suggest that the amount of alcohol consumed by a baby’s father pre-conception may also have an impact on the child’s development.
What are the effects of FASD?
Cognitive effects: FASD causes brain damage by disrupting healthy brain development. Children born with FASD may experience learning difficulties, developmental delays, poor mental health and a wide range of behaviour-related effects.
Health-related effects: Children with FASD can experience restricted growth, such as a short height and low birth weight, as well as a range of other physical problems caused by alcohol related birth defects. These issues can impact any part of a child’s body, including their nervous system, organs, muscles or bones. Children affected by drinking during pregnancy may also experience seizures or damage to their senses, such as sight and hearing.
Some children with a FASD, particularly Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS), will have three facial features associated with fetal alcohol exposure: narrow eye openings, a smooth cupid’s bow and a thin upper lip.
Did you know?
It is estimated that 1/4 of looked after children who have gone on to be adopted in the UK have some form of FASD.
There are children up and down the UK effected by FASD who need dedicated, loving foster parents to take care of them and help them to thrive. If you’re interested in becoming a foster parent, give us a call on 0800 023 4561 or fill out our quick and easy enquiry form.
Diagnosing FASD
FASD is believed to be frequently missed in children and adults. A study by the University of Salford found that ‘up to a half million young people under 20 in England and Wales are careening toward their adult years with a hidden brain-based neurodevelopmental condition, undiagnosed and not receiving proper support.’
People with FASD often display a range of behaviours which are similar to those of some people with autism or ADHD/ADD. These behaviours include:
- Inattentiveness
- Developmental delays
- Difficulties with memory
- Social and behavioural problems
- Hypersensitivity/ hyposensitivity to stimuli
Because of these similarities, FASD is often misdiagnosed. The earlier FASD is diagnosed, the better the outcomes are for a person effected by the condition.
It’s important that we raise awareness of FASD so that children who are affected by these conditions can receive the right support. If you believe that a child in your care may have undiagnosed FASD, speak with their GP.
Living with an Invisible Disability
Children and adults with FASD are often widely misunderstood. This is particularly true for people who do not share the visual characteristics associated with some types of FASD, such as the three cardinal facial features, or for those who have learned to ‘mask’ their symptoms.
Living with an invisible neurodevelopmental disability can be very difficult. When a child has an invisible disability, people may assume that they are at a certain level of development and ought to ‘act their age’. For children with developmental delays, this can be detrimental to their wellbeing and growth. Read on to learn how a lack of awareness of the symptoms of FASD can lead to misunderstandings.
FASD and Behaviour
There are several symptoms associated with the brain damage caused by FASD which, if a person does not fully understand FASD, might lead to them becoming frustrated by a child’s behaviour. These include:
- Information processing. People with FASD often have a limited understanding of cause and effect and can have difficulty understanding and remembering information due to memory problems, which may lead to them repeating behaviours without seeming to learn from previous mistakes.
- Confabulation. Many people with FASD experience confabulation. Confabulation is easily confused with lying. It’s a condition where the brain distorts memories as a result of memory loss. A person who confabulates is not lying; they genuinely believe that what they are saying to be true.
- Understanding ownership. People with FASD may take things which do not belong to them, due to a lack of impulse control or not understanding that, if an item is not with its owner, it still belongs to another person. This lack of understanding of the concept of ownership can lead to children with FASD getting into trouble.
Without proper diagnosis and support, young people with FASD are more likely than their peers to be misunderstood and let down by the system, with FASD having links to increased risk of incarceration in youth offender facilities and homelessness.
Supporting children with FASD
Due to alcohol having disrupted the healthy development of the brain in the womb, children with FASD have a limited ability to change some behaviours. They develop at a slower pace than their peers and may need lifelong support to help them succeed. Caregivers should use a therapeutic approach and focus on tailoring children’s environments so that children with FASD are able to reach their full potential.
The approach of ‘strategies, not solutions’ gives empathetic understanding to the range of abilities and challenges a child with FASD may experience. Being consistent, patient, and developing a strong trusted bond with a young person forms the foundation of ensuring they are able to achieve the best outcomes.
Here at FCA we offer tailored support and training for our foster parents, helping them to understand FASD and how to best support the children in their care with strategies such as therapeutic parenting and positive behavioural management. For more information, check out our guidance on fostering a child with disabilities.
Interested in learning more? This free guidebook produced by EFAN has a vast range of in-depth strategies to help you to support a child effected by FASD.
