Категории: Все - gender - children - media - parenting

по Yukta Joshi 1 года назад

101

Challenges of Parenting

In recent times, numerous reports have highlighted the bullying faced by individuals due to their sexual orientation, with media playing a crucial role in raising awareness about this issue.

Challenges of Parenting

Challenges of Parenting

Child Protection Laws in CANADA:

What To Do:
Explain what you will do next to help them.
Believe the child.
Understand that the child is probably having mixed feelings.
Let the child talk as much as he/she/they wish to.
if the child tells you of the sexual abuse immediately after it occurred, DO NOT bathe the child, or wash or change his/hers/their clothes.
Don't try to conduct an investigation yourself
Be open and understanding
Why Are These Considered "Optional"?
The obligations in the protocol are additional and may be more demanding than those in the original convention, and so States must independently choose whether or not to be bound by a protocol.
A protocol is ‘optional’ because it is not automatically binding on States that have already ratified the original treaty.
The Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography draws special attention to the criminalization of these serious violations of children's rights and emphasizes the importance of fostering increased public awareness and international cooperation in efforts to combat them.
Human rights treaties are often followed by ‘optional protocols’, additional legal mechanisms that complement and add to the treaty.
The sale of Children, Child Prostitution, and Child Pornography
The Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography draws special attention to the criminalization of these serious violations of children's rights and emphasizes the importance of fostering increased public awareness and international cooperation in efforts to combat them.
2 Optional Protocols:
To help stem the growing abuse and exploitation of children worldwide, the United Nations General Assembly in 2000 adopted two Optional Protocols to the Convention to increase the protection of children from involvement in armed conflicts and from sexual exploitation:

The sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography

Involvement of children in armed conflict

Convention of the Rights of A Child
The four core principles of the Convention are:

Respect for the views of the child

The right to life, survival and development

Devotion to the best interests of the child

Non-discrimination

It spells out the basic human rights that children everywhere have:

and to participate fully in family, cultural and social life.

to protection from harmful influences, abuse and exploitation;

to develop to the fullest

the right to survival

The Convention sets out these rights in 54 articles and two Optional Protocols.
In 1989, world leaders decided that children needed a special convention just for them because people under 18 years old often need special care and protection that adults do not. The leaders also wanted to make sure that the world recognized that children have human rights too.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child is the first legally binding international instrument to incorporate the full range of human rights—civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights.
Early Childhood Educators Act
States the ‘right to report’ staff who may pose a risk to children: sec. 49 (1a,b).

(b) has been charged with or convicted of an offence under the Criminal Code (Canada) that in the opinion of the employer indicates that a child may be at risk of harm or injury. 2007, c. 7, Sched. 8, s. 49.

(a) has been charged with or convicted of an offence under the Criminal Code (Canada) involving sexual conduct and minors; or otherwise

Section 49. (1) An employer shall promptly report to the College in writing when the employer becomes aware that a member of the College who is employed by the employer as an early childhood educator.

Discusses disciplinary processes and general ramifications.
Discusses administrative and governing details of the occupation.
Defines the practice and states boundaries associated with the practice.
Dictates the rules and obligations associated with being a licensed early childhood educator in the province of Ontario.
Day Nursery's Act
Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

Revocation of licenses (reasons and protocol)

Reporting child abuse mandate

Health and Safety and Emergency Preparedness within a child-care centre

Ratio of children in a child-care centre

Training of staff in a child-care centre

Rules associated with licensing a child-care centre

This is a legal document with legal ramifications if any aspect of it is breached.
The Day Nursery’s Act is provincial legislation which governs the delivery of child care services in the province of Ontario.
Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict
The Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict establishes 18 as the minimum age for compulsory recruitment and requires States to do everything they can to prevent individuals under the age of 18 from taking a direct part in hostilities.
The Criminal Code of Canada (CCC)
Some child abuse related charges include the following:

Failure to provide the necessaries of life

Child Sexual Abuse

Child Trafficking

Child Abduction

The federal government is responsible for ensuring that the Criminal Code provides protection for children from extreme forms of abuse, neglect and exploitation.
Everyone has a Legal Obligation to Report Suspicion or Knowledge of Child Abuse!!

Child Abuse

MAG Child Abuse Fact Sheet:
Support for program and service delivery:

Through the National Strategy on Crime Prevention and Community Safety, the Department supports community-based prevention and intervention programs that address risk factors for child abuse.

Support and intervention for children and families who have experienced abuse, or who are at risk, are essential.

The Grants and Contributions fund supports pilot projects to develop, test and assess models, strategies and tools to improve the criminal justice system's response to child abuse.

Research, data collection and information sharing

The Department is involved in a number of national-level research and data collection activities related to child abuse that will help to: Increase knowledge about child abuse and its impacts throughout different stages of life: ● improve information exchange between government agencies ● increase the effectiveness of responses to child abuse, and ● enhance services and supports for children.

Professional development and Resources:

Many different groups of practitioners may have contact with children who are abused. Enhancing the awareness and skills of judges, Crown prosecutors, defense lawyers, police, health care workers, social workers, psychologists, and teachers about child abuse enables effective intervention. The Department works with its partners to support specialized training for justice system and law enforcement personnel in order to build a coordinated multi-sectoral, multi disciplinary response with other systems.

Education:

Education involves providing children with knowledge about their rights, and teaching them the skills to identify abuse, ask for help, and avoid being re-victimized. Further, parents and caregivers need information and support to help them care for children in a positive and nurturing manner. The Department supports public legal education programs across Canada that educate the public about family violence, including the prevention, identification and reporting of child abuse.

Other Strategies to Prevent and Respond to Child Abuse:

In addition to reforming the law and enhancing its implementation, the Department of Justice Canada is involved in many other strategies to prevent and respond to child abuse.

Reforming the Law and Enhancing its Implementation:

Some of the Department's other areas of activity which impact on the issue of child abuse include:

The family law system and the federal Divorce Act are also important tools for addressing the issue of child abuse. The Department is consulting with Canadians to determine how the legal system can improve its response to family violence when parents are separating or divorcing, and what changes (if any) should be made to the federal Divorce Act to promote child-centered decision-making in situations of violence to ensure the safety of children and others.

The Department is actively involved in international efforts to prevent trafficking in children and child sexual exploitation.

A Federal/Provincial/Territorial Working Group on Prostitution has been addressing the issue of youth involvement in prostitution through research and consultations in most jurisdictions. The Working Group's report on legislation, policy and practices concerning prostitution-related activities was released in December 1998.

The Supreme Court of Canada has recently upheld the Criminal Code of Canada's possession of child pornography provision.

The Project is exploring:

Improving the experience of child witnesses and facilitating their testimony in criminal proceedings. Potential changes under review include: eliminating the required competency hearing for child witnesses; making the use of testimony outside the courtroom or behind screens more widely available; increasing the use of videotaped evidence; changes to the use of hearsay statements; ensuring that delays in the court process do not jeopardize the availability of support for child witnesses; ensuring that supports are available regardless of the type of offence; and ensuring that children are not questioned in ways that are inappropriate to their age and development during cross-examination.

Ensuring that the Criminal Code contains sentencing provisions to better protect children. Possible modifications currently under review include provisions to: specifically emphasize the importance of denunciation and deterrence of crimes against children; provide the courts with additional tools to require longer-term supervision and mandate the availability of treatment for offenders who pose a continuing danger of re-offending against children; recognize the frequency and seriousness of child abuse in the home and at the hands of parents and caretakers; (recognize that in cases involving familial child abuse or breach of trust, it is not unusual for the offender to be "of previous good character" or to lack a prior criminal record, and accordingly the courts should place less emphasis than usual on these factors when sentencing offenders in such cases; and require the courts to emphasize the emotional and psychological harms caused to children in assessing the gravity of the offences and the conduct involved.

Ensuring that the Criminal Code provisions concerning age of consent are appropriate. The areas under review include raising the general age of consent to sexual activity, and a possible amendment to ensure that a child victim's apparent consent cannot be used as a defense.

Adding new child-specific offences to the Criminal Code: other child-specific offences under review include: Criminal physical abuse of a child, criminal neglect of a child, criminal emotional abuse of a child, child homicide, and failing to report suspected crimes against children.

In Canada's child welfare system, the provinces and territories are responsible for providing the care and services necessary to ensure children's welfare and safety.

As part of the Children as Victims Project, the Department of Justice Canada is conducting a comprehensive review and consultation with its provincial/territorial partners and the public to determine the need for further reforms to criminal law and policy, particularly with respect to specific offences against children, children's testimony, and sentencing.

Further, children can no longer be cross-examined by an accused; they may be allowed to provide testimony outside the courtroom or behind screens; and a videotape may be admitted as evidence, in lieu of a child's in-person testimony.

Federal law also seeks to protect child witnesses. For example, recent amendments to the Canada Evidence Act, which define the forms of evidence that may be admitted in court, allow children, depending on their age and the type of offence involved, to be accompanied by a support person when they testify in court.

Currently, Bill C-15 proposes legislation to protect children from sexual exploitation by criminalizing a number of specific actions including luring children on the Internet; transmitting, making available, or exporting child pornography on the Internet; or intentionally accessing child pornography on the Internet. Sentencing provisions are also to be strengthened. Bill C-15 also proposes measures to make it easier to prosecute people involved in child sex tourism.

In recent years, the Criminal Code has been amended to create new criminal offences relating to child sexual assault, to specifically include female genital mutilation in the aggravated assault provision, and to amend the provisions on child sex tourism.

For example, child abusers may be charged under the Criminal Code for assaulting children.

The federal government is responsible for ensuring that, as far as possible, the Criminal Code provides protection for children from extreme forms of abuse, neglect and exploitation.

Preventing and Responding to Child Abuse

Since the 1960s, significant steps have been taken to address child abuse in Canada including:

Further, since the landmark reports by Badgley (1984) and Rogers (1990), legislation to address child sexual abuse has been created and efforts to address the sexual exploitation of children are ongoing.

The Department of Justice Canada and its partners (including non-governmental organizations, provincial and territorial governments and the private sector)are actively involved in addressing child abuse issues through legal reform, public and professional education, research and support for programs and services.

Some of this work is linked to the Department's participation in the federal government's current Family Violence Initiative which focuses on violence against women and children that occurs in the home, while other areas of activity are linked to other initiatives including, for example, the National Children's Agenda, the Aboriginal Justice Strategy, and the National Strategy on Crime Prevention and Community Safety.

Given the extent of child abuse in Canada - as well as the complexity of this issue and its enormous impact - effectively preventing, identifying and responding to child abuse is an enormous but essential task.

Community supports and services for victims and their families are essential.

Addressing this issue requires the ongoing commitment and collaboration of community members, practitioners, and policy makers across Canada.

Following the 1996 report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, the federal government acknowledged its role in the occurrence of physical and sexual abuse in residential schools, and implemented a community-based healing strategy for Aboriginal communities (Gathering Strength).

The establishment of child protection agencies run by First Nations.

The extension of time limits for laying charges in child sexual abuse cases.

The changes to the Criminal Code and the Canada Evidence Act (see Reforming the law and enhancing its implementation).

The creation of child abuse registries.

The introduction of mandatory reporting laws.

In Canada, child welfare laws require that all cases of suspected child abuse must be investigated to determine if a child is in need of protection.

Criminal sanctions may also apply in cases of sexual or physical abuse.

If a child is determined to be in need of protection, the child welfare authorities may respond by, for example, providing counseling and support for the family, removing the child (temporarily or permanently) from the home, or removing the abuser(s) from the home.

What are the Consequences of Child Abuse?

Child abuse has devastating consequences for victims. Depending on its form(s), duration and severity, abuse may affect every aspect of a child's life; it may have consequences that are psychological, physical, behavioural, academic, sexual, interpersonal, self-perceptual or spiritual.12 The effects of abuse may appear right away, or surface only in adolescence or adulthood. Further, the effects may differ according to the nature of the response to the abuse, and whether the abuse was disclosed or reported. In some cases, the consequences are fatal.

Girls and boys are affected differently by abuse.

Boys are more likely to externalize their response to violence, displaying, for example, increased aggression, delinquency and spousal abuse.

Boys who have been exposed to violence in their homes are more likely to be violent in their adolescent and adult relationships than boys not exposed to violence.

Compared to boys, girls are more likely to internalize their response to violence, and experience, for example, suicidal ideation, eating disorders, low self-esteem and psychological disorders.

What Factors Contribute to Child Abuse?

There are also factors that may increase a child's vulnerability to being abused or compound the effects of abuse.

For example, a child's caregivers may experience barriers that prevent them from acquiring the necessary skills, resources and supports to prevent abuse, or they may lack access to the services and supports they need to address it.

There is increasing understanding that a child's vulnerability to abuse may be increased by factors such as dislocation, colonization, racism, sexism, homophobia, poverty and social isolation.

Most of these children were from marginalized groups in our society including, among others, children with disabilities, children from racial and ethnic minorities, Aboriginal children and children living in poverty.

For example, in the past, many children sent to institutions experienced abuse.

There is no single, definitive cause of child abuse, and any child regardless of age, gender, race, ethnicity, cultural identity, socioeconomic status, spirituality, sexual orientation, physical or mental abilities or personality may be vulnerable to being abused.

A child is usually in a position of dependence on his or her abuser, and has little or no power compared to the abuser.

Many experts believe that child abuse is linked to inequalities among people in our society and the power imbalance between adults and children.

Child abuse is a complex problem and there are many different contributing factors (individual, familial, social).

Based on the data the CIS have, they estimated that there were 135,573 child maltreatment investigations in Canada in 1998 (a rate of almost 22 investigations for every 1000 children in Canada).

The key findings of the CIS include:

Sexual abuse:

Sexual abuse was confirmed in more than one third (38%) of these cases, a rate of 0.86 cases per 1,000 children.

One in ten (10%) investigations in 1998 involved sexual abuse as the primary reason for the investigation.

Neglect:

Neglect was confirmed in 43% of these cases, a rate of 3.66 cases per 1,000 children.

Neglect was the primary reason for investigation in 40% of all cases in 1998.

Emotional maltreatment:

Emotional maltreatment was confirmed in more than half (54%) of these cases, a rate of 2.20 cases per 1,000 children.

In 1998, 19% of all investigations involved emotional maltreatment as the primary reason for the investigation.

Physical abuse:

Physical abuse was confirmed in about one third (34 %) of these investigations, a rate of 2.25 cases of confirmed physical abuse for every 1,000 children in Canada.

In 1998, about one third (31%) of investigations involved physical abuse as the primary reason for the investigation.

In addition to the CIS findings, the 1999 General Social Survey on Victimization(GSS) provides additional information on the extent to which children are exposed to family violence.

The GSS found children in approximately half a million households had either heard or witnessed a parent being assaulted during the five years prior to the survey.

Child welfare workers were able to confirm that the abuse had occurred in almost half (45%) of all cases.

Individuals who witness or suspect that a child is being abused may not report it because they:

Although many cases of abuse are still not reported to either police or child welfare authorities, data from police reports and child welfare authorities is still the most important source of information about child abuse.

They do not know that a report can be made anonymously, and that there are no legal consequences for it, unless the report is false and is made maliciously.

They do not know that they can report to child welfare agencies, provincial or territorial social services departments or police departments

They don't understand their responsibility to report abuse

Lack knowledge about the signs and symptoms of abuse

Believe that reporting may not solve the problem because, for example, there may be a lack of appropriate services to help the child

Believe that reporting the abuse to the authorities is not in the child's best interest

Believe that the abuse is not "serious", especially if the child does not have visible or severe injuries

Have personal views which condone the use of physical punishment

Want to avoid the demands of being "involved"

Prevention of Child Abuse
Make certain your child’s school or day care center will release him/her only to you or someone you officially designate.
Pay attention when someone shows greater than normal interest in your child.
Be alert for any talk that reveals premature sexual understanding.
Teach your child the correct names of his/her private body parts.
Teach your child what to do if you and your child become separated while away from home.
Be aware of changes in your child’s behavior or attitude, and inquire into it.
When your child tells you he or she doesn’t want to be with someone, this could be a red flag. Listen to them and believe what they say.
Teach your child the difference between “good touches,” “bad touches” and “confusing touches.”
Never leave your child unattended, especially in the car.
Participate in your child’s activities and get to know your child’s friends.
Never discipline your child when your anger is out of control.
Types of Child Abuse:
Sexual Abuse

Influence of Substance Abuse:

Men and women serving time in the nation’s prisons and jails report a higher incidence of abuse as children that the general populations.

Nearly one-half of substantiated cases of child neglect and abuse are associated with parental alcohol or drug abuse.

Sexual Assault of Children:

Convicted rape and sexual assault offenders serving time in provincial prisons report that two-thirds of their victims were under the age of 18.

Frequently, the person who sexually molests a child is also a child.

Among rape victims less than 12 years of age, 90% of the children knew the offender, according to police-recorded incident data.

Age-inappropriate sexual knowledge/sexual touch, abrupt change in personality, withdrawn, poor peer relationships, unwilling to change for gym or participate in physical activities, promiscuous behavior/seductive behavior, drop in school performance/decline in school interest, sleep disturbances, regressive behavior for example, bed wetting.

Difficulty in walking or sitting, torn, stained, or bloody underclothing, pain or itching in genital area, bruises or bleeding in rectal/genital area, venereal disease.

This includes:

fondling, sexual intercourse, sexual assault, rape, date rape, incest, child prostitution, exposure, and pornography. It does not matter whether the victim was forced or tricked into any of the above, it is considered sexual abuse.

Any inappropriate sexual exposure or touch by an adult to a child or an older child to a younger child.

Neglectful Abuse

begging or stealing food, frequent sleepiness, lack of appropriate supervision, unattended physical problem or medical needs, abandonment, inappropriate clothing for weather conditions.

constant hunger, poor hygiene, excessive sleepiness, lack of appropriate supervision, unattended physical problems or medical needs, abandonment, inappropriate clothing fro weather conditions.

Failure of parents or guardians to provide needed, age appropriate care including:

as well as supervision appropriate to the child’s development, hygiene, and medical care.

food, clothing, shelter, protection from harm

Emotional Abuse

habit disorders (sucking, biting, rocking), conduct disorders (withdrawal, destructiveness, cruelty), sleep disorders or inhibition of play, behavior extremes (aggressive or passive).

speech disorders, lags in physical development, failure to thrive.

Rejecting, terrorizing, berating, ignoring, or isolating a child, that causes, or is likely to cause, serious impairment of the physical, social, mental, or emotional capacities of the child.

Physical Abuse:

Behavioural Indicators:

Cheating, stealing, lying (a sign that expectations in the home are too high)

Behavioral extremes (aggressive or withdrawn)

Wary of physical contact with adults

Frightened of parents, afraid to go home

Layered clothing.

Physical Indicators:

Unexplained bruises, burns, human bites, broken bones, missing hair, scratches.

They are non-accidental injuries of a child that leaves marks, scars, bruises, or broken bones.

Three Major Components of Child Abuse:
Child + Care Giver + Stress = Child Abuse
Stressors Associated with the Parent:
Mental illness
Unrealistic expectations
Other stresses of any kind
Stress of unemployment
Financial stress
Abused as a child
Emotional immaturity
Alcohol or other drugs
Postpartum depression
Husband uninvolved and critical
Low self-esteem
Divorce
Isolation
Single parent
Spouse is gone much of the time
Stressors Associated with the Child:
An unwanted child

A child that is different; A crying, irritable child

A hyperactive child

A child that reminds the parent or someone they do not like

A low birth-weight child

Gender and Sexuality

Sexualization of Children:
Problems:

Possible sexual abuse

Future stable and committed relationships

Binge drinking for teenage girls

Mental health problems (depression)

Sexualization of children can lead to a variety of problems:

Poor self esteem/worth (objects)

Poor body image

Eating disorders

Children try to emulate what they see in the media:

“ The pressure on children to adopt sexualized appearances and behaviour at an early age is greatly increased by the combination of the direct sexualization of children with the increasingly sexualized representations of teenagers and adults in advertising and popular culture” - The authors of Corporate Paedophilia: Sexualization of Children in Australia.

Children receive messages from clothing, toys and the media, that it is cool to be “hot” and “sexy” by way of its sexual references, intimation or explicit material.

Children are being bombarded with material that is of a sexual nature.

The role models that are around for young children, wear clothes are inappropriate for these kids to wear.

Sexual advertisements are directed and marketed at young girls and boys.

Sexualization is the act or process of sexualizing.

It refers to the making of a person, group or thing to be seen as sexual in nature or a person to become aware of sexuality.

Children are constantly being sexualized at a younger and younger age in the media.
What’s your opinion on the sexualization of children?

I believe that it is such as horrible thing, why would anyone want to sexualize things that kids love, such as their favourite toys, clothing, and many other things. It is also quite stupid of people to normalize this because they are little innocent children.

Bullying:
These stories have been publicized throughout the media in order to bring awareness to this type of bullying and bullying in general.
Recently, various stories have emerged wherein people who were homosexuals were targeted due to their sexuality and sexual preferences.
Bullying has been a big issue when it comes to one’s sexuality and sexual preferences.
Sexuality - A person’s sexual orientation or preference.
Homophobia – irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals, negative attitudes and ill feelings towards LGBTQ2S.
Heterosexual – Sexual orientation to persons of the opposite sex. Homosexuality – Sexual orientation to persons of the same sex.
LGTBQ2S – Is an abbreviation for: Lesbians, Gays, Transgendered, Bisexual, Questioning, 2-Spirited.
Media and Sexuality
The various types of media out there influences how people are portrayed sexually.
We live in a highly sexualized society, which can be seen with the type of media out there.
Gender and sexuality are two very different things and should not be confused.
Parents Keep Child's Gender Secret

I think it is a great idea to do because we should never force children to be what they aren't capable of becoming. We should always support them with whichever gender they choose to be rather then forcing them to be a boy and making them play outside with friends or a girl forcing them to stay inside and help the parents.

Gender – The state of being male or female (typically used with reference to social and cultural differences rather than biological ones).

It is suggested that gender identification is influenced by two main factors:

Innate Identification: (the gender the child innately identifies with)

Socialization: (through modeling of social cues of behaviour based on gender lines)

We live in a society that gender binary: a way of defining people as being either male or female through specific characteristics.

These characteristics include the following:

Gender identity:

is a person's personal sense, and subjective experience, of their own gender.

Research suggests that gender identity is usually formed at age 3 and concludes by age 5.

Gender Expression (hobbies and interests)

Biological Sex (genital identification)

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

Alcohol Spectrum Disorder:
Prevention:

You should instead go to places that alcohol isn't served such as beaches and movies.

You should also avoid drinking situations like going to clubs or parties that have alcohol there.

Drinking water instead of alcohol, as well as water during a meal(could also be juice or any soft drinks).

No alcohol intake

What Causes it?

Other factors that can affect the baby's health & development, includes:

The pregnant woman's nutrition and health

Any medications or Drugs

Smoking

The pregnant woman's age(might be past 40 years)

Stress

The Causes of Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Include:

The impact of alcohol on a developing fetus depends on: How often the pregnant woman has alcohol, whether she knows she's pregnant or not. How much alcohol does the pregnant woman have (ex., day-to-day basis, weekly, monthly, yearly, etc.). As well as when does she usually have alcohol (ie., every evening, only on weekends, only at parties, or only on holidays).

If the birthing parent consumes alcohol during pregnancy, it passes into the developing fetus. This can cause harm to the developing fetus's brain and body.

Symptoms:

Physical Symptoms:

Deformities of joints, limbs, and fingers.

Small head circumference and brain size.

Hearing problems and vision difficulty.

Social and Behavioural Symptoms:

Poor Social Skills, Problems staying on task, and poor concept of time.

Intellectual disability, learning disorders, and delayed development.

Difficulty identifying the consequences of Actions.

Nervous Symptoms:

Poor Memory, Coordination and/or Balance.

Problems with behaviour and impulse control.

Trouble getting along with others.

What is it?

These effects can include physical problems and problems with behaviour and learning.

Alcohol Spectrum Disorders are groups of conditions that can occur in a person who was exposed to alcohol before birth.

About 1 in 9 pregnant women consume alcohol or engage in binge drinking.
What is the Treatment or Prevention of FAS?
Avoid ALL alcohol products while you are pregnant.
Stop consuming alcoholic drinks Before you become pregnant.
FAS and related conditions are 100% PREVENTABLE!
What are the Fetal Alcohol Effects(FAE)?
Mothers who drink moderately or lightly while pregnant may have a child with Fetal Alcohol Effect (FAE)
Less severe set of FAS symptoms.
What are the Characteristics of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome(FAS)?
Thin upper lip and underdeveloped jaw
Small, widely spaced eyes
Small head circumference
Flat mid-face
Abnormally small at birth
Social and behaviour problems
Hyperactivity
Short attention span
Leading cause of mental retardation, or some degree of mental disability.
Drinking alcohol, any kind and any time, during your pregnancy may be harmful.
If you drink while pregnant, your baby will be at risk to be born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is caused by drinking alcoholic beverages while pregnant.

The cause of this birth defect is considered to be “environmental”.