Raising awareness about Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder in Timmins
On International Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) Awareness Day in Timmins, officials with the Children's Treatment Centre said most people in the community know quite a bit about autism, but most don't know a lot about FASD.
They said it is two and half times more common than autism and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are lifetime disabilities that happen when alcohol is introduced to the womb before birth.
This is some of the information they shared with people who stopped to talk with them while they were taking their morning walks around the Gillies Lake Trail.
“We’re OK if someone is uncomfortable with the subject matter. That’s OK because that’s an opportunity for us to have an open conversation with someone and if they’re not ready to have that conversation that’s OK with us," said Liane Guenette, a caseworker with the Children's Treatment Centre.
Open to learning
Timmins resident Cliff Lebrun had never heard about FASD, but was open to learning about it.
“I took some literature and I’m going to read it and I’ll be aware so I won’t judge people," he said.
One of Guenette's co-workers appreciated that people want more information and she said she's also working with community partners.
"We are helping ... to have the people within the schools understand what it means to have FASD and how they can make the proper environmental accommodations to support these children," said Kelsey Charbonneau-Laforest.
Organizers of the outdoor information session said four per cent of Canadians have fetal alcohol syndrome.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
BREAKING McGill University seeks emergency injunction to remove pro-Palestinian encampment from campus
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.